2 A transcendent misunderstanding

''This should be all...''

As he checked all the items he bought and placed in the inventory, Thomas stood in a dark corner to cover himself from the sunlight. He closed his eyes and slowly organized the information in his head. Over the 14 years of training, this was the greatest skill he acquired, a skill that is not born from the system but from his experience. He was back, 8 years in the past, in front of him stood a giant figure, a young mutant werewolf, this was the named monster he faced 8 years ago, the only defeat that was engraved on his soul.

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''UGH''

Beowulf barely managed to avoid the werewolf's claws, wolf-type monsters were known for their impressive stamina and agility, which compensated for their lack of raw strength. However, despite knowing that, Beowulf was barely able to dodge the monster's attack despite anticipating it. A big scar appeared on his chest, a scar that he chose to keep for 8 years in order to remember his failure. But for that Beowulf it was a new injury, something he suffered numerous times in his battles, he quickly regained his stance while extending his right arm, wielding a spear, to pierce the monster's heart.

It was a mistake, The werewolf had already predicted his next move and lured him into close-quarters combat. The spear pierced the air and the monster disappeared before his eyes, appearing behind him and slashing his back. Still, Beowulf remained unshaken as he linked the momentum generated by the thrust of the spear with a ''quick draw'' using the sword in his left hand. His sword finally reached the werewolf's body, but...

*crack*

as it made contact with the werewolf's thick skin, his sword, which had already been damaged in his previous battles, cracked and broke. The next thing he saw was the sky as his head was neatly separated from his body.

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This was the battle that was engraved in Beowulf's mind for 8 years. No matter how much he grew, no matter what variables he introduced, it always ended in a crushing defeat. Thus Beowulf reached a logical conclusion: He was never prepared enough. There is always a chance for victory, no matter how slight, a truly skilled warrior is the one who manages to see that possibility and turn it into a reality, but Beowulf couldn't even see the possibility. This changed as his insight stat increased, every time the stat increased the memory became clearer in his mind and the fight felt more real, it was then that he realized what the main issue was.

''My items and potions were lacking.''

Yes, it was his gear and consumables. The factor he always kept out of the equation as he trained to improve his skills...or so he told himself to forget he was in a collapsing financial status and was barely able to feed himself let alone spend that money on gear and consumables in a game.

But he knew the solution to that problem, it was debt.

Gold: -12,435(under a debt contract with Blacksmith 'Eraf')

After negotiating with multiple blacksmiths, only Eraf had agreed to Beowulf's crazy conditions, rather than a debt contract, it could be said to be akin to an investment made by the blacksmith. In exchange for the gear lent to him by Eraf, he would ensure to return his debt with an interest of 0.05% for every point of durability lost. Although it may sound like a great deal, the debt proposition was a turnoff to many blacksmiths who desired immediate profit, only Eraf, one of the best blacksmiths of Titan, was willing to put himself in such a situation.

''Alright , Here we go!!''

And so he marched towards the foggy forest, the ''Forest of the damned''. It's an open dungeon area where the monsters spawned were about level 120, it was also known to be a special dungeon whose boss is a young werewolf, similar to the one Beowulf fought 8 years ago. Today he was going to face his past, today he would transcend his lim-

''DAMN IT WHY ARE THE MONSTERS SO FUCKING STRONG''

Beowulf felt weird as he realized he struggled against even mob groups, it was not a part of his plan but rather an anomaly.

''Don't tell me...FUCK!''

It was because of the factor that Beowulf had forgotten, although the dungeon was indeed a suitable hunting ground with level 120 enemies, this was not a few years ago, as time moved forward, the average level of the player base increased, and the average level of monsters did too, in fact, what he was facing right now was nothing short of a level 140 mob group.

''Why is my luck always so rotten, was I a fucking playboy in my last li-''

Beowulf shut his mouth as he remembered the sight of his ex-girlfriend, he couldn't even keep one person around him, how could he have been a playboy, it was a dumb thought.

''At any rate, this is completely different...''

