Solo Leveling : Ragnarok - Chapter 106

“Oh? S-Suho!”

In that moment, Yoo Jin-Ho’s frozen expression melted away instantly.

Grabbing his phone, he shouted urgently,

“Suho! Where are you? Pick up the phone! Answer me!”

“Uh, sir, you need to press the call button first…”

The secretary sighed with relief as Yoo Jin-Ho finally returned to his usual self.

—

“…Why is Uncle calling me all of a sudden?”

Suho, who was resting after safely(?) returning from the Pyeongtaek Dungeon, looked puzzled as his uncle’s call came through.

He had only sent a text about some minor paperwork delay. Usually, such matters would be handled by a secretary.

But a phone call out of nowhere?

– ‘Ahem.’ Suho? How’s the hunter business treating you? No… uh… incidents or accidents, right?

“…?”

Surprisingly, the voice on the other end sounded calm, composed, and unusually mature.

“Everything’s fine, Uncle. There were a few minor issues, but I managed to sort them out.”

– Ah, minor issues, I see. That’s… good.

“…?”

Suho frowned. Something about Yoo Jin-Ho’s tone felt off.

“Is there something wrong on your end, Uncle?”

– ‘Haha.’ Me? Haha, of course not! Why would anything be wrong with me? I’m perfectly fine.

“…Fine?”

Suho could only tilt his head in confusion.

It seemed like this was just a random check-up call after all.

However, just before hanging up, Yoo Jin-Ho casually slipped in a comment.

– Oh, by the way, you might get a call from the Black Tortoise Guild soon. They’ll probably give you whatever you want, so negotiate well.

The moment Suho ended the call, the phone rang again—this time, it was from the Black Tortoise Guild.

The second he answered, someone on the other end started shouting loudly.

– We sincerely apologize, Hunter Sung Suho!

“…Huh?”

Suho blinked, confused.

Then, the image of Lee Young-Ho, the Black Tortoise Guild manager, flashed in his mind.

‘Oh right, I completely forgot about that guy. He died fighting me and the demons, didn’t he?’

The battle in the demon realm had been so intense that Suho had forgotten all about Lee Young-Ho.

Lee Young-Ho, who had dragged his second-string hunters into the dungeon to mess with Suho.

Suho reminisced about him with a faint expression.

‘I made good use of him as a shadow soldier. He helped clean up those demons nicely. I hope he’s in a better place now…’

Lee Young-Ho, who had died at the hands of demons, turned into a shadow soldier, and then disappeared into nothingness. Suho briefly offered his respects.

Meanwhile, the Black Tortoise Guild—whoever had spoken to Yoo Jin-Ho—was now apologizing profusely, as if their lives depended on it.

– If it’s not too much trouble, could we meet in person to offer a formal apology?

“To meet?”

At that moment, Im Do-Gyun, who had been eavesdropping with sharp ears, began nodding vigorously.

‘Yes! Meet them! Meet them, no matter what!’

“…Alright, let’s meet.”

Under the immense pressure of Im Do-Gyun’s insistence, Suho finally agreed.

—

“We’re truly sorry!”

The Black Tortoise Guild’s chief manager stood before Suho and Im Do-Gyun, bowing at a perfect 90-degree angle.

“It’s true that our employee acted recklessly, but the responsibility lies with us for not managing him properly. We sincerely apologize, Hunter Sung Suho!”

“Hmm. Do verbal apologies really mean much?”

Sitting beside Suho, Im Do-Gyun crossed his legs with a smug expression, exuding authority.

With a mischievous wink directed at Suho, he silently conveyed, ‘Leave this to me.’

Suho just smiled wryly.

Im Do-Gyun, for all his quirks, was no fool.

He was an elite—having graduated at the top of his class from Korean University’s Fine Arts Department, then completing his master’s degree while working as a teaching assistant.

That meant one thing:

‘He’s mastered the art of reading the room.’

Teaching assistants were stuck between dealing with high-ranking professors and handling younger students—a delicate balancing act that turned them into expert middle managers.

However…

The chief manager of the Black Tortoise Guild was someone Im Do-Gyun would never have met under normal circumstances.

‘But now? He’s completely at our mercy. Heh.’

Rubbing his hands together with a sly grin, Im Do-Gyun’s demeanor sent chills down the manager’s spine.

‘This won’t be easy.’

Im Do-Gyun, backed by Yoo Jin-Ho, carried the aura of someone protected by the highest authority—like a warrior blessed by the school’s headmaster.

“Alright, Chief Manager. You agree that the Pyeongtaek 3rd Dungeon was originally reserved for us, correct?”

“…Yes.”

“And that your large guild tried to take it away from smaller hunters like us?”

“Well, I… don’t know the exact details since Manager Lee Young-Ho is still missing, but there may have been some procedural mistakes…”

“Sure. Mistakes happen. That’s why I obtained CCTV footage from the dungeon entrance.”

