Solo Leveling- Ragnarok-Chapter 311

The moment Beru swallowed the brain that once contained the Apostle of Evolution, his Devour skill began to absorb every memory held within.

A flood of information flowed into Beru’s mind, but it would be inefficient to accept everything. He had to filter only the most important and valuable fragments from the countless pieces of data.

Then his mouth suddenly opened wide, releasing a screech. Within that unsettling sound was a cry of genuine welcome. The first of the memories that the Apostle had left behind was an image of Beru’s amazing, boast-worthy liege.

“Arise.”

Jinwoo was the deep, unlimited darkness, the shadow of the abyss, the king of death.

Beru let out another screech.

The overwhelming terror caused by the Monarch of Shadows was deeply embedded within the Apostle of Evolution. It was the root of all his motivations.

Shuddering from the pride and joy he felt, Beru began to consume the memories. Everything the Apostle had experienced, every thought he’d had, began to fit together in the shadow ant’s mind like pieces of a puzzle.

“A Monarch!”

“What is a Monarch?”

Until relatively recently, the followers of the Itarim had only encountered one Monarch—the Monarch of Shadows, whom they’d met in the Outer Universes.

That showed just how little they knew about this universe. In fact, they had severely underestimated it.

They had planned only to invade, not to start a war. They had only come here to claim and absorb the ownerless mana floating freely in this universe, but things had not gone according to plan. The Monarch of Shadows had stood in their way. His incredible power and chilling authority had been more than enough to overpower the Itarim’s armies despite their own divine power.

The most shocking revelation was that the Monarch did not merely kill his enemies. He took the souls of the dead and transformed them into his own loyal soldiers, ready to fight once again.

That was where things began to go wrong. The word “Monarch” had symbolized Jinwoo, with his terror-inducing and incomparable might—but that was only up until the followers arrived on Earth. After all their detours and travels, a truly startling fact awaited them when they eventually arrived in the dimension protected by the Monarch of Shadows.

“My god.”

“There were originally multiple beings like the Monarch of Shadows?!”

It was a revelation that shook them to the core. They learned there was more than one Monarch in this world.

“We didn’t expect this!”

“We must inform our main forces quickly!”

“That’s impossible. We have already come too far! We must go back the way we came if we want to get this information to them!”

This was a disaster. The followers—who had arrived at different points in time, each in their own way—were left confused and bewildered. They had taken long detours to avoid the Monarch of Shadows and finally arrived at the rear, only to find beings at the same level as the very enemy they were trying to avoid at their destination. The despair that gripped them was almost indescribable.

“I don’t believe it.”

“To think there are multiple Monarchs, just like us followers!”

“There were more beings like the Monarch of Shadows?”

“What... What kind of universe is this?”

“No wonder! Now I understand how a creator was killed by the beings they made.”

“In any case, if there are more like him here, there is absolutely nothing we can accomplish.”

“What do we do, then?”

“First, we hide. If the Monarchs find us, we are dead. In fact, death won’t be the end of our troubles.”

“I agree. We’ll lie low and keep an eye on the situation.”

“All right. I will change my current plans and gather as much information as I can while in hiding. We’ll collect everything, put it together, and take it back to the main forces...”

They began to hide themselves with great care, gathering intelligence about the dimension. Though they served different gods, they had one common enemy—the Monarch of Shadows.

They decided to share whatever information they could uncover. They had many questions that needed answers.

“So where are the other Monarchs now?”

“Why didn’t they take part in the war?”

“My investigations have revealed that some of them are dead.”

“What about the others? Are they still alive?”

“Is it possible that all of the others have died as well?”

This was a crucial matter. If the other Monarchs, who were the equals to the Monarch of Shadows, arrived in the Outer Universes all at once, the precarious balance of the war would be disrupted completely.

Then they found some new information.

“I have good news. It is very likely that all the other Monarchs are already dead.”

“I have some information myself. The Monarch of Shadows killed the others, all of them, without exception.”

“Is that how he grew to be so powerful? By absorbing their power?”

“That doesn’t seem to be the case. If that were possible, we would have met other Monarchs among his soldiers in the Outer Universes.”

“Then where has their power gone?”

“I’ve discovered something. The power of the dead Monarchs seems to be kept in a place called the Sea of the Afterlife, waiting until a successor appears from the relevant race.”

“So they remain unclaimed? Confirmed.”

“Confirmed...”

This was a massive relief. They had feared more beings like the Monarch of Shadows were active, but the others were already dead and gone.

As they discovered the dimensions of the dead Monarchs floating about in the dimensional rift, the evidence became clearer. There were no further variables.

“Good. So now all that remains is to go about our activities without being caught by the Monarch of Shadows?”

“No. I’m of the opinion that we don’t have to worry about him at all. Not even he is capable of keeping tabs on things happening in another dimension.”

“Don’t let down your guard. It’s safe to assume that nothing is impossible for him.”

“That seems excessive. Even the Monarch of Shadows is just a created being. He is a weapon who has turned out unusually strong. That is all.”

