Solo Leveling: Ragnarok

Someone once said that the greatest luxury was being able to give.

By that measure, Ali Hassan was a man of luxury. Raised on the streets, he returned to visit the slums whenever he could, even after becoming a hunter.

Haha!Here I am again,you beggars!

He never went empty-handed. Every time, he’d bring a truckload of bread. From atop the truck, he’d toss bread to the crowd, basking in his own display of generosity.

You see that?You see how rich I am?Take this and eat it, you idiots!Haha!

“Philanthropy?” “Noblesse oblige?” Ali had never learned such complicated words. He didn’t give to help others—he gave to flaunt. It was the only reason he’d begun giving at all. These bits of bread made no dent in the money that he earned in the dungeons as a hunter, no matter how many truckloads he emptied onto the street.

However, for all his boasting, there was one thing Ali never did. While he gave them food, he would never give them money. If I gave them money, they’d fight over it.Thugs would swarm here from all over once they heard. He gave just enough to keep hunger at bay and dull the fear of starvation for one more night. He understood how the slums worked better than anyone, and knew just which threshold to maintain.

However, the population of the slums began to dwindle at some point. Ali noticed more bread was left over each time he returned. By the time he caught on, most of the beggars had already disappeared.

“I couldn’t confirm whether they were simply gone, or if magic beasts had gotten to them,” he said, his voice uneasy.

Ali, who had been explaining everything to Suho through Rio’s interpretation, swallowed hard. In front of him were the dragonkin, battered and motionless in the mud, their faces nearly unrecognizable. Beru had tracked them to the slums, and now Suho stood over one with his boot pressing down on its head. His eyes were icy.

“Let me ask you a question. Who are you?”

The creature’s reptilian eyes glinted, studying Suho with cautious obedience. These creatures were an eerie mix of reptile and human, with gleaming Star Fragments embedded in their bodies. Of course, Suho already knew who they were without needing to ask.

[Mutant No. 13]

[Mutant No. 13]

“Thirteen, huh? So at higher numbers, they can speak? I guess the experiments are still ongoing,” he muttered.

“Tsk.” Antares, perched on Suho’s shoulder, sneered at the sight. Seeing them had made him even more certain.

[Rakan frowns, remembering the humans who turned into werewolves after drinking Gray’s blood.]

“Yes. I would say this is similar.” Suho pressed down harder on the creature’s head. “Rio, translate this. ‘Are you from the Church of the Outer Gods?’”

“We do not know!” said one of the mutants with a growl.

“Where have you been taking your captives?”

“We don’t know! We know nothing!”

Ghostly light poured from their eyes as they hissed.

Iron and Greed, former priests of the Church of the Outer Gods—even a high priest, in Greed’s case—recognized the light.

Greed whispered to Suho, “They are already under the spell of the Star Fragments.”

“If their minds are this far gone, the only choice is to kill them,” Iron added.

Suho agreed. There was no point in pressing on.

“All right. I’ll ask your souls directly, then.” He crushed their heads without hesitation, extracting their shadows immediately. “Take me to your base of operations.” ℝåℕỐBЁṢ

***

Transformed into shadow soldiers, the dragonkin guided Suho and his party to their hideout without resistance.

“The Kubera Guild?” Ali Hassan muttered, eyes widening as he recognized the name while following the group.

“Do you know them?” Suho asked.

“I’ve heard of the name, but nothing more. They’re a small guild, barely ten members.”

According to Ali, there were a total of seventeen guilds active in Imphal, and aside from the midsize Imphal Guild, most were small operations with around ten members.

The power of a guild, of course, could not be measured by its headcount alone. There were guilds like Suho’s Woojin Guild with powerful leaders, or elite teams where each member possessed the strength of a hundred lesser hunters. Even so, up against these guilds, Suho’s party was unlikely to face defeat.

They broke through the wall, bypassing any doors, and strode inside.

“Wh-who’s there?”

The mutants inside jumped to their feet, ready for a fight, but Suho and the others were watching something else.

“My goodness…” Ali’s knees buckled as he sank to the floor.

It was less a prison than it was a chicken coop for humans. The bars were crooked, the cells small and worn. Huddled beggars filled each cage, Star Fragments glinting where they had been forcibly implanted in their bodies. Their skin was beginning to turn scaly in places, a sign of reptilian transformation from the experimentation done in this grim laboratory.

A certain emotion hardened in Suho’s chest. “Harmakan?”

“Yes, Master.”

“Kill them all.”

[Harmakan has activated an instance dungeon.]

Without mercy, Harmakan massacred the hunters of the Kubera Guild, turning them into experience points for Suho. Afterward, he carefully inspected the captive beggars and reported back. “Fortunately, most haven’t fully adapted to the implants. I should be able to remove the Fragments safely.”

