Solo Leveling- Ragnarok-Chapter 288

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When the Apostle of Paradise fled, the dimensional rifts he had opened began to close on their own.

Beru’s eyes gleamed as he confirmed the apostle’s disappearance. “He must still be alive,” he remarked. “The fact that he lives after facing me means he cares about survival more than anything else.”

The followers of the Itarim that Beru once faced in the Outer Universes all had different appearances and abilities. This was because there was more than one Itar. The various Outer Gods’ followers and creations likewise possessed a variety of different traits, and as a result, the entire landscape of war shifted whenever a new Itar appeared to join the battle. For Sung Jinwoo, who had to face them all, it was like battling an army that never ran out of reinforcements.

But despite the appearance of unity, there were unseen tensions between the Itarim. They had allied only out of convenience. Their goals were temporarily aligned against a common threat, but they were never truly on the same side. They moved together against their powerful opponent, Jinwoo, but their true purpose in entering this universe was domination.

Even if they did succeed in defeating the Shadow Monarch’s powerful army and claiming this universe for their own, their war would not end. The victorious Outer Gods would turn on each other, each one seeking to monopolize the immense, unclaimed mana free for the taking. In the process, this universe and the dimensions surrounding Earth would be torn into countless pieces, doomed to float about in the dimensional rift for all time.

“And that is why they try to undermine each other even as they fight,” Beru explained. “They will dispatch the forces of other Outer Gods to fight while keeping their own forces in reserve. And they betray each other in all sorts of ways.”

He was saying that this was a three-way war—or rather, a war not between just two parties but among countless other factions. Part of the reason that Jinwoo was able to hold his ground despite the endless forces he faced was the lack of unity among the enemy.

“I appreciate the explanation, but can you repeat it for me later?” Suho asked. Right now he didn’t have the luxury of listening to Beru’s detailed breakdown.

The Apostle of Paradise may have fled, but the battle was far from over. His remains had been scattered across the city, seeping into the soil like fertilizer and accelerating the Álfheimr’s rampage.

This had a powerful impact on the Spirits of Extreme Cold that had been overwhelmed by Sirka’s energy. They began to lose control, and they swelled, becoming so large that they seemed ready to freeze the entire world. For the first time, one even deflected Sirka’s hammer.

That wasn’t the end of it either.

[Skill: “Breath of Destruction” has activated.]

Suho’s devastating attack blasted a massive hole through one of the spirits. The attack didn’t just burn—it melted through the spirit, making its body dissolve like cotton candy in water.

Suho had the complete advantage here, but to his surprise, the hole vanished. The snow-laden winds around the Spirit of Extreme Cold gathered and sealed the wound.

These were not ordinary magic beasts. They were the embodiment of winter itself. To destroy them completely, he would need to burn away the very season that had descended upon this instance dungeon.

“Everyone, out!” Suho commanded.

[Skill: “Monarch’s Domain” has activated.]

From beneath his feet, shadows surged outward, flooding the entire city. Dark red flames flickered on the shadow soldiers’ bodies as they rose from the depths.

“Charge!” Suho shouted.

Thousands of soldiers roared at once, rushing forward. The once-glistening city of villains was now ablaze.

However, the soldiers weren’t after the Spirits of Extreme Cold.

“Sirka will need to devour those,” Suho muttered.

He and his army were headed elsewhere—toward Álfheimr.

“Right, we’ll take that tree.”

The mastermind behind this situation had been identified, and the city’s secrets had been unraveled. There was no reason to hold back any longer.

From the depths of the earth to the skies above, Álfheimr’s hideous, twisting roots and branches came slashing toward them.

Since the beginning of time, a tree like Álfheimr in winter had been the ultimate nightmare of the elves. But right now, that nightmare was about to be overturned.

“Follow me!”

“That tree is ours!”

“Pull out the roots and cut off the branches!”

The wavering crimson-black flames of the shadow soldiers spread across the city. They charged through the inferno. The ground trembled beneath their steps, and the flames they exuded caused their surroundings to melt.

The attacking soldiers cut off the roots one by one, and a sea of fire descended in the winter cold.

Beru shouted, “Young Monarch, look! The roots have spread through the entire city!”

He was pointing toward the outer walls.

“The tree seems to be absorbing the bodies of every villain who has died so far!”

He was right. The roots had woven themselves into the city, spreading like a spider’s web to siphon nutrients from everything inside. Every time a soldier severed a root, the remains of the villains who had been devoured spilled out of it. The bodies resembled nothing more than dried husks.

“So it really was a garden,” Suho remarked with a frown.

It hadn’t been an exaggeration to say that the entire city had been a massive flower pot meant to nurture Álfheimr. It seemed that the Apostle of Paradise was more talented at executing such schemes than he was in battle.

On the other side of the city, Sirka was still locked in combat with the Spirits of Extreme Cold. Her great ice hammer tore through the blizzard, crushing them.

“How... dare you...”

