Solo Leveling: Ragnarok - Chapter 128

There was a whoosh, and Suho blinked. He had returned to reality.

The first thing he noticed was a flower made of frost floating above the steaming water of the spring. Sirka’s quiet voice resonated from within. “Suho… I think I just met my grandfather,” she said.

“What?” Don’t tell me… Is Sirka the granddaughter of the Monarch of Frost?

There was a sudden crack as the flower unfurled its petals, ice crystals flying in all directions. Sirka’s form was revealed, and at the same time, the frost flew into her hand and coagulated.

Ding.

[The Monarch of Frost and the King of the Snow Folk transfers his item, “Trident of the Ice Tree,” to his successor, “Sirka.”]

A long object made of ice rose from Sirka’s palm. It was a trident.

“Incredible! This energy… Can it be?” Beru, who had no idea what Suho had just seen, quickly stepped in front of the hunter as if to shield him.

“It’s all right,” Suho said, taking the shadow ant in his arms to calm him. “She’s on our side.”

“Eh?” Beru cocked his head as he looked up at Suho. He seemed to realize what was going on when he saw the confidence in the hunter’s eyes.

Sirka, who had been staring off into space, finally seemed to be able to refocus her eyes. She turned her gaze and looked into the distance, then swung the trident, pointing beyond the blizzard that blocked their vision. “Now, I see. I know where Cha Cha is.”

The blizzard suddenly seemed to be sucked toward the trident, the energy circling Suho and Sirka and lifting them into the air. Sirka’s eyes gleamed, and she gave a confident smile. “Hold on tight. We’re flying there right now.”

Soon, they were flying above Echo Forest, leaving a long trail of frost in their wake.

***

The hunters of the Scavenger Guild were wallowing in fear and despair as a natural disaster unfolded before their eyes. The ground rumbled, and the sky above the freezing forest seemed ready to fall upon their heads.

The Scavenger Guild was known as the greatest guild in the United States, and they lived up to that reputation. They had cleared many an infamous dungeon, including places that other guilds would not even dare to set foot in. But the sight in front of them far eclipsed anything they’d seen in the past. The hunters were positive that they would not survive this, and their despair was impossible to put into words.

Dragons? Impossible! one hunter thought.

Indeed, two dragons had appeared out of nowhere and were now locked in a fierce battle. The most that the hunters could do, as they were caught in the throes of the battle, was scramble. Simply being nearby was enough to threaten their lives.

“Damn it! What the hell is this?!”

“Guild Master! Please! Where in the world are you?”

“If we only had Thomas…”

All they could do was grasp at straws and wait for one person to show—Thomas Andre, the greatest hunter humanity had ever produced. If their guild master appeared, he could resolve everything. Their pleas were akin to prayers, and praying was all they could do at the moment.

Being an S-rank hunter, Thomas should have easily sensed the chaos. But it didn’t seem likely that he would show up anytime soon, despite the entire forest being shaken to the core.

“Oh, please, Thomas! Thomas!”

There was something that the desperate hunters had failed to recognize. Thomas was not ignoring their prayers and refusing to show up—in fact, he had been here from the start. Of course, this was not something that they could have guessed. Only one person had noticed, and that was Cha Haein.

“Ugh! What is he doing here?” Ever since she entered the fray, Haein had a confused look on her face. She had been exploring the anomalies in the Echo Forest with Kaisel when she was brought in this direction, sensing an incredible presence that had appeared out of nowhere. She quickly discovered the creature responsible—an Ice Dragon. The massive, fearsome being was created by the forest’s spirits, akin to the Ice Golems.

The Echo Forest was the forbidden woods of the ice elves and had another name—the Forest of Trials. The spirits that occupied it would seize upon any being that trespassed and give them a trial befitting their power. The stronger the being was, the more spirits that would congregate to match it. Those who failed to withstand the trial would forfeit their bodies and be possessed. They would be forever imprisoned in ice, neither alive nor dead.

This aspect of the trials only applied to the ice elves, of course. The elves had a great affinity for spirits and often dealt with them without issue. But it was also far easier for them to lose their bodies to the spirits if overtaken.

It was not the same case for humans. From what Haein had seen thus far, humans lacked an affinity with spirits, and they didn’t need to worry about losing their bodies to these trials. It was still possible for large numbers of spirits to show up to fight them, however.