“So what are you getting at?”

“I’m saying we can afford to be a little more proactive than before.”

With this, their strategy shifted. At first, they had cooperated to gather information, but once they realized the other Monarchs were dead, their opinions began to differ.

“Then I suggest we go about our own plans.”

“I agree. There may be more threats we aren’t aware of, so let us continue to exchange information.”

“Understood.”

From that point on, they kept in touch only sporadically, each going their own way, pursuing their individual goals through their own methods. Though they didn’t say it out loud, they each knew what the others were after—the power of the dead Monarchs. If they could claim that power, they would be as strong as the Monarch of Shadows.

Then they discovered a race known as the high elves. The high elves were the most likely to succeed the power of the dead Monarch of Frost.

“I have located the hiding place of the high elves.”

“I injected divine power into the trees they serve.”

“They have been taught faith.”

“They are now our devoted followers.”

“Even if one of them inherits the power of the Monarch, all that power will...”

Nobody finished that sentence. They could worry about who would gain that power after the plan had succeeded.

As the followers served different Itarim, it was natural that they would want to deliver that vast power to their own god. When the time came, they knew a conflict among themselves might be inevitable. They concluded that a bit of suppression and planning might be necessary, but nothing more.

There was one among them, however, who had a different idea—the Apostle of Evolution. He didn’t want to offer the Monarch’s power to his god. Instead, he wanted it for himself.

The moment he recognized that desire, he was horrified. His pursuit of knowledge and his ambition for power had overcome his faith. Still, he already knew where this irreverent mindset came from.

“The created beings of this universe killed their own gods? That’s actually possible?”

When the Apostle of Evolution first came across this astonishing information, the revelation had struck his mind like an explosion of fireworks.

“To think such a thing can happen. I never dared even imagine it.”

The Apostle’s pride had honestly been a bit injured as well. He had believed that he was the wisest of all created beings, and he also considered himself the most devoted servant of his god. His great hunger for knowledge and intelligence was, in his view, gifted by his god out of love.

Yet in that moment—when he encountered a truth too blasphemous to fathom—that very curiosity had begun to twist in a dangerous direction.

“Then... could I do it too?”

The very thought of a creation killing its creator was an act of ultimate heresy. It was something that could never be, a forbidden act that should not even be imagined.

And so the Apostle of Evolution hadn’t started out with such thoughts. He had simply been curious. Would he also be able to evolve into a being so powerful he could kill his own god?

“Right. Perhaps like the Monarch of Shadows, I can also...”

It was curiosity, and nothing else, that filled the Apostle’s mind. That curiosity soon became research, and that research led, step by step, to the moment that was unfolding now.

Sirka.

She was not a high elf. The pivotal moment came when the Apostle realized that the Monarch of Frost had chosen a being who was not a high elf to be his successor.

He decided it was time for his research to bear fruit and immediately sprang into action.

[The Apostle of Nightmare declares the “Sanctuary of Nightmare” in this region.]

[Debuff: “Nightmare” has been activated.] 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

The surroundings were consumed by a red fog, and many system messages appeared before Suho.

At that moment, Greed, who had been buried in the red fog, managed to push his face out from the crimson haze and shouted toward Suho in alarm. “Something is wrong! I can’t seem to do anything about this fog. I’ve tried both magic and physical attacks!”

It was Beru who responded.

“Young Monarch...”

He had finished reviewing all of the Apostle of Evolution’s memories, and his conclusion was far more grim than Suho had hoped.

“The ‘nightmare’ he has created overlaps with reality in this region. We could attack him and even kill him if we want, but he’ll just come back to life. It’ll just be as though...”

“He’s waking from a nightmare?” Suho asked.

“Yes. He succeeded, but only halfway. His original goal was to evolve into someone like my liege. While the method differs, I believe he has at least succeeded in evolving into something like a shadow soldier. And if he wants to grow stronger from here...”

Suho immediately realized what Beru meant to say next.

Just then, a desperate message arrived from Sillad.

[Sillad requests help!]

[The Apostle of Nightmare interferes with Sirka’s dream.]

In that instant, Suho and Beru realized where the Apostle of Nightmare must be. He was inside the ice pillar—inside Sirka’s dream—attempting to claim the power of the Monarch of Frost for himself.

“Sillad!” Suho shouted.

Without hesitation, the deceased Monarch drew him into their world.

[Passive Skill: “(Unknown)” has been activated.]

Time stopped, and Suho’s surroundings shifted. His mind plummeted into an abyss of shadow without end, just as Esil had once fallen toward the Sea of the Afterlife after failing her succession.

This time, Suho didn’t panic. He had done this before. Even as he fell, his eyes remained steady, locked onto the fathomless darkness beneath him.

However, what happened next confused him greatly.

[Beru activated the skill: “Nightmare.”]

Huh...?

“Kieeeek!”

Beru appeared beside Suho as he fell. He was just as confused as Suho.

“Young Monarch! Where in the world are we?”

Together they plummeted, side by side, into Sirka’s nightmare.