Solo Leveling- Ragnarok-Chapter 342

Thomas grew stronger with every death, each loss adding a sliver more to his strength. Though he wasn’t leveling up, every bit of combat experience accumulated. Every one of Legia’s attack patterns and weaknesses was etched into Thomas Andre’s muscle memory and mind, and his soul was no exception. The more he visited the Sea of Afterlife, the more solid and sturdy the vessel of his soul became. It was an infinite cycle.

“Let’s fight again, Legia.”

He never seemed to tire.

“Again.”

He never lost heart.

“Legia.”

He simply refused to stop.

[You died.]

[You died.]

[...]

[Try again?]

“Again.”

“Again.”

Eventually, Legia’s patience snapped.

“Damn it! Don’t you get it? No matter how many times you try, you have no chance of winning!”

“So what? That isn’t going to stop me.”

“The hell is wrong with you?!”

The King of Giants was boiling with frustration. This Thomas Andre died over and over again, but never gave up. He always returned for another round, and it was impossible to understand why. Then came the final provocation, one that made sparks fly from Legia’s eyes.

“Oh, I see. Do giants like you avoid fighting entirely unless you’re sure you can win? That makes you a bunch of cowards.”

That did the trick. Thomas casually nudged up his sunglasses, a grin on his face. There was no bluff in his voice. Thanks to the Oath of Trust, it was evident that every word that left this small, insignificant human’s mouth was true. Now, that very human was sincerely declaring again and again what he intended to do.

“Legia, King of Giants.” Thomas’ gaze burned. “You will die by my hand.”

Legia was left speechless. The man’s eyes held genuine murderous intent, as if to him, the great King of Giants was nothing more than prey.

“I’m humanity’s greatest hunter. And you’re the largest, most powerful magic beast I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

“How dare you!”

It didn’t seem to matter to him how reckless and impossible a task this was. With each repetition, that sincerity sank deeper into Legia’s very being. The Oath of Trust guaranteed that every word was steeped in pure, unfiltered murderous intent.

“So I want you to remember this, even after you’re dead. My name is not Sung Jinwoo 2. It’s Thomas Andre. I am humanity’s greatest hunter. And I’m going to kill you.”

Had he chosen not to release those chains, this could’ve ended far more easily. If Thomas had only one life, he would have done just that—and in fact, the story had intended for that to happen. This was a special event that delivered a giant hunk of experience points to the player with minimal effort so they could grow quickly and easily. There was no other reason to tie up such a strong boss like Legia at this level and leave him so vulnerable to attack.

But there was no thrill in following a set story like that, and Thomas had more than one life to play with. There was no real difficulty here. He could simply repeat the challenge over and over again until he succeeded, as long as the goal was worth chasing. Video games could be repeated hundreds, even thousands of times if necessary. And so, Thomas went at it again.

Legia roared in frustration.

“Why go this far? Are you not afraid of death? Don’t you tire of this endless pain?”

“Tire? How could I walk away when something as massive and beautiful as you is sitting right there?”

“What...?”

“Anything that makes my heart race is beautiful. That includes you.”

This one was a lunatic beyond all reason, Legia decided.

Ironically enough, fate had brought Thomas to just the place he needed. The nightmares that haunted him each night now became his greatest asset. In them, he had lived and relived the memory of kneeling helpless before Sung Jinwoo, someone far stronger than Legia. Now, those nightmares grounded him. Repeating a fight he was sure to lose, but refusing to stop, and taking the quest in front of him without giving up—that was not a game. To Thomas, it was his way of life.

“This game taught me something. Fighting the weak is just violence. But fighting the strong takes courage.

Jinwoo’s life, which Thomas had relived through this game, had indeed been an education.

“It isn’t that I’m a special human being. Even Jinwoo lived a life exactly like this. He was born vulnerable and fragile... An underdog. But he always bet his life on fighting the strong.”

In hindsight, his own childhood hadn’t been much better. He’d grown up in a so-called “white trash” family, a family of poor Caucasian immigrants in the US. He attended a predominantly African American school, and he was mocked on a daily basis. He grew up in the slums, where lawlessness reigned. If one wanted to survive there, they had to become strong. The weak lost everything to the strong. In that sense, Thomas had been lucky, as he was born with a naturally powerful body. Whenever someone beat him, he had the grit to get right back up and return the gesture.

Jinwoo’s life, on the other hand, had been different from the beginning. He had been humanity’s weakest hunter once, an E-rank nobody. Born inferior, he lived as one of society’s downtrodden, a social outcast. Yet he risked everything to protect his family, putting his life on the line. That took real courage.

“And now... Even his kid is doing the same thing. Trying to help his dad, who went off alone... on a long business trip, you could say.”

Suho, son of the Monarch of Shadows, was likely hard at work even now, pursuing that goal. Thomas clenched his jaw.

“That’s why I can’t give up. Even that snot-nosed kid is running around trying to save the world on his own, just like his father. And as an adult, I can’t just stand by and watch. That’d be just embarrassing. I’ve already left the future in one person’s hands and been nothing more than a spectator once. I’m not doing that again.”

