Solo Leveling : Ragnarok - Chapter 144
“Tch. Some fool just broke the barrier.”
The old man, who had been lounging comfortably on a sofa, clicked his tongue and turned to look outside the window.
“What?!”
Across from him, Hwang Dongseok, who had been drinking whiskey and was thoroughly intoxicated, instantly sobered up.
“Shit! The pursuit squad is already here?!”
He jumped to his feet and quickly checked the situation outside.
The sky was painted red.
The streets were stained with blood and littered with corpses.
And those very corpses—they were all moving in the same direction.
Someone from outside had entered the village.
Hwang Dongseok gritted his teeth and glared at the old man.
“This isn’t what you told me! You said you erased all traces!”
“Don’t get so worked up. Only two people entered the village. They just happened to find the Demonic Spirit we used as the core of the illusion, which is why the spell collapsed.”
Hearing this, Hwang Dongseok’s face relaxed.
“What? Just two guys?”
“Yeah. Just two. They’re probably just random Hunters passing through.”
“Heh. Is that so?”
A wicked grin spread across his face as he licked his lips.
“This is perfect. Hunters carry weapons, don’t they?”
Escaping from prison had been successful, but that alone wasn’t enough to ensure survival.
Although they had scavenged as many weapons from the guards as possible, most of his men were still unarmed.
Before the real pursuit team found them, they needed to arm themselves properly.
“What level are these two Hunters?”
“Hard to say. But since one of them was able to dispel the Demonic Spirits from your men’s bodies, at least one is a B-rank Mage-type Hunter.”
“B-rank Mage?”
Hwang Dongseok rolled his eyes, calculating in his head.
‘Hmph. No way they’re S-rank.’
S-rank Hunters were basically walking corporations.
They were far too important to just wander into some backwater village by chance.
There were only a few of them in Korea, and they were worth too much money to waste their time hunting villains in the middle of nowhere.
For the same reason, A-rank Hunters also wouldn’t bother becoming bounty hunters—their paychecks were already massive.
“Hah. So at worst, we’re dealing with two B-ranks. Annoying, sure, but there’s no way they can survive a swarm attack.”
Hwang Dongseok snapped his fingers and called for one of his men waiting outside.
“We’ve got intruders. Gather everyone who’s resting. If they’re B-ranks, we’ll crush them all at once.”
“Yes, sir! I’ll relay the message!”
The subordinate stiffened at the command before rushing off to spread the word.
Watching his men move with newfound discipline, Hwang Dongseok smirked.
“Now that’s better. Guess seeing one of their own die finally knocked some sense into them.”
Despite being only a C-rank Awakener, Hwang Dongseok still ruled over the escapees like a king.
But his authority was fragile—it could collapse at any moment.
The only reason these villains still followed him was because of one fact—
He was the older brother of S-rank villain Hwang Dongsoo.
“Hey. You just gonna sit there?”
As his men gathered outside, Hwang Dongseok turned back toward the old man on the sofa.
The old man didn’t even look up as he lazily responded.
“As you can see, I don’t like getting my hands dirty. Call me once you’re done with them. I’ll reset the illusion over the village.”
“…Tch. Fine.”
Though annoyed, Hwang Dongseok didn’t argue.
His men were assembling outside, and there was no time to waste.
“Get your weapons ready! It’s just two of them!”
With that, he stepped out.
Bzzzt.
As the sound of gathering troops filled the air, a single bee landed on the window frame in front of the old man.
“…So, you’ve arrived.”
At last, a faint smile crept across the old man’s lips.
—
[Aaaaargh!]
“Hm?”
Suho narrowed his eyes.
The Demonic Spirit, still possessing the villain’s body, suddenly let out a piercing scream as blue energy violently erupted from him.
And then—thud.
The villain collapsed to the ground, completely unconscious.
Beru’s expression turned serious as he observed the scene.
[The Demonic Spirit that had been hiding inside this human… has been destroyed.]
“Destroyed? Just like that?”
[Yes. It appears a higher-ranking Demonic Spirit had placed some sort of restriction on him. These entities from the Phantom Realm are adept at using such curses.]
“So that means there’s a stronger one nearby.”
Suho’s expression hardened.
‘Now that I think about it, wasn’t the one who created my leveling system also a sorcerer from the Phantom Realm?’
High Shaman Kandiaru.
His Leveling System was essentially a type of sorcery.
Even if this wasn’t at that level, a higher-tier Demonic Spirit could definitely place a curse that triggers death under certain conditions.
‘Damn it… We came here expecting a small villain cleanup, but this is turning into something much bigger.’
“Suho!”
A desperate voice called out.
It was Kang Taesik, still fighting the horde of undead.
“Get over here and help! More of these damn things keep showing up!”
With the illusion dispelled, Yamiri Village had fully descended into an apocalypse.
If these were just normal undead, B-rank Hunter Kang Taesik wouldn’t have been struggling so much.
But these ones?
No matter how many times they were cut apart, their bodies kept regenerating.
And—
“I think these undead used to be the original residents of this village! The villains must’ve slaughtered them all the moment they took over!”
Kang Taesik’s voice dripped with disgust.
He had assumed that some civilians might still be held hostage in case of emergencies.
That was just common sense from a normal person’s perspective.
But clearly—
“These bastards didn’t even think that far. They just killed everyone the moment they got here.”
His lips curled into a twisted grin.
“Now this… this is what you call true villains.”
Villains deserved no mercy.
And with that thought, Kang Taesik’s expression turned deadly cold as he stared at the horde before him.
