Solo Leveling: Ragnarok

Astra, tattered and full of holes, disintegrated into ash and scattered across the sky as the battle ended. It almost resembled the gray snow Suho had once seen at the Grave of the Dragons.

Antares watched in silence, his eyes reflecting a swirl of complex emotions. The sight had brought back memories of the war against the shadow army—a war he had ultimately lost.

Antares, the Monarch of Destruction and the King of Dragons, had given Suho his heart. The flame released from it was destruction incarnate.

The heart’s devastating power was so immense that it had left even the Monarch of Shadows, Sung Jinwoo, with permanent scars. Jinwoo was now far beyond the limits of humanity, able to change his age and even his physical form at will, but the burn on his left hand where he had been attacked by Antares was still there, unable to be erased.

Given the sheer effectiveness of this destructive power, it was no surprise that even Astra, an axe forged from the mana of the Outer Gods, had burned away so easily.

Soon, a change came over Siddharth Bachchan’s charred and broken body. The Star Fragments embedded within him shattered, and cracks spread like a web across his form.

The same happened to his soldiers. The dragonkin’s bodies fractured as the mana from the Outer Universes seeped out like blue vapor.

This sudden collapse brought a mocking smile to Antares’ face. It was as though he had anticipated it.

“The fragile balance has tipped. Only dragons are true vessels for dragon blood.” Such a high level of power could not be contained within an inadequate vessel.

The dragon blood suppressed by the Outer God’s mana rebelled, consuming its unworthy hosts in flames. Silent screams accompanied their transformation into ash, which scattered into the air.

Yet in their final moments, their faces seemed almost relieved. Like the dragonkin who had become Suho’s shadow soldiers, they could finally find true peace. Though their bodies and minds had been enslaved by the Outer Gods, their souls had been in torment.

“How convenient. Their dragon blood will serve as Ragna’s food. It will increase his mana somewhat,” muttered Antares, opening his stubby arms wide and breathing in. Red mana streamed out from the bodies of the fallen dragonkin and flowed into Ragna’s small form.

“Bloodstones?” Esil murmured curiously from afar, cocking her head.

Antares noticed her gaze and clicked his tongue in irritation. “Do not compare it to those inferior bloodstones of the demon nobles. Dragon blood is vastly superior to that of any other race. The amount of mana in it is much greater, and the mana itself is more potent and pure.”

“But aren’t the dragons all dead now, except for Ragna?”

With his sharp eyes practically murderous, Antares glared at Esil. Still, facts were facts. Just as she was the last remaining demon noble, Ragna was the only remaining dragon.

His glare was so vicious, however, that Esil quietly looked away and sought refuge near Suho.

“Suho! Are you all right?”

“I’m fine…”

“Are you really?”

Despite Esil’s worry, Suho was indeed unharmed. Upon leveling up, he had been freed from all status effects, and the Heart of the King of Dragons no longer radiated heat.

There was, however, the minor inconvenience that his clothes had been entirely burned away. He resolved this by purchasing new clothes from the shop window.

As Suho dressed, the shadow aura that had been swirling around him and strategically covering vital areas coalesced and transformed into Beru.

Tears streamed down the shadow ant’s face as he massaged Suho’s shoulders. “Kieeeek! Young Monarch, you are truly remarkable! Please forgive this unworthy servant, who could do nothing but watch as you endured such pain!”

“It’s fine,” Suho said with a shrug. “It was for the experience points. What could you have done?”

“Indeed, my lord speaks the truth. How could I ever hinder your growth?”

Look at youtalk, Suho thought.

Beru wasn’t wrong. After all, the shadow ant was Jinwoo’s shadow soldier, not Suho’s. If he had intervened, Suho’s experience gains would have been compromised—not that his help would’ve guaranteed much of a difference. ṜΆ𐌽ꝋᛒĘS

Suho continued to study Beru. I’ve been giving him a lot of mana crystals, but he’s just as small as ever…

It wasn’t that Beru hadn’t recovered any mana. Suho knew why the ant had remained miniature despite clearly recovering some of his power. He was conserving every last drop of mana he could, trying to prevent it from leaking from his body.

This left Suho with a burning question: Just how strong was Beru in the past? Suho himself had grown significantly, but he still couldn’t gauge the extent of the shadow ant’s full power. That either meant Beru was talented at hiding it, or Suho’s sense stat was nowhere near being able to identify what he was capable of.

“Kiek? Young Monarch, why are you looking at me like that?”

Suho was silent. I still have a long way to go, he thought.

Shaking his head, he turned his attention to Esil. “Have you found any trace of the demons?”

“Yes. As you suspected, there seems to be a factory nearby.” Separate from the large-scale battle that had taken place, Esil had been focusing all her senses on detecting demonic energy.

“I knew it,” Suho said.

It would have been strange for there to be no demons near a place where so many Star Fragments could be found. One of the main ingredients of the Star Fragments embedded in the bodies of the dragonkin was demon blood. Only demons could provide that.

