Solo Leveling- Ragnarok-Chapter 314

Nidhogg gave a ferocious roar as Beru blocked its attack with one claw. The roof of the snake’s mouth pressed down on him with overwhelming strength as he held it up, the sharp teeth ready to tear into both him and Sirka at any moment.

Yet Beru only laughed, a wide grin spreading across his face. Planting his feet firmly against the bottom of Nidhogg’s mouth, he pressed upward, forcing the monstrous jaws to open wider. The snake’s eyes flashed with confusion.

“I’ll stall him. Go on in,” Beru said.

Sirka’s eyes widened in surprise.

Even as he struggled against the mouth, Beru’s eyes were still on her. “Go inside and take it with your own hands!” he urged.

Sirka leaped forward, diving straight into the dark maw that Beru was holding open without a moment’s hesitation.

This was the decisive moment. She had reached her destination, the one head among Nidhogg’s remaining six that contained the power of the Monarch of Frost. The succession ceremony was about to end, and all that remained was for Sirka to enter the deep, dark mouth and claim the primordial darkness. Until then, it was Beru’s job to buy her the time she needed.

A deep rumble shook the world as Nidhogg’s enormous body tightened its grip around the World Tree. Using the tree for support, the other five heads lunged at Beru, jaws wide open, unleashing a brutal assault.

Roars and shrieks filled the air. It was as if Beru were holding back an entire natural disaster on his own. The very world seemed to be collapsing on him, trying to tear him apart.

But even in the midst of it all, the shadow ant stood undaunted. He welcomed the challenge.

“It’s been a while.”

It indeed had been a long time since he’d taken part in a battle where he could use his powers so freely.

Beru had been gathering strength, devouring countless mana stones and mana crystals, saving his energy for just the right moment. He hadn’t wanted to interfere with Suho’s progress, after all. He would have liked nothing better than to step in for the Young Monarch every time, but that would only lessen the amount of experience points Suho would receive.

But now it was different. Suho was far away, locked in battle with the Apostle of Nightmare. Helping Sirka here wouldn’t hinder his progress in the slightest.

More importantly, this place was within a nightmare. Thanks to the Apostle of Nightmare and the nightmare domain he had created, Beru could use as much of his power as he wished with no lasting repercussions in the real world. All of this would be like a passing dream. Just as the Apostle of Nightmare would return to his original form no matter how much damage Suho dealt, Beru, too, could unleash everything he had.

With a rushing, searing noise, the shadow ant released all the power he had amassed.

“Kieeeeeek!”

Black vapor burst from his body. It boiled and raged until it finally exploded outward like an erupting volcano.

Beru’s body swelled even further as the other heads of Nidhogg charged at him from every direction. Black wings unfurled from his back. In that moment, he was every bit the monstrous creature that had once reduced Jeju Island to rubble.

The giant ant and six-headed snake clashed, each sinking their fangs and claws into the other.

Beru’s large fist slammed into one of Nidhogg’s faces as it lunged at him from the side. The sound was deafening, like a bomb going off, and the threatening head was crushed.

At the same time, another head spewed poison at Beru from the opposite side. He used one hand to support the mouth Sirka had entered, while the other hand yanked one of Nidhogg’s fangs from its gums. The serpent gave a choked, rattling sound of pain. Ignoring it completely, Beru hurled the fang like a spear, driving it straight into the eye of the venom-spewing head.

The yowl that followed was sweet music to his ears, and he smacked his lips in satisfaction. He would have loved nothing more than to devour this creature and see what Nidhogg’s flesh might taste like, but unfortunately, there wasn’t time for that.

Blinded in one eye and consumed with rage, the head came at him with renewed fury.

Just what I wanted.

“Keep it coming! I am invincible today!” Beru shouted.

A deep rumble shook the World Tree. It felt as though the entire dimension trembled from the clash of the two colossal beings.

Inside the mouth, Sirka clenched her teeth as she felt the vibrations. Even without seeing it, she could tell. Through the surrounding mana, she could feel the absurd intensity of the battle outside.

Beru’s claws dug deep into Nidhogg’s thick scales, tearing into the flesh beneath, but the wounds healed almost instantly. The massive serpent’s fangs crushed his exoskeleton, but the black vapor repaired it just as quickly.

“It’s no use! Do you have any idea how many mana crystals the Young Monarch has acquired for me?”

The flow of black vapor around him intensified, reminding him of the power he once wielded alongside the Monarch of Shadows.

Beru knew himself too well, however.

This isn’t enough.

He wanted more. This wasn’t nearly enough power.

The Beru who had fought beside his Monarch in endless battles had been far stronger than this. Devour allowed him to become stronger by consuming his enemies. As a commander of the shadow army, marching at its lead, he’d made great use of that ability as he fought. It was a talent that set him apart from the other commanders.

Igris and Bellion had been war machines who could continually grow through their battles. Beru, however, had been a more strategic tool, able to ingest his opponents and absorb fragments of their memories and powers, undergoing a unique kind of evolution in the process. In a sense, the concept of evolution suited Beru more than the Apostle of Evolution himself.

