Solo Leveling: Ragnarok

At the center of a vast crater surrounded by melted snow, Liu Zhigang sat limp, his limbs sprawled and powerless. His body was completely fatigued, yet a faint smile on his lips suggested complete satisfaction.

How refreshing.

Finally, the demons within him had vanished. He had drained the very last drop of the ominous mana that had plagued him for the past two years. Perhaps this relief was temporary, but the absence of his headache, for the first time in so long, made him feel as if he could fly.

I see. I should have fought an S-rank hunter from the start.

Until now, he hadn’t had the opportunity to engage in life-and-death combat with S-rank hunters due to a variety of political reasons. Fighting an S-rank from his own country would be a national loss, and provoking an S-rank from another nation could easily escalate into war. However, today he was exceptionally lucky.

Who knew I’d encounter an S-rank villain in a place like this? Even if I lost…

Suddenly, he coughed, blood spilling from his lips. He would be lying if he said he felt no regret. In fact, there were too many regrets to count.

Perhaps I should have conserved my strength. I would have if I’d known this was coming.If I fought again in peak condition, perhaps the outcome would have been different…But then again, I wouldn’t have been able to quiet my inner demons completely then…

Various thoughts flashed through Liu’s mind in the blink of an eye. One thing was certain—he was still very much alive, so much so that he had the luxury to indulge in such reflections.

Liu was speaking Chinese. Suho met his gaze and turned to Rio, who was approaching from behind. “Rio? Tell me what he’s saying.”

“Sure. He’s thanking you for sparing him.”

“Huh? Is that all?” That sounds a little too short.

Suho shot Rio a skeptical look, doubting his translation skills, but Rio only nodded confidently. “Hmm. You really are amazing, Suho. I can’t believe you were strong enough to defeat Liu single-handedly.”

“He was already tired when we started. That’s why I won so easily.”

“Don’t take your modesty too far. When you return to South Korea, make sure to get re-evaluated. A man who could bring down Liu Zhigang being ranked only as a C-rank? That would be a disgrace, even for Liu.”

Rio looked somewhat satisfied as he said this. Today had finally confirmed what he suspected—that Suho was indeed a hunter capable of growing stronger. The world will be so shocked to learn this.Hmm…Maybe I should think about switching guilds.Suho would not refuse an elite hunter like me, and if I join him now, I’d reach vice guild master status in no time at all…

While Rio seriously considered his options, Suho took out a flask of spring water from the Echo Forest and approached Liu.

“What is this…?” Liu, as fatigued as he was, could only drink the unknown potion he was handed.

The effects were immediate. He was startled to see a pair of blue wings spreading from his back. The “demons” within him, which had tormented him for so long, were finally revealing their true form.

The ashen angel, now with spread blue wings, screamed in agony as it tore away from his back. Unlike the energy Liu had felt from Thomas Andre, the aura this gray angel exuded was weak, every ounce of its power drained as it desperately flapped its wings, trying to escape.

“Kieek! Young Monarch, you mustn’t let it escape!”

Before Beru could even finish speaking, Suho grabbed the creature by the neck and swiftly snapped it.

Ding!

[Follower of Itarim has been defeated.]

[Level up!]

[Level up!]

[Level up!]

“All right!” With the series of messages, Suho felt his energy fully restored.

The same was true of Liu as well. As the gray angel’s body disintegrated into specks of light, they reabsorbed into Liu, and astonishment filled his eyes.

What’s this…? The traces left by the follower of Itarim, which he had been rejecting for the past two years, now triggered his memories of a previous life. Two lives, two separate timelines, collided in his head. The impact was staggering.

“Ah…” Liu exclaimed, accepting his memories with surprising ease. The shock was immense, but the relief that followed was even greater. A refreshed laugh escaped his lips.

“Yes, I knew it. I was stronger than I am now. It wasn’t vain ambition that I felt.” He had been the only seven-star hunter in China, the one who used his national-level strength to tear apart the limbs of a massive beast that had crossed the seas to his country. So that was me, Liu Zhigang.

Liu murmured with a hollow expression, “I see now why I had those demons to contend with. The vacancy left by such power…” He felt so lighthearted now that he knew the reason. He also recognized what he had to do next. “Now all that remains is to move forward.”

He knew, of course, that training would not grow his power as a hunter. However, the residue of the demon lingering in his body gave him a faint feeling that he might be able to reach that level again.

