Solo Leveling: Ragnarok - Chapter 142

Suho’s mind was full of objections. What?I can’t give it to him?You’re the King of Beasts, aren’t you?A snake is also a beast.

Rakan groaned, nodding after a moment. “Fine… Even the poison of a measly snake will be of use to him right now.” He then stared into the space in front of Suho with an unhappy frown. Two swords appeared before the hunter.

[Item: Rakan’s Fang]

[Acquisition Difficulty: ??

Type: Sword

Attack Power +60

A sword made from the fang of the Beast King, Rakan. Rakan’s spirit resides within it, and if wielded by someone with low power, it might even possess their physical form.

Effect “Scorn of the Weak”: Causes the designated target to be in a state of fear for 1 minute (all attributes -50%).

Effect “Fatal Strike”: 20% chance to deal over double damage.]

[Item: Kasaka’s Venom Fang]

[Acquisition Difficulty: C

Type: Dagger

Attack Power +25

A dagger made from Kasaka’s venomous fang. The remaining venom paralyzes and/or makes enemies bleed out. You can store it in your inventory or sell it at the store.

Effect “Paralysis”: The target attacked has a probability of being unable to move.

Effect “Bleeding”: There’s a probability that the target’s health depletes by 1% per second.]

Because Suho had two Vulcan’s Horns at his disposal, Rakan’s Fang and Kasaka’s Venom Fang had lain unused in the inventory. He checked the descriptions again, but judging from their stats, he doubted he would need them again, even in the future.

Suho smiled contentedly. I was thinking of selling them in the shop. Who knew I’d get to recycle them like this?

“Recycle? My artifact was always intended to be used this way.”

Oh, is that right? Rakan’s words reminded Suho of something. Back in the Sanctuary of Beasts, there was something Rakan’s Fang had demanded from the moment he touched it.

“Prove you are worthy of being king!”

Rakan’s Fang, in fact, was a baby tooth. In other words, one of the baby teeth that had fallen out as he had grown had been taken by a minor tribe and turned into an artifact—its purpose being, of course, to find the Monarch’s heir. It was a device to ensure that an heir was ready should Rakan one day die in the war against the Rulers. That was why it possessed the body of anyone undeserving who took control of it.

“The reason that my spirit resides in the artifact is to provide my heir with a minimal level of guidance—to ensure they are given a rigorous upbringing,” Rakan said.

Rigorous?Does it keep on yapping at them to behave, or something?

“Well… Something like that. I knew you’d understand what I meant.”

I happen to have something like that myself, actually. Suho naturally thought of Beru. The shadow ant did not provide any physical help in battle, but he always reminded Suho to remember his weaknesses, continuously driving him to grow stronger. Of course, Beru did not mean to criticize Suho or annoy him with such advice. It was simply that he knew how strong a true Monarch was and what true power really meant. The spirit in Rakan’s Fang would probably also serve a similar role for Gray.

Rakan grinned, having finished his explanation. “In any case, I’m eternally grateful to you, Suho. It’s entirely because of what you’ve been doing that Gray has grown to the point of accepting an artifact.”

Rakan reached out, grabbing the two swords floating in the air. There was a flash as they turned into silver powder and scattered, and a barrage of system notifications appeared in front of Suho.

Ding! Ding!

[Gray equipped “Rakan’s Fang.”]

[Gray equipped “Kasaka’s Venom Fang.”]

Ding! Ding! Ding!

The notifications continued to appear.

[Gray learned skill “Scorn of the Weak.”]

[Gray learned skill “Fatal Strike.”]

[Gray learned skill “Paralysis.”]

[Gray learned skill “Bleeding.”]

Wow.This is actually pretty impressive. Suho couldn’t help but marvel at how the effects of the sword had turned into skills for Gray. Proper utilization of these alone would make the wolf pup a force to be reckoned with. You can’t recycle better than that!

Rakan clicked his tongue. “I told you, it’s not recycling. In any case, go back to your world now.” He had a wry look on his face to the very end as he sighed and sent Suho back to the real world. “And please keep taking good care of Gray.”

As Suho opened his eyes, his mind returning from the void, Gray was staring at him. The small wolf whined with wide, puzzled eyes. He had noticed the new powers filling his body.

He looks the same on the outside, though, Suho thought. Or maybe his fangs are a little sharper? His appearance didn’t really matter, however.

[Gray – Level 50 – Fang Wolf]

Gray had leveled up, and by no fewer than fifteen levels. Such growth wasn’t solely the result of absorbing the items’ effects, of course. It’s probably because Rakan’s spirit entered him. In other words, the wolf had inherited Rakan’s power, probably similar to the way Sillad had given Sirka the Trident of the Ice Tree.

“So, is there a way to hide this wolf’s mana?” Taeshik asked again.

Suho grinned and looked at the wolf. “Gray, you can do that, right?”

Gray whimpered, his ears perking up. Then he lay flat on its belly. The spirit in Gray was teaching him how to use his powers.