“Good,” Suho replied, but his tone remained cold.

Despite the success, Ali confirmed that the number of rescued beggars could not account for all who had vanished. “The same thing must be happening in the other small guilds! While ours operates independently as a midsize guild, most small ones have long since fallen under the Asura Guild.”

“Then we’re running out of time.”

As he watched this unfolding horror in silence, Liu Zhigang’s eyes smoldered with quiet fury. His rage seemed rooted in the memories of the past life he could now recall. At least back then, there had been some semblance of honor. The competition between guilds had been fierce, but humanity had banded together against the monsters.

“How vile. Humans experimenting on other humans, turning them into monsters… In our day, that would have been unthinkable.” With those words, Liu drew his blades.

***

There was a crash in the office of the Rama Guild, another of Imphal’s small guilds.

“Who’s there?”

“L-Liu Zhigang?!”

The Rama hunters froze when they recognized the menacing intruder standing in their office.

“I will ask you a question. Are you with the Church of the Outer Gods?” Liu asked.

“What… What do you mean?”

“Taking your time to answer, are you? Perhaps losing an arm will make you respond faster.” He drew his swords.

“Ah…!”

Th-that’s actually Liu Zhigang! When Liu drew his twin swords, the Rama hunters exchanged a glance, then scattered in all directions, their reptilian tails trailing behind them.

Liu nodded grimly. “Fine. Legs, then.”

In a flash of metal, the mutated hunters crumpled, blue blood spraying in graceful arcs.

“Oh, god!”

“M-my legs!”

No longer human, they writhed on the floor, unable to flee as Liu gave chase to whichever creatures ran the opposite way.

***

While Liu was merciless, Esil took a gentler approach.

“Excuse me,” she said with a polite knock. “Is this the Chandra Guild?”

Demons were a race capable of understanding and communicating, and it was no different in India. Of course, just because they shared a common language didn’t guarantee a smooth conversation.

The door opened, and a cautious hunter eyed Esil suspiciously. “Yes, it is. What’s your business here?”

“Have you ever kidnapped beggars off the streets, you piece of sh*t?”

“Hey! Why are you being rude all of a sudden?”

“You’re wearing that necklace.”

It was now common knowledge that the main ingredient of Stardust was demon blood. Esil released a pulse of noble demon energy as she realized what the hunters’ Stardust necklaces meant.

“Remove that necklace, if you can. If not, I’ll assume you’re from the Church of the Outer Gods.”

“The Church of the Outer Gods…?”

“Or, alternatively, you can curse the Itarim,” Esil added with a grin.

The hunters had turned immediately vicious at the mention of the Church of the Outer Gods, their pupils taking on a reptilian look.

“Who is this b*tch?!”

They lunged at her, and she nodded. “Good,” Esil replied calmly. “That means I can kill you.” While Liu was a merciless swordsman, she was a demon—one of the purest of true demons.

“Aaagh!”

“S-spare me…!”

Esil did not bother to acknowledge their cries, swiftly slaughtering all those who resisted and handing their bodies over to the shadow soldiers behind her. “Send them to Suho,” she ordered. Then turning to a hidden chamber in the corner of the Chandra Guild’s hideout, she sighed. “And tell Harmakan there are more beggars here. Be as quick as you can.”

***

Suho’s group was swift and relentless. Half a day was all it took—in just that time, they raided every minor guild active in Imphal and purged every hunter who had been corrupted. Anyone who resisted had been killed without mercy. Afterward, they were transformed into shadow soldiers to help uncover other hideouts. They successfully managed to rescue everyone who was subjected to the horrific experiments.

Harmakan’s skill in reversing the effects of Star Fragments was crucial. Most people still undergoing experiments had their Star Fragments removed without major complications.

Harmakan explained, “I believe the experiment itself was meant to acclimate their bodies to dragon’s blood and the Star Fragments. Only after the subjects fully adapt does a result emerge, whether it be a success or a failure.” Once the experiment showed results, there was no longer any need to keep the subjects captive. “If they were failures, they were turned into mindless magic beasts like those Mutant No. 8s and dumped outside the city.”

“And if they were successes, they became creatures like these ones, right?” Liu asked.

Perhaps Suho’s group had caused a little too much ruckus as they rescued the captives. Before they knew it, they found themselves surrounded by a vast number of dragonkin.

“Where did all these guys come from?” Esil muttered.

Suho’s eyes flashed as he glared forward. It was obvious where they had been—waiting where it was most comfortable for those implanted with Star Fragments.

“The void,” Suho said. Somewhere in the city, there was a hidden void gate.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!