“…What?”

The manager flinched visibly.

Im Do-Gyun’s sinister smile widened.

“Shall we start by reviewing the footage together?”

“….”

The chief manager’s face paled as Im Do-Gyun’s piercing glare locked onto him.

‘We’re done for. Just what did Manager Lee Young-Ho do to make this guy so vindictive?!’

In reality, the one tormenting Im Do-Gyun wasn’t Manager Lee Young-Ho but Ammit.

And in Im Do-Gyun’s mind, none of this would have happened if not for Lee Young-Ho. He truly believed that he wouldn’t have met Ammit if not for that man.

However, the CCTV footage Im Do-Gyun presented didn’t actually show much.

It was just a minor argument between the two groups at the dungeon entrance.

Relieved after watching the footage, the Black Tortoise Guild’s chief manager felt a weight lift from his shoulders.

‘Phew, that’s it? Did Yoo Jin-Ho really step in over something this trivial? That man is seriously overprotective.’

Thinking the matter could be resolved with some compensation money, the manager sighed with relief.

But then, Beru arrived, having just completed a little errand for Suho.

[Young master, I’ve brought the bodies you requested.]

“……!”

Beru dragged behind him the corpses of Lee Young-Ho and his subordinates.

Suho had stored them in the Shadow Dungeon, just in case they might come in handy later.

The corpses clearly showed signs of being torn apart by beasts.

When the chief manager saw this, his face turned deathly pale.

“These people… shouldn’t have died in a low-level dungeon like Pyeongtaek’s!”

“Of course, in normal circumstances, they wouldn’t have. But unfortunately, they ran into us during their ambush and got caught by the monsters.”

“…….”

—

In the end, Suho and Im Do-Gyun managed to extract a hefty compensation from the Black Tortoise Guild for their harassment.

Monetary compensation?

That was obvious.

More importantly, they obtained something far more valuable—experience opportunities.

For Suho to establish his guild, what he needed more than money was dungeon experience.

At the moment, Suho, Im Do-Gyun, and Esil were essentially just a fledgling mercenary group of three.

The most challenging part of building their reputation was securing dungeons to conquer.

Sure, they could join other attack teams, but that had its own problems.

If Suho followed the pace of other hunters, not only would his leveling efficiency drop, but clearing the dungeon would also take longer.

But now, thanks to the Black Tortoise Guild—or rather, thanks to extorting them—they no longer had to worry.

“…We’ll share ten of the dungeons we currently own with you. Individually, they may not be impressive, but they should be sufficient for building guild experience.”

“You’re such a generous man, Chief Manager. Are you perhaps an angel?”

‘Then what does that make you, you little devil?’

The chief manager of the Black Tortoise Guild bit his tongue, resisting the urge to spit on Im Do-Gyun’s smug face.

He vowed silently never to deal with him again.

‘Ugh. We’ve been thoroughly screwed.’

He ground his teeth in frustration.

Ultimately, this was all Manager Lee Young-Ho’s fault.

Because of that fool, the guild had suffered massive losses—not just financially, but also by upsetting Yoo Jin-Ho.

The chief manager sighed, trying to change his perspective.

‘Fine. Let’s think of this as an investment.’

Accidents could happen to anyone, anytime. What mattered was how you handled the aftermath.

Surely, by offering such generous compensation, they could smooth things over with Yoo Jin-Ho.

‘Yes. I’ll take this opportunity to ask if we can collaborate on Yoo Jin-Ho’s “Solo Leveling Project.”’

With that thought in mind, the manager cautiously broached the topic to Suho.

“This whole situation is deeply regrettable. Please let us know if there’s anything else we can do to assist you. And, uh… perhaps you could also mention to your uncle—”

But then—

“C-Chief Manager! We have a problem!”

‘Oh, what now?’

Just as the chief manager was about to get to the most critical part of the conversation, one of his subordinates came rushing in.

Suppressing his irritation, the manager turned and glared.

“What is it now? Can’t you see I’m busy?”

Despite his furious stare, the subordinate pushed his phone’s screen toward him in a panic.

“P-Please look at this article! Someone just landed in Korea!”

“Who the hell is it?”

The manager snatched the phone impatiently—then froze as he read the headline.

Curious, Suho and Im Do-Gyun glanced at the phone, catching sight of an extremely provocative headline.

—

“Goliath Arrives in Korea!”
“Why Has the Scavenger Guild’s Guild Master Come to Korea?”
“The White-Haired Giant: Goliath!”

—

The headline was paired with a photo of a muscular, lion-like old man with flowing white hair and sunglasses, confidently striding through Incheon Airport.

No hunter in the world would fail to recognize him.

“Thomas Andre?!”

“Why on earth is he in Korea all of a sudden?”

Wherever he went, chaos followed.

The walking disaster that was Thomas Andre had arrived in Korea.