Solo Leveling: Ragnarok

South Korea was in turmoil due to an unprecedented series of killings.

“We have a report!”

“Another one? Doesn’t this guy sleep? Does he even eat?!”

Beheaded bodies were surfacing everywhere, and the Korean Hunters Association was flooded with calls. Reports poured in at a relentless pace, leaving the association staff scrambling to keep up.

“Why is this guy so dedicated?”

It was mayhem. A serial killer was on the loose, treating murder like it was a hobby.

Yet the public response was… unexpected. Rather than fear or outrage, there was overwhelming support.

—Yeah, baby!He got another one!

—Come on, keep up.He already got three kills today.

— Wow!He really is on fire today.

—Life is busythese days.

—Gotta respectthe hustle.

It was easy to see why. The victims weren’t innocents—they were criminals, villains who many believed deserved nothing less than death.

There were no exceptions. Upon investigation, even bodies that were not on the list of villains had turned out to be individuals committing felonies in secret.

This serial killer, who had somehow tracked down every one of them and cut off their heads before vanishing into the ether, was naturally becoming something of a hero. They called him the “Vigilante.”

The witnesses, once targets of these villains, spoke out with gratitude.

—(Breaking news) “I want to thank the man who saved me.”

—(Interview video) “He saved my life!”

—(Opinion) “I hope nobody finds out who he is.”

—(News) The Vigilante is Here!Korea is Being Purged of Villains!

Commenters were in full support.

—LOL. Who knew our country would get its own vigilante? Thought that was just a movie thing.

—The police and the Hunters Association must be pulling their hair out, but I’m all for it. They deserved to die.

—Vigilante, we’re rooting for you!

—Yes, we are.

—Please keep delivering justice.

The police and Hunters Association, however, weren’t as enthused.

“They can’t be serious!”

“What’s the point of laws if this keeps up?”

“What has the world come to? A serial killer has the public’s approval.”

South Korea prided itself on being a nation of laws. No one was above them—not even the Vigilante.

And not all crimes were punishable by death, but the Vigilante always killed his targets. For now, his victims were limited to villains, but who knew when he might turn and start hurting innocent civilians?

“But… Like the comments say, he’s only taken out criminals so far,” said a rookie association employee.

The seasoned employees turned on him in an instant.

“Watch your mouth, kid! We aren’t supposed to talk like that!”

“S-sorry!”

“Tsk!”

“It’s baffling. He’s doing this out in the open. So how is he so invisible?”

“It was ‘too dark to see?’ They expect us to believe that? The witnesses are hiding his identity because he helped them.”

“He must have some kind of stealth skill. It’s absurd that there’s no security footage of him.”

At the back of the busy office, Central Director Lee Sehwan tore his eyes from the bustling employees. He leaned with his back against the window, sipping a cup of instant coffee.

Sehwan’s gaze drifted to the side, to the darkness beyond the glass. The world might be falling apart, but the coffee mix was as sweet as ever.

Since the Great Cataclysm had shaken the globe, incidents had been piling up nonstop, keeping the association’s employees in constant crisis mode. Sehwan had been swept up in the chaos as well, working tirelessly like everyone else. Over time, his efforts earned him promotions and raises until he finally became a director.

Life can be so unpredictable, he thought. It felt like just yesterday that he had taken the police officer exam, started in the force as a rookie detective, and followed intimidating senior officers on cases.

He’d been thinking about those days a lot lately. Back then, it wasn’t unusual for criminals to turn up dead, so he didn’t understand why people were making such a fuss about it now. In the past, criminals sometimes even showed up of their own accord and begged to be arrested, fearing they’d be killed otherwise.

Ah,those were the days.

Sehwan chuckled to himself, recalling those wild times. He had even held the record for the highest number of arrests in the country.

He took another sip of his coffee, lost in thought.

Of course, he knew better than to voice such thoughts aloud. They’d only earn him glares and whispers about being a condescending old fart.

Instead, he grinned quietly, his eyes drifting habitually to the glass door at the entrance of the office. It was almost as if he was waiting for someone.

Sehwan’s gaze deepened.

This building had once been the Central Police Station, but after Woo Jinchul became the association chairman, they were incorporated into the Korean Hunters Association—an unprecedented move. Despite the new sign above the door, the interior remained unchanged. The familiar surroundings tugged at memories buried under years of Sehwan’s busy life.

What are you up to out there?

It had already been over five years since Sehwan’s mentor and the legendary detective of the Violent Crimes Unit, Detective Sung Jinwoo, had disappeared.

Looking back, Sehwan realized those days with Jinwoo were among the most meaningful of his career. He deeply missed them.

I’m sure you’re doing fine wherever you are… but I wish you’d come back already.

Not that he was worried. Jinwoo had always come and gone unpredictably. When he disappeared five years ago, no one had panicked, believing as usual that he had gone off to handle a case. They assumed he’d return eventually, likely dragging along a chain of apprehended criminals like a candy necklace.

