Solo Leveling: Ragnarok - Chapter 131

The blue smoke that rose from Thomas’ body formed a pair of wings. The follower of Itarim was now in full view, and it was a strange sight indeed. It was too disgusting to be an angel, but too holy to be a demon. It was an ashen giant with blue wings, with a horribly contorted smile on its face.

“It seems to be a follower that is higher in rank than the Mad Blood Tyrant!” Beru said, quickly scanning the being. He had once told Suho that the Monarchs of this world, as well as the Fragments of Brilliant Light, had been created by an Itar—also known as the Absolute Being. That meant the Monarchs and the Fragments were essentially identical to the followers, despite their differing names.

But different creators meant differences in their creations. After all, Sung Jinwoo, the Greatest Fragment of Brilliant Light and the Monarch of Shadows, had been far superior to the other Monarchs and Fragments. In the same way, the followers of Itarim also showed differences in their power.

There was also a key difference between the followers of each side—the number of entities that had been created. In this world, the Absolute Being had created and empowered only the eight Monarchs and the eight Fragments, born of the primordial darkness and the primordial light respectively. This meant there were only sixteen in total. The Itarim in the Outer Universes, however, had created anywhere from dozens to hundreds of followers, sharing their power with them. Naturally, such followers were weaker than the Rulers and Monarchs of this world.

Even the Itarim, who seemed omnipotent, had finite power. Just as the Absolute Being that had created this world was defeated by his own creations, there was an end to all power. In other words, the Itarim were equal to the Absolute Being, the Fragments of Brilliant Light were equal to the Monarchs, and the followers of the Outer Universes were inferior to the Monarchs and Fragments.

The Fragments of Brilliant Light and Monarchs of this world, while limited in number, each had immense power invested in them. The followers of the Itarim from the Outer Universes, on the other hand, were weaker because they were more numerous. In particular, the ones that had snuck into this world secretly were even less powerful. If stronger ones had left the battlefield secretly, Sung Jinwoo would have been the first to notice and shut them down.

“And so…” Beru said.

Suho glared at the follower and nodded. “Yes. This is doable.”

The odds were not against them. Even if this follower was a level higher than the Mad Blood Tyrant, Suho currently had the blessing of the dead Monarchs with him. Thomas Andre was also here, having just recovered his sanity, and there was his mother. That was two S-rank hunters.

The oncoming battle was not the biggest problem, however.

“The sky is falling!” Sirka screamed as she stared up. Cracks, fanning out like a cobweb, were appearing in the sky around the follower.

[Sillad warns you that the dimensional walls will fall at this rate!]

[Rakan explains that this is why they borrowed human bodies to descend on Earth.]

The sky rumbled and roared.

“Young Monarch! The Glacier Dungeon is unable to withstand the spiritual body of the follower of Itarim, and is about to crumble!”

Such powerful beings needed considerable amounts of time to accomplish interdimensional travel while retaining all their power, since their destination world might not be able to handle all of it. That was why they chose to possess the bodies of other beings. This was why the Monarchs of the previous timelines had come to Earth in this way. The follower from the demon realm had taken the Mad Blood Tyrant’s body for the same reason.

“I don’t know what exactly you’re talking about, but…” Thomas, who’d heard Beru’s words from the front, crouched with a scowl on his face. “The point is, we need to kill that thing as quickly as possible. Yeah?”

Thomas jumped into the air without hesitation, launching himself at the blue-winged giant. He moved to the top of the follower’s head in no time at all and slammed down powerfully with both hands. The giant simply blocked the attack with an arm, but Thomas wasn’t done.

“How dare you!” He grabbed the arm and twisted it, bashing the winged giant into the ground in a show of superhuman strength. There was a loud crash as the huge angel dropped into the middle of the Echo Forest.

Thomas dropped on top of its head, brandishing his fist. “How dare you make me serve your disgusting god!” He felt offended. Thomas was an atheist, and the thought that he had truly worshiped some unknown god for even the briefest of moments humiliated him to no end.

An incredible barrage of attacks ensued. The follower of Itarim did not seem able to attack back.

However, the follower, laying on the ground, suddenly bared his teeth in a hideous smile. A ray of destructive energy, not unlike a Dragon’s Breath attack, shot out of its mouth at Thomas. He instinctively blocked by crossing both arms, but the mana armor that covered his body was melting rapidly. The situation was desperate.

[Skill: “Storm Slash” has activated.]

Suho arrived in just the nick of time, launching his skill at the giant’s head. The destructive beam swayed away from Thomas. He was sent flying backward, and Haein jumped in, taking his place and resuming the attacks. In the meantime, Suho found Thomas and fed him some potions.

“Ugh… Is that your mother?” Thomas asked.