“Surprising… I didn’t know that was possible.” Taeshik’s eyes had gone wide. The wolf’s mana had become undetectable. It was hard not to be impressed by that. “Despite how it looks, it seems to be quite the skilled summon. This should make the job quite a bit easier.”

As Taeshik had said, they now essentially had a guaranteed advantage against the villains. The villains didn’t know their identities, but Suho and Taeshik could sniff their enemies out.

“Let’s go, then,” Suho said.

“Right. You lead the way.”

The wolf woofed in agreement. Suho and Taeshik head into the village, with Gray in the lead.

Gray sniffed openly, perking up his ears as he tracked the villains. He appeared to be a small dog out for a walk, making him completely inconspicuous. His size and appearance were not threatening in the slightest, so no one would be wary even if he wasn’t wearing a leash.

“This place… It’s too quiet.” Taeshik’s eyes gleamed sharply as he took in the village’s atmosphere. It looked almost abandoned. “Listen as we walk,” he muttered quietly. “There have been army units stationed in these parts for a very long time.” Pocheon was located close to the North Korean border, so it had a history of military presence. “Though North Korean soldiers are no longer a threat, of course, what with the entire country being overrun with monsters.”

“I heard the army has been repurposed to defend against monsters from the north instead,” Suho remarked.

“That’s right. It looks like you’ve been doing your homework. But right now—”

“There are no soldiers here, either.” Because this place had so many army units stationed nearby, there were bound to be at least a few soldiers out and about. However, it was far too quiet. There was not a single soldier in sight, either.

“It’s because of the association,” Taeshik explained. “With Woo Jinchul going to North Korea to provide support, the government sent all the units in these parts along with them.”

“Even the non-hunter soldiers?”

“Right. Hunters are human, too. They need time to eat during battle, and they take turns keeping the night watch when they camp. Who knows when magic beasts will attack?”

“In other words, the non-hunter soldiers take on all the grunt work so the hunters of the association can focus on combat.”

“That’s why the commercial area in this village went out of business last year. It consisted only of facilities and restaurants that served the locally stationed soldiers.”

Indeed, all the shops in view seemed to have temporarily closed. But they had spotted some people, at least.

“Ah, the convenience store seems open,” Suho said. Gray had been heading toward it.

“Welcome!” A cheerful part-time worker greeted them when they went inside.

Suho and Taeshik rushed the man without hesitating. “Oh, God! What are you doing?” he cried out, his arms pinned behind his back. He struggled, looking confused.

Taeshik grinned and pulled up the man’s pant legs, revealing his mana inhibitors. “You’re not much of an actor. Real part-time workers aren’t half as cheery.”

The kindly look on the man’s face contorted demonically. “F*ck! Everyone out!”

Three villains jumped out from the storage space in the back of the store, spouting fire at Suho and Taeshik. Taeshik mercilessly cut off the head of the villain he had seized. He then used the body as a shield, lifting it up with a single hand.

“Goddamn it!”

“F*ck! Get them!”

“They’re bounty hunters!”

“There’s only two of them!”

There was a tumble and a swoosh of flame as balls of fire bounced in all directions, destroying the counter and breaking the lights. The fire was spreading, filling the building with hot air. Despite their threats, however, the villains were trying to make a getaway in the confusion.

“Stop them from running away!” Taeshik shouted to Suho as he lunged at them. He began to swing his two daggers wildly.

“Sh-shield!” One of the villains hurriedly conjured up a transparent barrier to block the attacks, but he failed to notice that a baby wolf had been approaching him from behind. As he snuck up without being noticed, Gray quickly went for the man’s Achilles tendon.

“Auggggh!”

[Effect: “Fatal Strike” has been activated.]

[Effect: “Bleeding” has been activated.]

[The target’s health depletes by 1% per second.]

The villain screamed and kicked at Gray. “You little rat!”

The wolf swiftly avoided the kick with the same agility of an actual rat, then bit down on the thigh of the villain next to him.

“What the—!”

[Effect: “Paralysis” has been activated.]

The villain suddenly began to limp, falling noisily flat onto his face.

“Your summon is really something!” Taeshik said, whistling. He sidestepped the shield and went after the limping villain first. His dagger swung through the air once more as the villain was decapitated. The next one was taken out soon after.

“Weak. So weak,” Taeshik said dismissively, wiping the blood from his face and smiling wickedly. “Why do D-rank idiots bother to be villains at all, I wonder?” He turned around to watch Suho, who was standing behind him. “What are you standing there staring for? Never seen a person die before?”

Suho began moving toward a villain who was curled up near the wall, taking cover behind his transparent shield. The man’s ankle was continuously gushing blood thanks to Gray’s skill effect. “S-stay away! Get the f*ck away!” he shouted.

“What? Don’t tell me you pity him? Do you want to spare him?” Taeshik grinned, walking toward Suho. A rack of magazines was burning behind him, the flames spreading to the surrounding environment. But a fire of this size was not much of a threat to a hunter. “You’ll never be a proper bounty hunter if you behave like such a wuss—”

Taeshik was interrupted as the decapitated bodies suddenly rose to their feet, jumping at him.