“Would you mind giving me a hand?” Liu asked, reaching toward Suho.

Though they didn’t share a language, the Korean hunter understood and grabbed his hand, helping him to his feet.

“Interpreter. Will you tell him my message?”

At Liu’s request, Rio nodded with a resolute look. He did not seem insulted that he, a core asset of the Asura Guild, was being treated as just an interpreter. If anything, he felt honored. This is the first conversation between Liu Zhigang of China and the man who defeated him single-handedly.And this historical moment depends on me. The exchange they were about to have might even be recorded in history books. Rio gulped and steeled himself, determined not to miss a single word.

Liu stared at Suho’s face intently, then grinned. I see it now.So that’s how this young man was able to command such power. In that moment, the resemblance became clear.

Having suddenly gained his memories of the past life, Liu had many questions he wanted to ask, but he decided to ask the most curious and crucial one first. “Let me ask you. Where is your father now, and what is he doing?”

“Rio? What’s he saying?”

“Suho, listen to me. I don’t want you to misunderstand this.”

“What?” Suho asked.

Rio seemed more serious and intent than ever. “Liu is asking about your father. Sociolinguistically, this would be considered a serious insult in Korea, but in China, there’s a chance that it’s just a simple, harmless question…”

“Uh…”

Recently, Rio’s Korean had improved tremendously. It truly showcased his ability as a core talent of the Asura Guild.

***

“I see it now… I understand.”

After a long conversation with Suho, Liu nodded seriously. There had been a minor incident where the interpreter was shocked to hear that time had been turned on its head, but it was explained as a special skill of some sort, which didn’t seem so far-fetched. What mattered more was the current situation.

“So Siddharth Bachchan is likely to have been targeted by the same sort of inner demons as I was,” Liu stated.

“Inner demons” wasn’t the most accurate way to describe followers of Itarim, but it got the meaning across. The key point was that Siddharth likely hadn’t struggled and fought back as he had.

“We National Level Hunters were companions who fought a powerful enemy called Kamish in the past,” he continued. “Although there were some of us who were simply too incompatible to be called friends, we still knew each other’s basic natures.”

He smiled bitterly. “Thomas and I, in particular, were the fighters. Everyone knew that. We were at the height of our power, after all. Not that I could say I’ve changed much, of course.” Liu and Thomas had once been hailed as two of the strongest men in the human race, and their personalities had been fittingly combative. “But Siddharth… He was different. Unlike us, he was a good person.”

“A good person?” Suho asked.

“Yes. A good person and also a hypocrite.”

“A hypocrite?”

“What?!” Rio paused the interpretation. “My guild master isn’t— He’s not… Well… Maybe he is?” He almost lost his temper, but his confidence quickly waned. He suddenly recalled how his boss had smiled while relegating Rio, his talented and loyal employee, to a lesser position.

“Well, most people are like that, to be honest. People are apt to lose themselves when they gain too much wealth and fame. The same applies to power.” Liu gave a pained smile, remembering the countless times he had seen this occur with hunters, both in his current life and the previous one. “And Siddharth, well… He had what you might call a savior complex.”

“A savior complex?” Suho repeated.

“Yes. He always went on about how great power carries great responsibility and how he wanted to help people. In his mind, it was his way of exerting a positive influence. But at his core, he was greedy for honor.”

The biting words caused mixed emotions to flash across Rio’s face. Siddharth was the leader of the Asura Guild and a hero of India, known to be a good man who sought to improve people’s lives. Rio had served alongside him briefly, and knew more about the man than the general public.

“He wishes to ‘save’ people whether they need it or not, because it will boost his own reputation.”

The moment Liu said this, Harmakan came up to Suho. “Master, I’ve taken a look at the mutants…” He pointed to the captured creatures and reported his findings. “They were definitely all humans at some point.”

“What?” Suho’s eyes widened as he stared at the mutants. “Them? Humans? Are you sure?”

“Yes. I’m certain of it. Star Fragments were planted in living people and used as mediums to inject them with dragon blood.”

Suho finally realized what Siddharth, the hypocrite, was up to.

“He seems to be forcibly awakening humans who wouldn’t have otherwise,” Harmakan continued.

A series of shrill sounds suddenly pierced the air. The mutants, whose reason had collapsed as they turned into beasts, were screaming with wretched, desperate cries. They were begging for death.

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