Solo Leveling : Ragnarok - Chapter 31

The enemies from the outer universe were still unaware of Su-ho’s existence.

However, if they were to ever discover that the Shadow Monarch had a son, Su-ho would inevitably become the only weakness capable of shifting the tides of war. Just capturing him as a hostage would be enough to stall Sung Jinwoo’s forces.

…That’s why Su-ho needed to get stronger quickly.

“In the end, it’s all about leveling up.”

Nodding to himself, Su-ho looked around the Shadow Dungeon.

Although his daily quest was finished, he figured it was still a good idea to hunt more goblins.

Looking back, wasn’t the hidden quest also about hunting ‘more than the set amount’?

‘Maybe this is what the system intended all along.’

“Gray.”

“…Kuung?”

At Su-ho’s call, Gray looked up hesitantly.

“Esil.”

“Hm?”

With a grin, Su-ho glanced at both Gray and Esil.

“If you’re done eating, it’s time to earn your keep.”

“Kuuung.”

Gray, who hadn’t even had a chance to eat any roast pig, looked aggrieved. But Gray knew that hunting his own prey helped him grow stronger.

* * *

[You have defeated a Goblin Shaman.]

[You have defeated a Goblin Archer.]

…

[You have leveled up!]

For a while, Su-ho hunted goblins in the Shadow Dungeon alongside Esil and Gray.

Sniff-sniff?

Although weak, Gray’s excellent sense of smell, befitting a member of a hunter tribe, allowed him to track down goblins hiding all around the dungeon.

Swish!

On the other hand, Esil was a master of spear techniques. Even in her weakened state as a demon noble, goblins were hardly a challenge for her. She even stuck her hand inside their bodies and sucked out their magical energy like a snack.

“Ugh. It doesn’t taste good.”

…She can actually taste it, even when eating with her hands?

Does she clean her nails instead of brushing her teeth?

‘Demons really are strange creatures.’

“…?”

Esil furrowed her brow, tilting her head in confusion. Su-ho had been watching her as if she were some sort of fascinating animal.

A little while later…

“There are no more goblins around here. It looks like we’ve killed them all.”

“None on this side either.”

Su-ho finally stopped walking, lowering his sword.

Floating in the air, *Rakhan’s Fang* hovered thanks to the *Ruler’s Authority*, and Beru fluttered down onto the handle like a sparrow.

[Young Lord, I’ve also made my rounds, and it seems like we’ve indeed wiped them all out.]

“Good work.”

[What will you do now, Young Lord?]

“I’ll wait here until they ‘respawn.’”

Su-ho set up a base in a clearing where he could keep an eye on the surroundings.

It was his makeshift basecamp.

“We’ll continue patrolling the area. Well, not me—*you* guys.”

“Us?”

Gray and Esil perked up their ears at his words.

“They’ll help too.”

[Kerek! Kerek!]

[Keruk!]

At Su-ho’s command, the Shadow Goblins began to patrol the area. They looked like bandits raiding a village, but they were his allies.

Su-ho’s goal was to witness firsthand when new goblins respawned in the Shadow Dungeon.

Based on the existence of his daily quest, it was certain that they would reappear before the day ended.

“All right. Since you’ve eaten, you should work for your food.”

Lick.

Esil unconsciously licked her lips in response. Though she had feasted thanks to Su-ho, her hunger from long starvation wasn’t easily satiated.

‘Even if goblins don’t taste good, there’s plenty of them.’

She swallowed her saliva, hoping they’d reappear soon. Glancing to the side, she saw Gray making the same face.

“Heh?”

“…”

Feeling uneasy, Esil realized she had just been equated to a mere puppy.

* * *

[Would you like to exit the Shadow Dungeon?]

Su-ho left the Shadow Dungeon, leaving Esil and Gray behind to continue hunting.

‘Even after hunting so many goblins, I’ve only leveled up once.’

It was clear: to get stronger, he needed to challenge a higher-level dungeon.

Su-ho now had several options.

One was to interrogate *Rakhan’s Fang* for the location of a new sanctuary. However, Rakhan’s Fang didn’t know everything. It had promised to inform him when it sensed a new sanctuary, so he could afford to wait on that.

Another option was to find one of the stardust factories and hunt more demons. But there were no leads for that at the moment.

‘And the third option…’

*Magok*.

‘I should go there first.’

Gangseo-gu, Magok-dong.

Originally named for its abundant growth of hemp (*麻*), a dungeon break a year ago had transformed the area. Now, people called it *Magok* (*魔谷*, meaning Demon Valley) or *Magyeong* (Demonic Land).

Since then, Magok had been classified as one of the most dangerous field-type dungeons in Korea, and civilians had ceased visiting.

‘The Gwanaksan Field and Seoul Station Field were both created about a year ago. Magok Field appeared at the same time.’

It wasn’t just a coincidence.

Recalling the events that had unfolded so far, Su-ho was convinced that Magok was connected to everything somehow.

“Let’s check it out.”

* * *

Screech.

The bus doors opened, and Su-ho stepped out.

He had taken public transportation to reach Magok. Despite everything, buses and trains were still running smoothly in this world.

It was a strange reality.

