Solo Leveling: Ragnarok - Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Fancy chandelier.
Expensive liquors set on the table.
Vice President Lee Minseong was again drunk in the VIP room today.
Normally, the place would have been busy with boisterous laughter and intense skinship, but today the atmosphere was somehow different.
Crack!
“Kyaaah!”
The girl who was hosting him screamed in surprise at the bursting sound of the glass he threw.
“Oh, dear. Why is my sweetheart in such a bad mood today?~”
After a while, a lady entered the room and sat next to him with an elegant smile.
Right then, he sent all the other staff out.
They quickly get out of the room.
The room became dark in an instant.
The lady poured the wine into a new glass and glanced at Lee Minseong.
He had been staring at his phone for a while.
’What’s going on?’
The lady glanced at the screen of his phone.
’Comments?’
The lady’s eyes furrowed slightly.

-So, who was the hunter who destroyed the Hyena Guild?
-I’m also curious. I heard he went into Gwanaksan alone and saved everyone.
-That was amazing. Who was that?
-Report) He was wearing a mask, survivors said they couldn’t see his face.
-Just what kind of strength does he have? Why did he hide his face when he did such a good job?
-Isn’t that obvious? There are rumors that the Hyena Guild’s backer was Reaper Guild. Of course he had to hide his identity.
-Right. Whoever you are, don’t ever get caught. Reaper Guild will get their revenge right away haha

On the Internet, there was still a lot of noise about the Gwanaksan Field incident.
People were eagerly guessing the identity of the hunter who solved this case alone, but the evidence was too lacking.

-But, who was it really?
-Since he caught the boss mob by himself, he must be at least an A-Class hunter, right?
-If he has good skills, he can theoretically be class B.
-No, if he has good skills, it is possible to be in the C or D class.
-Class D? Bullshit haha
-Ah~ Write novels in your diary.

Thousands and tens of thousands of comments were all curious about the hunter’s identity.
There was a lot of nonsense and a lot of jokes among them, but the general public opinion eventually came down to one word.

-Hero.

The more the Hyena Guild’s vicious behaviors were revealed one by one, their image became increasingly demonic.
In return, the favorability towards the hunter, who destroyed them alone, was soaring nationwide.
“What? You still haven’t found his identity?”
Chills.
Lee Minseong’s expression darkened.
He gritted his teeth and glared at the lady.
“Are you mocking me?”
“Oh, I’m kidding. Of course I’m worried. If our dear vice president’s informants can’t do their job, you would surely try to get a hint from the comments.“
Clench.
“That’s going to hurt your teeth. You told your informants to go find the survivors. What did they say?”
“… He used twin swords.”
“What?”
“They said he summoned beasts.”
“Summon? Oh my goodness.“
The lady covered her mouth with a surprised look at Lee Minseong’s answer.
“It’s a big deal after all. Are there any hunters who can do that?”
“No one.“
“No one?“
“A summoner or something killing that beast Broki is absolutely impossible.”
Lee Minseong, who had seen the giant hyena Broki in person, was sure of it.
“The summoning skill must have done something to blur the reality. It could be an illusion skill, or it might not actually be a summoning skill. The summoner was hiding behind. That’s for sure.”
No matter how much he thought about it, this was something that one individual could never do.
The most significant fact was one thing.
He killed Broki with his twin swords.
“If that’s the case, you just need to have those twin swords in your hand.“
“That’s right. But, as I was saying, there is no information.”
“What~? That’s no fun.“
The disappointed lady held up the wine glass on the table and drank it down.
‘I thought it was something great because he was making a fuss, but it was something annoying. Something really childish.’
But, she understands him.
Lee Minseong has always lived a winning life.
He was born with a golden spoon.
A young Hallyu star.
When the cataclysm broke out, he immediately awakened as an A-Class hunter.
Great luck.
At this point, it was no exaggeration to say that the entire universe revolved around Lee Minseong.
’But suddenly, his driver became an S-Class hunter.’
When Lee Minseong awakened, the whole world congratulated him.
That same evening, his old friend and driver Lim Taegyu suddenly became an S-Class hunter.
At that moment, Lee Minseong… was blinded by jealousy.
The hierarchy, which seemed to have never changed, was overturned in an instant.
‘Well, that’s why it’s good.’
There is no other person who is easy to deal with like a person with a superiority complex.
The lady smiled and poured a drink into Lee Minseong’s glass.
“Don’t be too anxious. He’ll get caught someday. Rather, shall we talk about business now?”
“Hmm.“
Lee Minseong became calm.
“Star dust.”
The lady asked with the most seductive smile.
“Were there some problems in the prototype?”
“… There were no defects in the product but the human itself.”
“Human defect? Just how bad it was that one dies after taking a mana amplifier? Are you now afraid to use it?”
Contrary to that, the lady did not look frightened at all.
And, Lee Minseong too…
“Who and how many died?”
“Hmm. 30 people from what I heard. But strangely, only low-level hunters died. Was it really a human defect?”
“Only the lower class died… After all, star dust is also affected by the mana composition. Hmm.“
Lee Minseong focused only on the effect of the prototype even though a person had died.
“So, when will the next batch come out again?”
The lady went a step further.
“Besides, people who haven’t died are still waiting for the next batch.”
“Soon.“
Lee Minseong coldly glared at the lady who smiled and teased him.
“Let’s hasten the demons.“

* * *
Translator: Anom

At that time, Suho was facing an important decision-making situation.

