Solo Leveling : Ragnarok - Chapter 109

Rumble!

“…Sigh.”

Sung Suho, enduring the tremendous weight of an enormous magic field, neither panicked nor showed fear. Instead, he let out a sigh.

‘Another one like Ammit.’

The sheer size, the advanced age—everything about him reminded Suho of Ammit.

Why did all the elders he encountered have to be this tough? He couldn’t figure it out.

“What… What is this? He’s holding out?”

Thomas Andre was genuinely bewildered.

According to Laura’s information, Suho was nothing more than a C-rank Hunter.

Even now, standing right in front of him, the energy Suho exuded was at best somewhere near a B-rank.

But what on earth was this situation?

Even though Thomas wasn’t exerting his full strength, the magic field he unleashed should have been more than enough to crush a guy like this.

So how?

‘How is he withstanding this?’

However, there was one thing Thomas couldn’t have guessed.

For Hunters, magic wasn’t everything.

Thomas Andre himself had possessed an extraordinarily advanced physical ability, enough to be called the strongest human even before his awakening.

When overwhelming physical prowess was paired with magic, the synergy was unparalleled.

And the same applied to Suho.

Rumble!

A Hunter’s rank was determined by the amount of magic they possessed.

And compared to Thomas, Suho’s magic was undeniably inferior.

But when it came to physical strength…

[Strength: 115]

‘I didn’t train for nothing, after all.’

A confident smile crept across Suho’s lips as he stood firm against Thomas Andre’s magic field.

[The Daily Quest.]
[Body Strengthening Technique.]

Through these, Suho had diligently earned three ability points every day.

And he had invested every single point into his Strength stat.

The result was manifesting now.

‘I’m used to gravity fields!’

“Huh? You’re smiling?”

Seeing Suho’s relaxed expression, Thomas’s eyes flared with anger.

“You dare to smile in front of me?”

Whoosh!

At that moment, the energy emanating from Thomas began to carry genuine intent.

Suho’s expression gradually stiffened as well.

“My mind is made up,” Thomas muttered.

Surpassing a mere clash of wills, he reached out with his massive hand to grab Suho’s throat.

“Even if you are the one from the prophecy, I’ll first make sure to establish the pecking order before dragging you along.”

Woosh!

Suho had a decision to make.

Would he fight back?

Or retreat?

But Suho had already made up his mind from the beginning.

‘Of course, I’ll fight.’

With fierce determination flashing in his eyes, Suho began to unleash his energy in earnest.

‘How could I pass up the chance to fight an S-rank Hunter?’

He had been curious about this for some time.

The Apostles of Itarim.

They weren’t even Itarim themselves, but Suho had struggled immensely just to defeat one of their subordinates.

This wouldn’t do.

He couldn’t stop there.

If he was to eventually stand beside his father and wage war against the Itarim—

If he was to reach the battlefield where his father stood—

‘I must become the strongest among humans.’

If he couldn’t surpass humans, he wouldn’t even have the right to step onto that battlefield.

That’s why he was curious.

From the moment he learned that Thomas Andre, an S-rank Hunter with the title of humanity’s strongest, had come to Korea—

‘How strong is an S-rank?’

That thought hadn’t left his mind.

And now, Thomas had come to him first. What a stroke of luck!

Crash!

With that, Suho clasped Thomas Andre’s approaching hands.

At that moment, he felt an overwhelming grip strength.

“Oh?”

Thomas Andre raised an eyebrow in amusement.

His lips twitched as if trying to suppress a smirk at the unexpected situation.

“Are you serious? Don’t tell me you actually want to have a contest of strength with me?”

It was utterly ridiculous.

Thomas’s visit to Korea wasn’t because he had high expectations for Suho, but because of Norma Selner’s prophecy.

‘All I wanted was to raid the Glacier Dungeon.’

The Glacier Dungeon was a perilous labyrinth that even the Scavenger Guild hesitated to tackle.

As its name implied, the dungeon was covered in extreme cold, making survival challenging even for those merely inside it.

Moreover, it was teeming with powerful beasts, claiming the lives of countless Hunters who dared venture into it.

One particularly skilled Hunter from the Scavenger Guild had once arrogantly declared that the cold wouldn’t be an issue and led his subordinates inside—only to barely return, half-frozen and humiliated.

Even the Scavenger Guild hadn’t been able to conquer the dungeon. Yet Norma Selner had prophesied that Korea’s Sung Suho could help.

Immediately afterward, Thomas Andre decided to head to Korea.

But upon arriving, he was astounded to find that the prophesied Sung Suho was merely a C-rank Hunter, and a summoner at that.

‘This guy has the nerve to look down on me? Should I just kill him?’

Thomas Andre had never been in a position where he had to ask anyone for help.

Whenever he wanted something, he simply commanded and took it.

Now, he was seriously contemplating.

Should he tear off this insolent brat’s arms at the shoulders and see if Korea’s healers could fix him?