“Yes.”

“She’s an S-rank hunter? What is this potion, by the way?” Thomas’ eyes widened as his wounds healed.

In the meantime, Haein returned, evading the beam that the giant was firing again. She shouted at Thomas, “I can’t take it alone! Help me out when you’re ready!”

“Will do.”

The giant, which had resumed its real form, was far stronger than it had been inside Thomas’ body. As a result, the dimension was falling apart—though apparently, it didn’t want that, either. It was now combing through the forest, looking for a new host. It couldn’t target Thomas or Haein, who had taken the Echo Forest Spring Water, so it needed a different body. As the lush trees were trampled and felled, the giant discovered a location teeming with life.

“N-no! Our village is in that direction!” Sirka screamed.

Beru turned to Suho gravely. “Young Monarch, not just anybody can serve as a vessel for the likes of such a being. A weak pot will shatter. In much the same way, weaker beings will be consumed as soon as the follower enters their bodies.”

Suho recalled the mist burn. Though it was on a different scale, the way the blue fog slowly burned and killed was very similar. “We’ll chase it and recover as we go,” Suho said, eyeing Sirka.

The elf immediately raised the Trident of the Ice Tree and shouted, “Hold on tight! We’re going to ride the blizzard!” They all gripped the weapon, and a blast of cold wind blew toward them, carrying them to the giant.

In the meantime, Haein began to charge up her Sword of Light once more. Suho noticed the daggers that she’d been holding for some time. The ice elves had given them to her after she fell into this place unarmed.

They’re not at all suited for an S-rank hunter to use. He held out Vulcan’s Horns to her. “Mother, I’ll use the bow. You can take these and—”

However, it seemed that Beru had finally taken notice of the weapons after hearing Suho speak. His eyes went wide with confusion. “No! Lady Haein! How is it that you’ve been fighting with such garbage weaponry? What of your necklace?”

“What necklace?” Haein said, puzzled.

Beru put a hand on his ant forehead as if realizing some mistake. “I don’t believe it! C-come to think of it, your husband gave you the necklace, but you were never told how to use it. My gracious!”

“What do you mean?” Haein looked down at her necklace. Jinwoo had given it to her for their sixteenth wedding anniversary. This very necklace had the intriguing feature of allowing her to understand the speech of the ice elves. Wait, does this thing have more functions? she wondered.

Beru pointed to the necklace and began to explain. “This is an artifact created with great care by the bearded dwarves. Your husband engraved it with special runes for your sake!”

“Special runes? What special runes?”

“R-repeat after me!” The shadow ant’s eyes flashed as he said slowly, “In-ven-tory.”

“I-inventory?” Haein stammered. Suddenly, there was a flash as a series of translucent system windows slid into her view. Her eyes became as wide as saucers as she realized what items were inside. “No way!”

After the titans, who were followers of Itarim, attacked Earth, Jinwoo had realized that a similar event could happen again someday. As a result, he’d created this feature-packed necklace for his beloved wife, just in case. Even if he happened not to be on hand, it would allow her to protect herself. The first feature of the custom-made necklace was that it allowed her to communicate with other races. The second was that it enabled her to utilize a mystical storage system—the inventory.

“Our soldiers gathered gifts for you and put them inside. One of them is—” Beru stopped himself when a blue sword appeared in Haein’s hand.

Suho’s eyes widened. He could see the item’s information.

[Item: Demon King’s Longsword]

[Acquisition Difficulty: S

Type: Sword

Attack Power +350

A longsword that contains the power of Baran, the King of Demons. The “Storm of White Flames” effect activates every time it is swung.

Effect “Storm of White Flames”: Creates a storm of endless lightning within a given area.]

“D-don’t tell me this is the weapon that once belonged to the King of Demons…?” Esil said from inside Vulcan’s Horns. She had recognized the weapon even without a system window.

But Haein also knew what it was—in fact, she knew it very well. “This… is a gift from Igris.”

Igris currently wielded a better sword, which was crafted by the bearded dwarves and given to him by Sung Jinwoo. That meant he no longer needed to use this one. But this sword was special in that it was the first weapon Jinwoo had ever given Igris. It mattered more to him than his own life. Haein did not fail to recognize the significance of such a gesture, and a quiet smile appeared on her lips.

Sparks were flying from the sword. “Beru, when you meet Igris…” Haein was staring at it as if mesmerized, and the blue electricity was reflected in her eyes. At that moment, the Trident of the Ice Tree brought them right to the giant. “Tell him that I’m grateful for the gift, would you?”

As Haein descended gently to the ground, the Demon King’s Longsword rose into the air in a semicircle. Then the very atmosphere of the battlefield shifted.