[You must select one of the two random boxes.]
[Blessed Random Box]
We give the desired item to the ’player’.

[Cursed Random Box]
We provide the necessary items to the ‘player’.

[Which one would you like to choose?]

“Want vs. Need? What’s with these?“
[Even though these two options for the hidden reward seem like a game at first, there is a distinct difference.]
Beru explained.
[The ‘what you want’ may not be necessary once you receive it. Similarly, if you actually receive ‘necessary things’, something you don’t want may come out.]
“That’s why it’s called a cursed random box.”
[That’s right. For example, in a situation where you need a powerful weapon, a terrible bomb may come out instead which will blow up the whole area including yourself…!]
“Is that possible? It’s a system passed down from my father, so there’s no way they would put me in danger with a quest reward, right?“
[Kehehe. That is also true.]
Suho had nothing to worry about.
“Cursed random box.”
[Oh! that? You are brave!]
“Maybe it’s because I’m still at a low level, or I’m still not sure what I want specifically. But, there’s so much that’s needed.”
He didn’t even know what items were beyond the system, but the categories he could imagine were too vague.
Suho smiled and chose the reward.
“Besides, my father knew my needs better than I did ever since.”
[This reward is given by the system, not by His Majesty…]
“It is what it is.“
Suho shrugged and held out his hand.
A small box appeared on top of it.
It was a box tied with a ribbon in plain wrapping paper.
He carefully opened the box.
Ring!

[Obtained ‘Item: Vulcan’s Horn’.]
The box disappeared, and a sword fell on Suho’s hand.
“This?“

[Item: Horn of Volcan]
Difficulty to obtain: ??
Type: Sword
Attack +40
A sword crafted from the horns of the greedy demon Vulcan.
Vulcan’s powers are embedded, dealing more damage.
-Effect ‘Destruction Desire’: Increases physical damage by [30%].
-Effect ‘Demon Predator’: The power of Vulcan becomes stronger as it devours the demon’s soul.
[Devoured Demon Soul: 0]

As he read the item description, Suho’s eyes widened.
“It is a growth type item!”
[Wow!]
The description saying ‘increases physical damage by [30%]’ must mean that it increases as Suho hunts demons!
In addition, the basic attack power itself was 10 times higher than Rakan’s Sword!
-Hmm. I have the effects ‘Contempt for the Weak’ and ‘Mortal Wound’, so if you think about it, I’m a bit more…
Rakan’s Sword muttered something, but no one listened.
“Isn’t it great? The items you really need are here.”
Suho smiled contentedly and lifted Vulcan’s Horn with one hand.
Swooooooosh-!
When he turned around with great force, the sound of the wind cutting like a windmill was very intimidating.
However, the weight of the sword was a bit heavy.
Suho immediately allocated all the ability points he received from daily quest rewards into strength, and it became easier to handle.
“I really like it. All I need now is a demon.”
But so far, he hasn’t heard of a dungeon with demon-type monsters.
’It seems that they were subjugated in the past.’
Should we go out and do a search on the Internet?
Suho immediately took out the key to the Shadow Dungeon.
Swoosh!

[You have exited the Shadow Dungeon.]
When he came out, there were 5 missed calls on his cell phone.
The caller was Assistant Professor Lim.
“Why was he calling?”
Suho was puzzled and called him back right away.
He received an unexpected proposal from Assistant Professor Lim.
-Suho, do you want to do a part-time job?
“Suddenly?”
-Uhh. Some of the porters who were supposed to come suddenly went off grid.

* * *
“Thank you so much for coming, Suho! I’m alive because of you!”
Professor Lim was ready to bow down to Suho as he arrived on time.
“No, this really doesn’t happen much, but today, several people went offgrid at the same time.”
“After signing a contract?”
“Yes! I know, right?”
Professor Lim clenched his fists, recalling the hunters who had lost contact without a word.
“Those people must have gone somewhere and drank alcohol in groups and fell asleep.”
Lim’s anger was justified.
Collectors and miners usually worked together in teams, so in this case the entire team was fined for breach of contract.
But, no worries now.
Because, Suho came right away!
Lim placed his hands on Suho’s shoulders and said seriously.
“Suho. Today, you really have to give your all. I only believe in you.”
What he believed in was none other than Suho’s summoning skill.
He remembered Suho’s summoning beasts during the mining operation days ago.
“Since you were hired in a hurry, I’ll take care of your daily wage.”
[You will?]
Beru, who suddenly appeared, widened his eyes and glared at Professor Lim.
Lim was surprised and hurriedly corrected his words.
“I-I’ll give it to you, Sir. No, I will be honored to give it to you, Sir.”
[Right. Since you have brought a precious person to this humble place, please continue to maintain that attitude.]
[Or I’ll chew your whole head off…]
Beru glared at Assistant Professor Lim sharply.
Suho slightly turned his head and looked at the dungeon he would enter today.

[Seoul Station Field]
※ Dangerous Area
It was the entrance to the subway station where blue mist slowly rose.
The Seoul Station Field has been neglected for a year already because the basement is too deep and the structure is complicated.
Seeing that place, Suho suddenly had this idea.
The cursed random box that was said to give necessary items.
Vulcan’s Horn came out of it.
The reason why the sword that devours the devil came into his hands was because he really needed ’two swords’.
Or, if not… Was it because he would have to deal with a ‘demon’ sooner or later?
“Teacher, what are we catching here today?”
Suho smirked and asked Assistant Professor Lim.