Or should he rip him apart entirely…

“Thomas! Calm down!”

A frantic voice called out from afar, Laura sensing the escalating tension.

“Thomas! You’re not planning to kill him, are you? Don’t forget our goal!”

But at this point, there was no one who could stop Thomas once he felt this way.

Even in his old age, he remained the battlefield’s mischievous rogue.

And there was no precedent for him sparing anyone who dared to show off their strength in front of him.

He tightened his grip on Suho’s hands even more.

“Don’t worry, Laura. We live in such a convenient world now! No matter how much I break him, the healers will fix him right up! Hahaha!”

Thomas Andre let out a savage laugh as his bulging arms swelled to almost bursting.

The problem, however, was that Suho’s expression was just as fierce, his teeth bared in defiance.

‘Come at me as much as you want!’

[The Endurance skill reduces pain.]
[The Endurance skill reduces pain.]
…

Every day during Body Strengthening training, Suho’s bones would break and shatter. By now, pain like this was simply routine.

Ammit had always emphasized one thing:

Drawing strength from pain was what made a true warrior.

Like master, like disciple.

Suho could now wholeheartedly agree with Ammit’s teachings.

The countless Blood-Crazed Tyrants he had encountered in the demon realm—
Their bodies were riddled with venom, living itself was agony for them. Yet they burned with nothing but the will to kill and devour their enemies despite that pain.

Suho had killed all those monsters and survived until now.

‘If he’s coming at me with pure strength, I’ve got a chance to win!’

Suho fully intended to beat Thomas Andre in this contest of strength.

“Graaaaahhh!”
“Hahahahaha!”

BOOM!

As Suho and Thomas Andre’s energies clashed, an enormous storm of mana erupted, spiraling outward in every direction.

Everything in sight began to shatter.

“Thomas! Thomas! Stop it!”

Even as Laura’s desperate cries echoed through the chaos, the clash only intensified.

At that moment—

…Screech!

A black sedan arrived at the scene.

The door opened, and Yoo Jinho stepped out.

“Whew. Looks like I made it just in time.”

Taking in the situation quickly, he checked on Suho, who was standing against Thomas Andre, and let out a breath of relief.

Yoo Jinho had been monitoring Suho all day because of issues with the Black Tortoise Guild. When his secretary informed him that S-rank Hunter Thomas Andre, who had suddenly arrived in Korea, was heading toward Suho’s home, he acted immediately.

‘If I didn’t have my past life memories, I might have brushed it off.’

As someone who had regained memories of a time that had been forgotten, Yoo Jinho knew exactly who Thomas Andre was.

And those memories…

They were terrifying.

—Aaaaaaargh!

In those memories, all he could do was writhe and scream in pain.

‘I never thought I’d face the Scavenger Guild again like this.’

It was shocking.

No matter how old he got, Thomas Andre was still Thomas Andre.

Even seeing his face now, Yoo Jinho could feel fear welling up inside him.

Of course, Thomas had never directly harmed him in the past.

But his subordinates in the Scavenger Guild had captured him and tortured him to the brink of death.

And he remembered exactly why.

‘…Back then, I was my hyung’s only weakness.’

Grinding his teeth at the memory of his powerless self, Yoo Jinho made a decision.

The moment he learned the Scavenger Guild was in Korea again, he ordered his staff to track their every move and report to him in real time.

He was scared.

Thomas Andre was unpredictable, and back then, he had been Sung Jinwoo’s only vulnerability.

‘…Now, Suho is in that position.’

There was no time to waste.

Whatever Thomas’s intentions for seeking out Suho, there was only one way to resolve this situation.

Recognizing Laura, Yoo Jinho quickly approached her.

Standing beside her, he spoke with utmost seriousness to put an end to this meaningless standoff.

“Thomas Andre.”

Calm and composed, Yoo Jinho called out his name in a clear, respectful tone.

Surely, an S-rank Hunter could sense everything happening around them, even amidst this chaos, and his voice would reach Thomas’s ears.

“My name is Yoo Jinho. I am the CEO of Ajin Soft.”

BOOM!

Even as the world seemed on the verge of breaking apart, Yoo Jinho continued speaking.

“If you don’t step back immediately, I will have no choice but to take action myself.”

“…What?”

Twitch.

Thomas, who had been focused entirely on Suho, finally reacted to those words.

Of course, he had already sensed someone new approaching.

But the energy coming from Yoo Jinho was that of a mere D-rank.

Not only was this insolent brat before him insufficient, but now this nobody dared to spout nonsense at him.

Thomas turned to Yoo Jinho with an expression of sheer disbelief and glared.

“And who are you supposed to be? What does being a company CEO have to do with anything? Are you out of your mind?”

“Thomas! Stop it!”

At that moment, Laura shouted with a more serious expression than ever.

“CEO Yoo Jinho is a major shareholder of our guild!”

“Oh, is that so? Such an important person!”

At that moment, all of Thomas Andre’s killing intent vanished.