Thomas had already experienced that bleak future. He remembered all too well the overwhelming fear of facing all those Monarchs. This time, he wouldn’t back down. He didn’t want to. And from that, a quiet understanding began to bloom.

“Jinwoo... I finally understand where your strength came from,” Thomas muttered under his breath. “You’ve always fought enemies like this. I’m finally starting to walk the path you did, even if just barely.”

The King of Giants lay before him, gasping for breath. It was time to end it. Thomas pulled a sawblade from his inventory, preparing to slice through the giant’s tough flesh and take his head. He had won.

“Good fight. It’s time for you to die.”

Just then, Legia, collapsed and exhausted, began laughing.

“Hmm?”

Suddenly, the aura around him changed, as though the being was no longer Legia at all. A blinding flash of light engulfed the dungeon. From the body lying on the ground emerged a different figure—a magic beast with the form of a crocodile.

“Well done indeed. I have finally found a vessel who is worthy.”

“Who are you?”

Thomas’ eyes narrowed. Fortunately, the game helpfully displayed the names of every enemy overhead.

[Ammut, King of Monstrous Humanoids and the Monarch of Tribulation]

Thomas eyed him warily.

“Ammut? A new Monarch?”

Ammut gave a low chuckle. “No need to be alarmed. You could say I’m the administrator of this game.”

“Administrator?” Thomas repeated. “Look, I don’t know what you want with me, but this is an important moment. Don’t get in the way. I was finally about to kill him and level up.”

“Ah. That is actually why I’m here. This is a sort of hidden quest, you see, and I am the one who must give the reward.”

“This was a hidden quest?”

“Of a sort. You’re the first, and probably the last, who’ll ever attempt something this insane.”

“Ah?”

Thomas’ eyes lit up at the thought that it would be the first and last time. He didn’t fully understand it, but as the first person to enter this game, it was a deeply satisfying thing to hear.

“Anyway, take your reward.”

Ammut grinned as he opened his palm. A sphere of swirling darkness formed above his hand.

“That’s the reward?”

“Yes. It is called the primordial darkness. A recent acquisition. But the race meant to inherit it is long extinct, and no one else has proven suitable. I didn’t know what to do with it. Who knew a human would show up and prove himself worthy?”

Ammut wore a contented smile. The orb of darkness drifted slowly toward Thomas. He accepted it instinctively.

“That darkness now belongs to you. You’ve more than earned it.”

The primordial darkness seeped into Thomas’ body. Ammut was right. His vessel was ready to receive it. In that moment, a new King of Giants was born. This Tower of Tribulation and the leveling system it contained had existed for one reason—to forge humans into vessels strong enough to contain the power of a Monarch.

***

Now, in the present day, after all he had endured, Thomas stood as the King of Giants. After sensing that something was amiss from his game capsule, he had stepped out and come back to the real world. In the battle now at hand, he used overwhelming force, ripping apart the wings and limbs of the massive butterfly one by one. Each ruptured joint and shattered wing sprayed golden blood into the sky.

“How can a human possibly contain the primordial darkness?”

“Our plan was perfect!”

“A mere human cannot become the King of Giants!”

“Aaaagh!”

“You’ve never been to the gym, I assume? You tear your muscles, again and again. They heal, then grow. The soul works the same way.”

The now-gargantuan Thomas raised his hand, blocking out the sky and filling the enemy’s vision. Before him, the Apostle of Domination trembled in fear.

“Hahaha! The first hunt of a new Monarch. Not a bad sight at all.” Ammut’s laugh echoed somewhere in the distance. “This is the first step toward domination. Continue on, King of Giants.”

Thomas grinned at the words. Then, he finished the job.

A loud, final snap resounded as the butterfly burst in a shockwave of gold and black. The explosion of force that followed was tremendous. With the death of the largest one, the smaller Apostles of Domination scattered across New York disintegrated into dust.

[King of Giants and the Monarch of Domination]

With that, Thomas’ new title was sealed.

***

Meanwhile, at the White House, the president and his staff were watching everything unfold in real time.

“Thomas Andre defeated the monster,” one staffer whispered, his voice unsteady.

“No... He became a monster,” someone else muttered.

A heavy silence settled over the meeting room. In every one of their minds, the same term surfaced. National Level Hunter, a title that had previously existed only in Ahjinsoft’s game, had just become an official, unanimous designation. After all, a monster like Thomas, capable of taking down an entire country if he chose to, couldn’t be classified as simply “S-rank.” 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

***

“So, Ammut.”

Thomas turned toward the presence he sensed nearby.

“What is Suho doing now? Has he become a Monarch like me?”

“Not yet. There is a problem with his vessel that remains unresolved.”

“His vessel? Surely he’s more than ready. He’s Jinwoo’s son!”

“That’s not the issue. His vessel was complete from the very beginning. Overflowing, even. But sometimes, it is not the size of the vessel, but the contents.”

With those cryptic words, Ammut chuckled, and his presence faded away. As Thomas stared in that direction, the same knowing smile as Ammut’s formed on his lips.

“The contents... I suppose that’s true.”

It was the kind of smile only those who had inherited the primordial darkness could understand.