So why is this happening? Haein had been deeply puzzled for some time now. Fighting the Ice Dragon at close range, she’d been able to pick up—or rather, get a whiff—of something. A strange smell was mixed with that of the Ice Dragon.

Studying the creature through narrowed eyes, Haein soon discovered something astonishing. In the deepest part of the dragon made of solid ice, there was a man whose body had been taken by the spirits. It was an old man with white hair—the strongest man on earth, with impressive muscles that contradicted his age.

Haein recognized him immediately. Thomas Andre!Why is he here, and why is he in the form of an Ice Dragon?

The dragon, holding Thomas where its heart should be, roared and collided with Kaisel. As he fought back, Kaisel gave a rumble that sounded quite tired.

“Kaisel!” Haein looked down at the dragon with pitying eyes.

This is not good, she thought. His power was growing weaker by the minute. This weakening had been ongoing for a very long time, even without enduring battles to accelerate it even further. Their distance from Jinwoo meant he had no way to replenish his energy. As Kaisel fought this Ice Dragon, which was equal to him in power, his energy was fading rapidly.

Kaisel will die if I let this drag on any longer! If Jinwoo were nearby, then the dragon would be unsummoned and return to his shadow, where he could focus on recovery. But even that was impossible at the moment.

We need to act fast… That is the only way.And I need to do it myself. Haein jumped off the dragon’s back and brandished her two energy-coated daggers, slamming them into the Ice Dragon’s body mercilessly. There was a massive screech of grinding ice as the dragon’s body broke and split apart. However, its wounds disappeared as soon as more snow blew across them. New spirits were entering the Ice Dragon and healing it.

I’ll run out of energy at this rate!Is attacking Thomas directly the only way? But even that would not be an easy task. The Ice Dragon’s body wasn’t made of ordinary ice, but rather thick layers that were each infused with massive amounts of mana—which meant it had an immense level of defense. In addition, no matter how many times she broke through the ice, more spirits would show up and undo the damage. If it had been an ordinary Ice Golem, she could have simply crushed it entirely before more spirits came, but this dragon was far too big. Attacking only part of it was no use, either. If she destroyed one side and started on the other, the first side would be healed before she was done.

I need to pierce the heart with the strongest attack I can manage. She jumped on Kaisel’s back again, quickly crossing her daggers. She then summoned her mana, the air buzzing around her. This was the skill “Sword of Light.” It used up so much mana that it was only suitable as a final, desperate move. Her daggers began to glow with a radiant light.

I only get one chance to do this! Her eyes glowed coldly. “Kaisel! Make an opening for me!” she shouted.

Kaisel had been fighting with her for a long time, and he understood her intent right away. Roaring, he stuck close to the much larger Ice Dragon, even despite the risk of taking damage. The Ice Dragon fired a frosty breath, which hit Kaisel’s body, but Haein’s dragon did not back down. His only goal was to ensure that her ultimate strike did not miss.

Thank you, Kaisel. At the moment Kaisel let out a howl, Haein’s skill flew right toward the heart of the Ice Dragon, where Thomas Andre slumbered. Enormous mana waves radiated from her attack. Forgive me, Thomas Andre, she thought.

A plethora of memories flitted through her mind at that moment. Thanks to Jinwoo, Haein remembered a life that was no more, and she knew very well who Thomas was. He had once been the pillar of the United States’ military power, and one of the strongest humans to ever live. He had also fought to save Earth from alien invaders, but that timeline no longer existed. In this life, he was supposed to be nothing more than an ordinary human being. But he was here, and there were heavily armed hunters nearby. By that alone, Haein could guess at a great many things.

People with mana… Don’t tell me people have awakened their powers again?If that’s the case, what has happened to my husband? She recalled the image of Jinwoo’s retreating back, the last time she had seen him before she fell into this place. Is hestill fighting?Allby himself?

Even as she wondered, her skill was piercing the mammoth creature and digging into its icy body with a screeching crack. Just a little further! She would soon reach Thomas, who was frozen in its heart. Just a little more…

Suddenly, the guild master opened his eyes within his casing of ice. Haein’s own eyes widened as she noticed the blue, ghostly energy in them. He gazed at the splendid light surrounding her daggers and grinned evilly. “Itarim, guide me.”

There was a blinding flash of light and a deafening sound. The light spread out in all directions like a shockwave, swallowing everything it touched.