The Crystalline Manticore roared, crystal shards cascading from its rapidly mutating body like deadly rain. Its amber eyes locked onto Kael with an ancient malice that had frozen countless hunters in place. But after seventeen deaths, Kael had learned not to flinch. If anything, the familiar sight made him grip the Crystal Ascendancy''s borrowed spear tighter, the weapon feeling more like an old friend than the awkward tool it had been just hours—and seventeen deaths—ago.


    [Skill: Combat Prediction Activated]


    The familiar notification appeared in his vision as the Manticore''s transformation reached its final stage, exactly as he''d seen before. Crystal plates fused into jagged armor along its back, each segment reflecting the chamber''s dim light like a fractured mirror. Its tail, once merely deadly, elongated into a gleaming, razor-edged spear that hummed with concentrated mana. Raw power pulsed in its throat, promising the same devastation that had atomized him three loops ago.


    "Keep moving!" Kael called out, his voice carrying an authority that surprised even him. Through the corner of his eye, he caught glimpses of his teammates'' confused expressions. To them, he was just an E-rank who''d somehow convinced Marcus to wager his prized spear this morning. They couldn''t know about the seventeen deaths that had forged his newfound confidence, or the countless hours of practice compressed into what they perceived as mere minutes.


    "Isn''t he supposed to be a [Swordsman]?" someone whispered, echoing the earlier confusion from the practice hall. "How''s he handling that spear like a veteran?"


    Enforcer Lee''s sharp eyes narrowed from her position near the wall, her augmented visor likely picking up the impossible changes in his mana pathways. "Focus on the fight. Questions later."


    The Manticore lunged, crystal claws carving deep grooves into stone that Kael had memorized across multiple deaths. He was already moving, Combat Prediction guiding his steps with a precision born from failure after failure. The beast''s tail whistled toward him—a move that had bisected him in loop twelve—but this time he deflected it with a practiced twist of the spear, muscle memory from seventeen deaths flowing through his reformed body.


    [Title Effect Activated: Swordsman Who Should Have Been A Spearman]


    "That stance..." Marcus muttered from his position by the pillars. "I''ve never seen him move like this. It''s like watching a completely different warrior."


    The Manticore pressed forward, each attack deadlier than the last, but Kael matched it step for step. His teammates stood transfixed, watching the E-Rank who could barely swing a sword yesterday now dancing with a C-rank monster like they''d been locked in this deadly waltz for years. In a way, they had been.


    "I thought he trained with a sword for five years," one of the archers whispered. "How''s he better with a spear after one morning?"


    Marcus coughed awkwardly, his earlier confidence wavering. "About that spear... I didn''t exactly lose it in a bet. He knew exactly which weapon to ask for..."


    The Manticore''s wings unfurled suddenly, massive sheets of crystal catching light in a display that had blinded Kael in loop seven. One powerful beat lifted it skyward, and Kael turned to see his team still standing there, mesmerized by the deadly spectacle.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    "What are you doing?" he shouted, genuine fear coloring his voice. He''d watched them die in loop nine. Never again. "Move!"


    [Skill: Dash Level 2 Activated]


    He surged forward as the beast unleashed its mana beam, the skill carrying him clear of the molten trench carved into the cavern floor. Heat seared the air around him, but seventeen deaths had taught him exactly where to step, how to move, when to breathe.


    "Has he reached level 20?" someone called to Lee. "A reawakening?"


    "No," she answered, her augmented vision studying Kael''s movements with professional fascination. "But that spear work... it''s like he''s fought this battle a hundred times. His mana pathways are adapting in real-time."


    The Manticore''s tail caught him with a glancing blow—a mistake born from overconfidence—sending him sliding across stone. Blood filled his mouth as he pushed himself up, reminding him that even with all his accumulated experience, his body was still fundamentally mortal. Each death had taught him something new, but his flesh felt every hit just as keenly as the first time.


    [Combat Prediction] flared a warning of the beast''s next move. He rolled left as crystal claws shattered the ground where he''d been standing. The others finally snapped out of their daze, arrows finding marks in the monster''s armor just as they had in his most successful attempts.


    "Natural talent with a spear," Lee murmured, her telekinetic field flickering with intensity. "Who would have thought? The guild records showed no aptitude..."


    The Manticore circled overhead, studying them with predatory intelligence that Kael had learned to respect through death after death. He recognized that calculating look—seventeen times before. He knew exactly what came next.


    [Skill: Dash Level 2 Activated]


    "Marcus!" he shouted, already moving. "Left wing joint! Third crystal plate from the shoulder!" The archer''s shot struck true, followed by a volley from the others. The beast crashed down with earth-shaking force, exactly as planned.


    Kael didn''t hesitate. Combat Prediction guided his spear to the exact weak point he''d died seventeen times to find. He drove the weapon deep between crystal plates, feeling it sink into flesh in a way his sword never had.


    The Manticore roared in agony, its tail lashing out in retaliation. The impact caught him squarely—a rookie mistake, but one he''d accepted as necessary. As he flew backward, he saw the familiar glow building in its throat. There was no surviving what came next—he''d learned that much at least.


    But this time, as the killing light gathered, Kael smiled through bloodied teeth. He stared into those ancient amber eyes, seeing his own fractured reflection in the crystalline hide one final time.


    "Found it," he whispered, satisfaction filling his voice despite the pain. "Your weak point... right there behind the third plate, where the crystal meets flesh. See you again, you crystalline bastard. And next time? Next time we end this shit, once and for all."


    The light consumed him.


    His eyes opened to the familiar ceiling of his apartment, notifications already appearing:


    [The Nameless One watches with growing intrigue.]


    [Loop Twenty: Active]


    [Skill: Combat Prediction Ready]


    [Title: Swordsman Who Should Have Been A Spearman Active]


    [Note: Evolution continues...]


    Kael sat up slowly, muscles remembering exercises performed across nineteen deaths. His mind was already planning the next attempt, visualizing the perfect thrust that would end this cycle of death and rebirth.


    "Time to go get that spear from Marcus again," he murmured, dropping to the floor to begin his morning routine. "And this time... this time we finish what we started. After all—" he grinned, feeling strength built across multiple lifetimes flowing through his reformed body, "—I''ve got a class change quest to earn."


    In the shadows of his mind, the Nameless One''s ancient laughter echoed with what might have been pride.


    Twenty deaths to win. One final dance to prove worthy of it.