As he slashed through the limbs of the undead, Kang Taesik shouted toward Suho.
“In situations like this, the bastard controlling these things is usually hiding nearby! Use your summon and find the puppet master first!”
But there was no need for that.
Uwaaaaaah!
Before Suho could act, the villains appeared first—dozens of them, suddenly emerging from all directions and launching an attack on Suho and Kang Taesik.
“Hahaha! So, all of you were gathered here!”
Despite the overwhelming threat, Kang Taesik’s eyes glowed with excitement.
And then—he turned to Suho with an eerily calm smirk.
“Suho, good work. Your role ends here. From now on, it’s every man for himself.”
“…?”
Before Suho could react—
Shhh.
Kang Taesik’s entire body disappeared, as if he had never been there.
Suho’s eyes widened.
“Invisibility skill?”
[That traitorous bastard!]
Beru gritted his teeth.
No wonder Kang Taesik had remained so composed all this time—he had been hiding this ability.
But escaping wasn’t Kang Taesik’s goal.
“Keugh?!”
“What the hell?! Urgh…!”
Suddenly, screams erupted from the villains.
Blood spurted like fireworks.
“A-An Assassin!”
“This is bullshit! They never said anything about this!”
“I thought he was a Mage-type!”
The villains, who had been so confident just moments ago, suddenly panicked.
However—
“Tch. An assassin dares to play around here?”
Fwoosh—BOOM!
A Mage-type villain in the back unleashed a fireball, setting the wounded villains ablaze.
“Arghhh!”
“Why the hell are you hitting us?!”
Their so-called alliance was nothing more than a temporary truce from the prison break.
Loyalty did not exist among villains.
The ones caught in the explosion rolled on the ground, engulfed in flames.
But it worked.
“…Tch!”
A short grunt escaped from the empty air.
A transparent, burning silhouette flickered into view.
“There! Kill him!”
The Mage-type villain grinned and pointed at the now-exposed Kang Taesik.
The others followed his lead, their expressions twisting into bloodthirsty grins as they charged.
But in the chaos, they had forgotten about one crucial person.
“…Silad.”
Amidst the horde of undead, Suho whispered a name.
And at that moment—
The one slumbering beneath the sea of the afterlife finally opened its eyes.
[The King of Yetis, the Monarch of Frost, is watching you.]
Feeling the presence of that mighty being, Suho spoke confidently.
“Blessing of Frost.”
[Blessing: Frost Monarch’s Grace]
– Effect: The King of Yetis, the Monarch of Frost, has chosen you as his Shaman.
– A Shaman may offer their mana as a sacrifice to summon a blizzard.
Whoooooooosh—!
At that moment, a blinding white storm erupted around Suho.
[Skill: Blizzard of Frost activated.]
[Mana Consumption: 100 per second.]
The very same blizzard that had turned the Facade Kingdom into an icy wasteland now engulfed Yamiri Village.
“W-What the hell?!”
“Is this… a Blizzard?!”
The villains screamed in panic as a bone-chilling cold overtook them.
Crack! Crackle!
The ground froze instantly, and the legs of every villain and undead caught in the storm were encased in solid ice.
“S-Shit! My legs…!”
It didn’t matter if they were undead or villains—every enemy caught in the blizzard had their legs frozen in place.
“…What the hell is this?”
Kang Taesik, now visible, turned toward Suho in disbelief.
The fire that had clung to his body had been extinguished by the icy winds.
“You can use elemental magic too? You really are a Druid, huh.”
His suspicions were confirmed.
But when he turned his attention back to the villains, his expression darkened—twisted into something truly predatory.
Some of them had managed to break free from the ice.
But they were a minority.
Most of the villains here were low- and mid-rank Awakeners, completely outmatched.
“Now you’re all my prey.”
Shing! Shing! Shing!
Kang Taesik lunged forward, slicing through them mercilessly.
Neck.
Carotid artery.
Blood sprayed wherever his daggers struck.
“Arghhh!”
“Run! RUN!”
The few villains who managed to break free desperately tried to escape.
But—
[Debuff: Curse of Frost applied.]
[Attack speed decreased by 30%.]
[Movement speed decreased by 30%.]
Even those who tried to flee found themselves sluggish, their bodies sluggish under the effects of the blizzard.
The Curse of Frost did not affect Kang Taesik—because the Monarch of Frost had recognized him as Suho’s ally.
Kang Taesik grinned cruelly as he hunted them down one by one, his laughter ringing through the battlefield.
“This is why I love fighting humans.”
Unlike monsters in dungeons, humans were so much easier to kill.
His face twisted with delight as he called out to Suho.
“Suho! Let me teach you a valuable lesson as your senior!”
“This is the one absolute truth you must remember—”
“All humans die.”
“No matter how powerful a Hunter is, that fact never changes…”
BOOM!
At that moment—
Kang Taesik’s head exploded. (T/N: WTF. I did not expect this. I thought he will be a mainstay for this series.)
“…You arrogant piece of shit.”
Step.
A villain stomped on Kang Taesik’s lifeless body.
Then again.
And again.
Crack! Crack!
He ground his heel into the corpse, grinning maniacally.
“Yeah, bastard. Everyone dies.”
“Did you think you were the exception?!”
“HAH! HAHAHAHAHA!”
With a twisted expression, the villain turned to face Suho.
“You’re next, you little—”
But then—
“Rise.”
Right behind him—
Kang Taesik’s shadow began to shift and ripple ominously. (T/N: Oohhhh. Even Jinwoo did not have any assassin type shadows. This is interesting.)