Esil, the last demon noble, bore the duty of uniting her scattered kin and restoring the demon realm. She also faced the grim task of destroying those who were too far taken by the control of the Outer Gods.

I’m still too weak, she thought. I need to regain my former power to be of any use to Suho.And then…

Esil gulped. She had realized something as she watched Suho’s battle. He was growing far faster than the speed at which she was recovering her power, though she had been S-rank by human standards. If Jinwoo’s son was this powerful, it was hard to imagine just how amazing Jinwoo—the man who was fighting the Itarim head-on in the Outer Universes—had to be.

Also, just how formidable were these Itarim, the beings who were proving to be such a match for Jinwoo that he hadn’t been able to come home all this time? Watching Siddharth’s axe, Esil got a brief glimpse of the power of the Itarim. The thought of it alone made her shudder.

To shake off the fear, she made a firm resolution once again: If only to ease Jinwoo’s burden, I must recover my own power and inherit the strength of the Monarch. She needed the strength of Baran, the Monarch of White Flames and the King of Demons. And to inherit his power, her first priority was to gather the demons who had scattered throughout the dimensional rift.

With her finger, Esil followed the traces of demons she had discovered. “With so many soldiers in one place, it was a bit confusing, but it seems like it’s this direction. The energy of the demons cuts off in the middle, so it’s highly likely that there’s a factory hidden in the dungeon.”

“Then the dungeon must be a fragment of the demon realm,” Suho surmised.

“Yes.”

Suho nodded and turned his body in the direction Esil had pointed. Seeing this, she hurriedly asked, “Are you thinking of going right now?”

“Sure. Why not?”

“We don’t know what’s beyond the gate. Shouldn’t we prepare—”

“We’ll get ready now, then.”

As he spoke, Suho’s gaze shifted to the side. There lay the body of Siddharth Bachchan, turned into black ash.

[Target is eligible for shadow extraction.]

Suho grinned. “That’s a relief. I was worried that his soul might be corrupted, and I wouldn’t be able to extract it.” Siddharth would be weaker as a shadow soldier, but Suho could already imagine how invaluable someone like him could still be.

The shadow rippled like boiling lava in front of him, screaming as though it were a demon clawing its way out of hell. There was no way to tell what that scream meant. Was the seething rage directed at Suho, the one who had killed him? Or was it resentment toward the Itarim, the beings who had deceived him?

At least Suho could confirm one thing. “Do you want to live again?” he asked.

In response to his question, the wailing grew even louder.

Smirking, Suho extended his hand toward the shadow. “There’s a lot I want to ask you. Arise.”

[Attempting shadow extraction.]

[Extraction attempt in progress…]

A soft chime rang out.

[The shadow extraction failed.]

“Damn it!” Suho muttered, his grim expression breaking for a moment. He hadn’t expected this. I had a good feeling about it, too.

Antares snickered beside him. “I’m proud of him. He poured dragon blood into himself in an attempt to become my successor. It wouldn’t suit him to submit to your shadow army so easily.”

[Two more chances remaining.]

Ignoring Antares, Suho commanded again, “Arise.”

Ding!

[The shadow extraction failed.]

[One more chance remaining.]

Suho’s eyes stayed locked on Siddharth’s endlessly rippling shadow.

Antares grinned wider. “That tells me one thing for sure. You may be the son of the Monarch of Shadows, but you are nowhere near as powerful.”

Beru let out an indignant screech. “How dare you insult the Young Monarch! My lord, do not let his shallow taunts affect you! He’s only using the truth to provoke you! Failing an extraction means there’s a significant stat gap between you and the target. It’s hardly your fault!”

For some reason, the ant’s attempts at consolation were more irritating than Antares’ mockery.

A stat gap, huh? Suho knew what this meant. There was no point in getting carried away by his pride. I was only able to kill Siddharth because of the effect that Antares gave me. Siddharth, now reduced to a charred corpse, had no reason to submit willingly to Suho.

Butwhat of it? There was only one fact that mattered now. I have earned the right to be the King of Dragons.

Suho had won the heart as a reward for defeating the Trial of the King of Dragons, fair and square. He placed his hand on his chest, feeling the powerful pulse of the heart.

With confidence and authority, he issued a final command to Siddharth Bachchan.

“Arise.”

At that moment, a fierce energy surged from the Heart of the King of Dragons, and Siddharth’s soul roared in response.

“Graaaahhh—!”

I, the son of the great Monarch of Shadows and one qualified to be the King of Dragons,command you to rise and bow before me,you half-dragon who sought to be a true one.

“From now on, your name will be Sita,” Suho declared.

Ding!

[The Shadow Extraction was a success.]

Over the charred remains, a fierce black shadow swirled. It twisted and intertwined, forming a pair of massive black wings resembling those of a dragon. Smoke rose around the colossal form, a fusion of wyvern, naga, true dragon, and human. The energy radiating from this soldier was far greater than any shadow dragonkin Suho had seen before.

[Sita - Level 1 - General Grade]

“I answer your summons, noble one.”

With his grand wings trailing to the ground, Sita bowed deeply before Suho, his entire form wreathed in blazing fire.

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