“Shut up and submit!” she shouted.

Wham! Wham!

Each blow obliterated their bodies, only for them to reform a moment later.

[Sillad raises his clenched fists.]

Sirka could almost hear the Monarch cheering her on.

The remains of the Apostle of Paradise had caused the Spirits of Extreme Cold to lose control, but the tide of battle was already set. She had already dominated four spirits, and only one remained.

“She’ll be done soon,” Suho mumbled.

Most of Álfheimr’s roots had been severed, and Sirka was seizing the last of the Spirits of Extreme Cold.

Now all that remains is...

Suho grunted, and with one last powerful yank, he tore out the final root. With a deafening crash, the great trunk of Álfheimr came crashing down, splitting the city in half. A shockwave that seemed to shake the very sky rippled through the city.

But even then, Álfheimr wasn’t done.

Haseul came up beside Suho and shouted anxiously, “This isn’t good! Álfheimr is attempting a final harvest!”

“A final harvest?”

Having been a harvester, Haseul understood this tree better than anyone. When she was sent to this city by Woo Jinchul, one of her primary missions was to uncover the tree’s characteristics.

The charred trunk, stripped of its branches and roots, suddenly began to regrow. New roots burrowed downward, sinking deep into the earth, and it absorbed the nutrients around it at an unbelievable pace. The earth contained the corpses of slaughtered elves whom the villains had hunted, and now all of those nutrients were converging into a single point.

“Ah...”

Suho’s eyes locked onto the tree. It was growing a single, final fruit.

“Does it intend to grow another spirit?”

“Yes. The final executor! If it’s born, we’ll all—”

Haseul never got the chance to finish her sentence. Sirka’s movements were faster. With no hesitation, she plucked the fruit—and crushed it.

“Enough stalling!” she said to the fruit. “Get out here already. You’re the only one left.”

Suho turned around, realizing that the blizzard had ceased. In its place, five towering ice golems stood behind Sirka. She had done it—she had succeeded in controlling the Spirits of Extreme Cold.

The moment Sirka burst the last fruit Álfheimr had fought so hard to create, what emerged was not another spirit. It was a scream.

Aieeeeeeeeee!

It was a terrifying sound, the sort that human ears could not fully hear.

Then a notification appeared.

[An emergency quest has arrived.]

Suho let out a disbelieving laugh.

[Emergency Quest: Defeat the Enemy!]

[There are hostile entities nearby with murderous intent toward the player. Eliminate them all to secure safety.

Enemies to Eliminate: 2,918

Enemies Eliminated: 0]

These numbers were absurd. Nearly three thousand enemies had them completely surrounded, yet he hadn’t even sensed their presence.

“Oh... It must have been the leaves,” he murmured.

The snowstorm receded and winter lifted, returning the land to autumn. The flames of destruction had melted the snow and burned the reddish leaves underneath. Even if the leaves had been reduced to ashes, they still filled the air as smoke and impeded the senses.

This effect was only temporary, of course. The problem was that some entities had heard Álfheimr’s scream and had come rushing over to the city.

Surveying the area, Suho let out another disbelieving chuckle. Perched atop the burning walls, three thousand high elves stood, bows drawn and aimed straight at him. These high elves had already been devoured by Elvenwoods. Their skin was hardened and twisted like bark.

“Sillad, are high elves supposed to be this common?” he remarked.

[Sillad clicks his tongue.]

[Sillad says that they are not real high elves, but cheap imitations forcibly evolved by tainted Elvenwoods.]

Apparently, these were the handiwork of the Apostle of Paradise as well. Suho wondered just how many gardens the apostle had created.

Meanwhile, Haseul’s grip tightened on her scythe. Her expression was grim as she felt the overwhelming hostility radiating from the high elves.

In one hand, she held the round strawberry cake Suho had given her earlier. She took a rough bite out of it. If she was going to die here today, she could at least enjoy one last mouthful.

Suho, on the other hand, looked as though he felt the situation was a blessing.

“Arsha.”

“Yes? Do you need me?”

A horde of bees swarmed out of his shadow. As they clustered in the air, they came together to form the face of Arsha, who smiled politely.

Haseul flinched at the sight but took another large bite of her cake. At this point, she was committed to finishing it no matter what happened.

Suho issued a command. “Great timing. Send out your bees and follow the elves’ tracks. Find out where they came from. And—”

“I will locate every single Elvenwood they emerged from.”

Of course Arsha already knew what he wanted. With that, she dispersed back into a cloud of bees, soaring into the sky.

“And as for them...”

The Apostle of Paradise had already broken the instance dungeon, but even without it, these high elves would give Suho experience points. He grinned, revealing his teeth.

“It was such a bother to track them all down. This is great. Don’t let a single high elf escape.”

“Yes, my lord!”

The shadow army moved immediately, charging toward the high elves.

Meanwhile, as Sirka stood facing their enemies, a change was happening within her. A cold, piercing energy began to swirl around her.