Although the mobs were few levels higher than he anticipated, the effect of the mastery's advanced stage master effect was greater than he thought. With all bonuses he enjoyed 60% less wasted time in linking speed, it was a great boost compared to his previous 40%, the attacks naturally connected and followed each other.

'The damage on the other hand...'

Although he was indeed superior in all aspects when it came to techniques and combat, the 50 levels difference and his lacking stats led to his damage being subpar and his survival harder as he needed to continuously dodge attacks to avoid being one-shot.

'I will never understand masochists...'

Beowulf had some weird thoughts as he kept moving forward, his level was steadily rising but he was still 5 levels away from level 100, it was then that weird noises reached him from all around. The scream of a woman resonated in his ears, so he followed the origin of that voice carefully, and as if fate had brought its threads together...

[You have discovered the boss of the open dungeon, Lagrik, a young werewolf]

What stood before him was a weird girl with daggers, swords, and even staves on her side; and his target of revenge, a young werewolf.

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'This piece of shit skill! DAMN IT, DAMN IT.'

the thoughts of the woman, Esther, were chaotic as she was carrying newbies through this dungeon. Her skill duration had reached its limit just when they met the boss, and the whole party, except for her, was slaughtered by the young werewolf.

''You little bitch! If my skill wasn't on cooldown I would have wiped the floor with your ass!''

That's right, she was hopeless, completely hopeless, so she might as well vent before going down against such a weak monster. What class could be that inconsistent that she wouldn't be able to even challenge the low-level enemy despite her high level? It's a hidden class among the soulmancer-type classes, soul collector, a growth class that is degraded from an ancient class, Soul ruler, with the ability to collect the souls of the dead and the enemies that the person kills and then resonate with them, almost as if assimilating, to draw a portion of their power. However, as powerful as it sounds, the class had a fatal flaw; The duration of the 'Resonance' depended on the strength of the selected soul and that of the owner; its Cooldown was proportional to the difference in levels between the summoned soul and the owner. As such, despite its versatility, it was undoubtedly, one if not the most inconsistent skills in Satisfy.

'Fuck...What clients would I get if the party spreads the news about my death now...'

Like Beowulf, Esther worked as a BUS for the rich noobs who joined the game to have fun, but with the current situation, it was unavoidable that she would lose a large part of her clients.

*BAM*

A brilliant silver spear pierced the shoulder of the werewolf, Esther's sign of survival had finally appeared.

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''What's up with this girl? Why is she cussing while trembling? Does she think it's smart to get more aggro in such a situation?''

Beowulf could not understand the situation, the woman before him looked dumb in his eyes. Instead of trying to divert the boss' attention to flee, she was taunting it even more.

''Wait...no way! Does she know I am here and is trying to create an opening??!''

'So that's how geniuses react...'

The woman had naturally attracted the aggro without uttering a word about noticing him, it was a reaction so natural that even Beowulf, with his years of experience, wouldn't be able to fully imitate.

Beowulf thus waited for the right moment, identifying the weak spots of the monster, then the opportunity came.

''Mach spear!''

Mach spear, one of the skills of the spearman class, was one of the earliest skills that Beowulf had acquired through his training with the red knight. Despite not being able to reproduce its full power because of his lacking stats, the weapon and mastery skill made up for that problem. The spear accelerated through the air and pierced the right shoulder of the young werewolf. The werewolf screamed in pain as it tried to remove the spear, it was the effect of the silver. Silver was a lethal weapon against werewolves, if it penetrated through their skin, it would lead to poisoning depending on the depth of the wound and would stagnate their regenerative abilities for a while, it was why Beowulf specifically used ''Mach spear'' to guarantee a deep wound.

''RAWRRRR!!''

However, it had the side effect of awakening the werewolf's berserk state, It was something that Beowulf knew as he had thoroughly researched their weak points and strength.

''The real battle...my revenge... starts now''

A grin covered his face as pulled out a dagger and a sword, it was the thrill of a tough battle that would always make his heart race, the final confrontation of a war that lasted for 8 years.