Just a few steps away from a civilized city, one could suddenly find themselves in a hellscape swarming with monsters.

At this moment, hunters were working hard to cleanse such regions. But at the same time, new gates were opening somewhere else.

[This place…]

As they approached Magok, Beru’s gaze grew serious.

Beyond them stretched the Magok Field, a jungle of thick forest shrouded in a blue mist.

[This place reeks of danger. Not that it’s dangerous for me, of course. Keh-heh.]

Beru, who had been proudly boasting, suddenly tilted his head and asked Su-ho a question.

[Young Lord, why is there no barbed wire here?]

Most field-type dungeons, like the Gwanaksan and Seoul Station Fields, were surrounded by long stretches of barbed wire to prevent monsters from escaping.

But Magok had no such barriers in place.

“It’s too vast to fence off, and besides, barbed wire wouldn’t help anyway.”

[Why not?]

“The monsters here are mostly plant-based, and they can’t leave the area without the blue mist.”

Strangely, plant-type monsters couldn’t root themselves in soil without the blue mist. This was fortunate for humans. Otherwise, the dungeon’s flora would have overtaken Earth long ago.

[Hoho? This is quite an interesting place.]

Beru gazed intently at the landscape of Magok, intrigued. Although Su-ho had mentioned plant-type monsters, Beru could sense other presences lurking as well.

[Young Lord, isn’t this field controlled by another guild?]

“As far as I know, it’s not. I looked it up online, and there’s no mention of it.”

Magok was an open hunting ground for all hunters.

Plant-type monsters were difficult for guilds to manage, and their corpses weren’t worth much money.

Though there was ongoing research on them, Magok hadn’t garnered much attention from hunters yet.

“Plus, this place has ghosts.”

[Ghosts, you say?]

Beru’s expression brightened with even more interest.

Su-ho wasn’t referring to the spirits seen in horror movies.

Ghost-type monsters.

In addition to plant-based monsters, Magok also housed ghost-type monsters, which left no corpses to collect after being slain.

It was no wonder hunters avoided this place.

It didn’t pay.

‘But that doesn’t matter to me. Experience points are more important than monster corpses.’

Step.

As Su-ho stepped into Magok Field…

*A sanctuary!*

“…!”

*Rakhan’s Fang*, which had been lying quietly in his inventory, suddenly called out in urgency.

Su-ho immediately pulled it out.

“What? A sanctuary? All of a sudden?”

*Yes. The aura of a sanctuary fills this area! It seems that this dense forest and blue mist have been preventing the aura from leaking outside.*

At those words, Beru looked at Su-ho.

[So, there’s a relic similar to Rakhan’s Fang nearby?]

“Or perhaps a boss monster like Broki.”

[Either way, it’s a win, is it not?]

“Exactly. If it’s a relic, I’ll get an item, and if it’s a boss monster, I’ll get experience points and shadow soldiers.”

Su-ho’s eyes sparkled as he stared into the thick jungle.

A jungle filled with ghosts—an annoying, troublesome place for most hunters.

But for Su-ho, he had a special kind of navigation system: his relic.

He raised *Rakhan’s Fang*.

“Do you know where it is?”

*This way.*

Rakhan’s Fang pointed its tip toward the heart of the sanctuary.

With the relic guiding him, Su-ho fearlessly plunged into the jungle.

* * *

Meanwhile, Su-ho wasn’t the only one exploring Magok Field.

“Vice President, it’s already been two days.”

“How much longer are we going to stay here?”

“It’s not that we’re tired, but we need to know our schedule and purpose to plan accordingly…”

The hunters from the Baekho Guild had been wandering aimlessly in the jungle for two days now.

The reason for their disarray was none other than the Baekho Guild’s Vice President, Baek Mi-ho.

However, none of them dared to voice any complaints openly, especially with Baek Yoon-ho, the guild’s president, being away. His daughter, Baek Mi-ho, had effectively taken on the role of guild leader in his absence.

“Someone keeps calling me.”

Baek Mi-ho had been hearing strange voices for some time.

*Prove your worth.*

The voice had started unexpectedly.

*Prove your worth.*

At first, she thought it was just a hallucination.

But the voice grew louder and more persistent, eventually leading her footsteps to Magok.

‘What is here? What worth do I have to prove?’

Baek Mi-ho was just as frustrated.

But there was definitely something in this jungle.

Because the moment she set foot here, the voice had gone silent.

Then, suddenly…

Shudder!

The hunters trembled as they saw Baek Mi-ho’s face.

‘The Vice President’s eyes…’

Her pupils had turned into vertical slits, glowing a bright yellow, like a beast’s.

*Beast Eyes*.

It was the skill that had shaped Baek Mi-ho into who she was today—partial beast transformation. Even just a glimpse of this power created a heavy pressure.

*Prove your worth.*

“…Has it started again?”

The voice rang in Baek Mi-ho’s head once more. But this time, it was slightly different.

*Prove you are worthy of being a king.*

Baek Mi-ho removed the hair tie from her wrist and tied up her lion-like mane.

With her *Beast Eyes*, she glared fiercely in the direction of the voice.

“All units, prepare for battle.”