Still, after five long years, he hadn’t returned.

“Huh?”

Sehwan blinked, rubbing his eyes in disbelief as the door suddenly opened and revealed a familiar face. And they were dragging along a string of criminals, no less!

“J-Jinwoo? No, wait!”

Sehwan shook himself out of his stupor, looking again. This man was too young to be Sung Jinwoo, yet the resemblance was uncanny. They’re so similar. Almost as if… No, it couldn’t be…

“Wh-what the—?”

“Hello, my name is Sung Suho. I have some people to turn—”

“I knew it!”

Before Suho could finish, Sehwan dashed toward him.

The employees looked on, bewildered, as the director threw his arms around the young man.

“Ha! So you’re Suho!”

“Uh… S-sorry?” Suho stammered, visibly confused.

Sehwan had been Jinwoo’s coworker for a long time, and he immediately recognized the young man’s name. He had even seen photos of Suho as a child, though this was his first time meeting him as an adult.

Seeing the young hunter’s face brought tears to Sehwan’s eyes. It was impossible not to see the resemblance to his father.

“Oh, goodness me. I’m sorry,” the director said, clearing his throat. “What am I doing? Ahem. You’re Jinwoo’s son, right?”

“You know of my father?”

“Know of him? I once reported directly to him, boy! Haha!”

After releasing Suho from his enthusiastic embrace, Sehwan introduced himself with a hearty laugh.

Suho returned the introduction politely, though he hadn’t expected to run into one of his father’s old colleagues. Then again, it wasn’t surprising. Just two years ago, this was the Central Police Station, his father’s old workplace. The officers who had worked with Jinwoo and later awakened had all been incorporated into the Hunters Association. It was only natural for there to be at least a couple of people who knew him.

After a brief exchange, Suho handed over the criminals he’d captured. “I ran into them on the way here. They’re minor offenders, which is probably why they’re still alive.”

“Huh?”

The employees tilted their heads at this remark, then turned their attention to the trembling criminals. The villains seemed terrified of Suho, their faces pale as though they’d survived a harrowing ordeal.

Indeed, after checking the police records, the employees confirmed they were only petty offenders.

Why are they so scared?

The villains’ expressions suggested something far worse than just being apprehended—it was almost like they’d narrowly escaped death.

“Oh, and if you go to this address,” Suho continued, “you’ll find a few bodies. The reports should have come in already, so if you look into them—”

“Wait a minute! Are you the Vigilante?!” Sehwan cried.

All eyes snapped to Suho.

He smiled faintly, shaking his head. “I wouldn’t call myself that,” he replied, trying to downplay the situation.

Just how many people has Kira killed in the past few days?

When Suho sent the shadow assassin off to hunt villains with Harmakan, the bodies had been dealt with cleanly, and there hadn’t been much of a ruckus. But now that he had been left to his own devices, he was apparently gaining quite the reputation.

I’ll have a word with you later, Suho thought.

Still, he doubted he could reprimand Kira. The assassin only seemed to target those who truly deserved it, as evidenced by the minor offenders he’d spared.

An uneasy thought struck Suho. Don’t tell me he plans to do this in India, too…

At the moment, Kira was in India, lurking in Rio’s shadow as instructed and keeping close to him. Rio would stay there for the time being, managing the affairs in that region. Meanwhile, Liu had returned to China, accompanied by another group of shadow soldiers.

Suho had been deploying his shadow soldiers across the globe whenever the chance arose, ensuring he could instantly transport himself to any location where signs of the Church of the Outer Gods appeared—as he had just done.

But judging from the situation, he had the feeling Kira would not stay out of trouble, even in India.

Well, I’ll leave him to it. Suho had no plans to intervene as long as Kira limited his targets to the truly deserving. In the hunter industry, there was a common belief: The death of one villain could save a hundred innocent lives. Of course, Kira had been the one to tell him that…

“Anyhow…”

Suho brushed those thoughts aside, focusing on the real purpose of his visit.

He looked at Sehwan, noting the card hanging around the man’s neck. It was fortunate that this man, who had once worked for his father, now held such a key position.

Reintroducing himself properly, Suho said, “I’m Sung Suho, the head of the Woojin Guild. I’m here on a different matter.”

“What…?”

Sehwan’s expression changed in an instant. A moment ago, he had been overjoyed to meet someone so reminiscent of Jinwoo. Now realizing who this young man was, he tensed.

“You’re the leader of the Woojin Guild?” he asked, his voice carrying a note of disbelief.

Well, this changes things, he thought, his gaze sharpening as he studied Suho again. The realization had taken a moment to sink in, delayed by the sheer joy of their reunion.

Sung Suho… Of course.What else could I expect of Jinwoo’s son?

A grin spread across Sehwan’s face.

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