However, in order to use his powers to the fullest extent, Beru needed access to the endless mana of Sung Jinwoo, the Monarch of Shadows. Reckless, brute-force battles like this felt frustrating, like he was fighting while bound in chains.

But at least I can do this much.

“Let me borrow your power for a second,” Beru said.

In that instant, his gaze locked on the Apostle of Nightmare, who was still fighting Suho in the distance. An ominous feeling swept through the Apostle.

With a sharp, tearing noise, Beru’s body began to grow even larger. With a deafening snap, his massive claw seized the entire maw of Nidhogg—the very mouth Sirka had entered.

“M-my god!”

The Apostle of Nightmare stared, aghast. By the time he could properly register what was happening, Beru’s size had nearly matched Nidhogg’s. The Apostle understood immediately where this newfound power was coming from.

“How are you able to use my power?!” he demanded, his voice filled with disbelief.

Beru only grinned in response. In spectacular fashion, he smashed the incoming serpent heads with his giant fists, one after another. The two titanic monsters, now equal in size, were locked in brutal combat. It was a scene of pure, chaotic violence.

Meanwhile, the answer to the Apostle’s question came from Suho.

“Don’t be so surprised. All Beru did was feed on your brain and absorb every memory of your ‘research.’”

“What?!”

The Apostle turned back toward Suho, eyes wide with shock. He no longer cared about the never-ending pain wracking his body. The realization that all of his life’s research had been stolen and transferred into another shook him to his core.

The dark vapor emanating from Beru’s body had somewhat changed. His enormous form was now infused with nightmarish energy, though still terrifyingly real. He had become Nidhogg’s worst nightmare.

Nidhogg’s six heads, which had been launching a relentless assault, grew confused and disoriented. In their vision, Beru appeared to grow larger and larger until it seemed he might outgrow the very dimension in which he stood. Though the shadow ant hadn’t actually grown in size, his terrifying appearance was amplified by the power of the nightmares. It was an illusion, but to Nidhogg, it felt very real. Beru now appeared several times larger than itself.

For the first time, it faltered. It grasped that this was a hallucination, but instinct forced it to recoil.

“How dare you steal the evolution I completed!” the Apostle growled.

Far away, he ground his teeth in rage. Even while locked in battle with Suho, he could clearly see that his stolen power was now being wielded against him. Fury welled up inside him, but there was nothing he could do.

“M-my power...”

Meanwhile, he was still being torn apart by Suho and the shadow sharks, piece by piece. There was no way for him to intervene. All he could do was helplessly and bitterly watch Beru’s overwhelming battle from a distance, filled with frustration and resentment.

The shadow ant screeched, his massive apparition wrapping itself around Nidhogg’s body. Though it was nothing more than a nightmare-induced hallucination, it felt incredibly real. The six heads of the snake swayed in confusion, unsure of what was real and what was not.

Then a glimmer of good news arrived.

[The quest has been completed.]

Huh? Suho thought.

[Quest: A Favor for the Monarch of Frost]

[Make Sirka, the ice elf and Sillad’s successor, the next Monarch.

Sirka’s vessel is not yet strong enough to contain the primordial darkness.

Protect her and guide her growth until she can inherit its power.]

The quest Sillad had given him was complete.

Wait, that means...

At that moment, the head Sirka had entered exploded like a bursting balloon. It revealed the elf, her eyes closed and surrounded by a dark cloud. She floated in midair.

“N-no!”

The Apostle managed to squeeze out the last of his strength. Though Suho’s blades still pierced his body, he was determined not to let the primordial darkness slip from his grasp.

With one final, desperate attempt, he unleashed a nightmare against Sirka.

As she absorbed the primordial darkness with her eyes closed, Sirka suddenly felt her vision turn white. She was greeted by a horrific sight—a vision of her people frozen in the cold, their bodies lined up before her. The power of the Monarch of Frost, a disaster that had once plagued the ice elves, had taken hold.

The nightmare’s whispers filled her mind.

“Are you not afraid?” it taunted.

“You must fear that terrible power.”

“It brought death to your people.”

The whispers dug into her, but Sirka wasn’t going to be swayed.

Wrong, she thought, a smile playing at the corners of her lips. Nightmares like this can’t scare me.

She opened her arms wide and embraced the primordial darkness, allowing it to flood her being.

Beings like me—like us—were born from nightmares. We are ice elves, born from the extreme cold. And I...

At last, her eyes snapped open. They shone, filled with the primordial darkness.

I am Sirka, their ruler.

Sillad, waiting for her on the edge of the darkness, smiled contentedly.

[The Monarch of Frost and the King of the Snow Folk transfers his darkness to his successor.]

Ding!

In that moment, a quest reward arrived for Suho.

[“Extreme Winter” encircles the World Tree.]

The sudden cold began to freeze the World Tree from the roots up. Sirka stood in the heart of the cold, smiling at Suho.

From this point on, I will be the World Tree’s nightmare.

Her smile was both beautiful and chilling. It was the World Tree’s turn to experience what her people had suffered.

[Sirka is now the Queen of the Snow Folk and the Monarch of Nightmare.]

In the truest sense of the word, Sirka had returned as a nightmare for the World Tree.