Solo Leveling: Ragnarok - Chapter 18

 Chapter 18

“A pet?”
Suho made a puzzled expression when he saw the message that suddenly appeared.
[Pet?]
Beru asked the same.
chump chump chump.
Before I knew it, a name tag appeared on the head of the wolf cub who was licking seaweed soup.

The system sent a message.
Ring.

“Name my pet?”
When Suho looked at Beru who had a troubled expression.
[Hmm? There was nothing like this in the past.]
“Which one? A pet?”
[Yes. When His Majesty was leveling up, there was no such function.]
Beru explained.
The level-up system currently applied to Suho was originally inherited from the Shadow Monarch, Sung Jinwoo, which he used in the past.
Of course, it was improved to some extent from then, but that was to remove the ’malevolence’ that dwelled in the system.
“Malevolence?“
[Yes.]
The purpose of the system at the time was to forcibly develop a human named ’Sung Jinwoo’ to use as a vessel for the Shadow Monarch.
As soon as the goal was accomplished, the soul of named Sung Jinwoo was bound to disappear.
[Anyway, Sung Jinwoo ended up defying the purpose of the system and became the Shadow Monarch himself. He became a great being who no longer needed to level up.]
The person who inherited the system was Suho.
“But why is there a pet system now that didn’t exist back then?“
[Hmm. Maybe it wasn’t just now. It might have been there from the beginning.]
Beru squinted and stroked his chin.
[Besides, the designers of the level-up system were not us, but the shaman of the fantasy realm who dreamed of immortality.]
“Shaman?”
[Yes. He’s the only one who knows exactly what functions are in the system.]
A long time ago, the shaman of the fantasy realm wished to escape from the fate of a finite creature and become an eternal existence.
As a result, the level-up system was created after making an agreement with the angels of God.
[However, the purpose of the system at the time was only to complete the Shadow Monarch’s vessel, so there was no need for a pet. Killing everyone and turning them into Shadow Soldiers was enough. But, the purpose of Young Masters’ system now is completely different from that time.]
Suho made a puzzled expression.
“The purpose of the system was not to make me a shadow monarch?“
[Yes. After all, Young Master can’t become one.]
Beru said emphatically.
[There is only one Shadow Monarch in this world.]
In short, it means that only when Sung Jinwoo dies and the position of the monarch is empty that Suho can get the chance to become the shadow monarch.
But Sung Jinwoo was the ruler of death.
He would never die.
[In fact, he is the one who is truly immortal.]
“I know very well that my father is great.”
Suho was curious about another thing.
“Then, what is the purpose of my system?”
Beru smiled faintly and looked into Suho’s eyes.
The existence of Sung Suho, born from the marriage of a shadow monarch and an ordinary human, was an unusual existence in all dimensions.
So, even the designer who created the system would not have dared to guess what kind of existence Suho would grow into in the future.
Would he simply live as the Young Master who inherited the skills of the Shadow Monarch as he does now?
Or… would he escape from his destiny and find his own way, just like Sung Jinwoo did a long time ago?
[The system merely acts as a guide for Young Master whichever path you take. If there is a function that did not exist before, it will surely be helpful.]
Beru was already looking at Suho’s face, the face of a man who had long been alone and fought against everything in the world.
He… He survived by constantly struggling in a place closer to death than anyone else in the world.
In the end, even that death was won by his own power.
The Earth now was at peace built through his noble sacrifice.
But, that peace has been threatened again by the Outer Gods.
“Status window.”
Suho, who was listening to Beru, suddenly opened the status window.

After hearing Beru’s words, Suho also understood why his occupation was still labeled as ’none’.
There will probably never be anything written on that spot that says ‘Shadow Monarch’.
Suho paid more attention to the other numbers below.
’This is my current level.’
Compared to the 1st level, when he was being chased by the Mist Burns, the figures had gone up tremendously.
There were already so many useful skills.
But…
’I am still weak.’
Suho was never overconfident with his own strength.
It’s not humility, but a mere fact.
He had already reached level 99 several times in his childhood dreams.
Looking back on the sensations he felt at that time, his current power was too insignificant.
If he didn’t obtain the title of wolf slayer at the right time, he might not have defeated Broki.
Suho also checked out new skills during the battle.

‘It’s Twin Swords…’
Come to think of it, he had always been fighting with a weapon in both hands.
An axe at first, and sword this time.
Perhaps this skill was created based on his fighting method so far.
“In order to become stronger here, I will continue to use double swords.”
-…?
Suho’s gaze stayed on Rakan’s Sword.
Experience proved that the attack power of Rakan’s Sword was quite satisfactory.
Once caught, the necks of the beasts of Gwanaksan were cut immediately.
It seemed that he would need another sword, comparable to Rakan’s Sword, to balance his two hands.
‘I need to earn some money. Hunter weapons are very expensive.’
Suho’s gaze turned downward.
“And this little one…”
“Hnngggg.”
Before he knew it, the wolf cub had finished eating the seaweed soup and was sticking out of its stomach.
He was still lying on the floor weakly, as if he had no energy to crawl.
“I will have to raise it for a while to use it later on.”

A system message had been urging Suho from earlier.
Suho decided on a name without hesitation.
“Gray because it has gray hair.”

[Will you go with ‘Gray’?]

“Yes.“
As soon as Suho finished speaking, the question mark on the wolf cub’s head was erased and a new name was engraved.

“Hnnnggg.”
Gray, who had officially become Suho’s pet, raised his head with unfocused eyes and sniffed.
He smelled Suho.
Suho tapped the cub’s nose with his fingertips and asked Rakan’s Sword.
“Hey, let me ask you one thing.”
-What?
“How do I raise him to be useful?”
-Is there anything special about raising that? Just let him eat well, sleep well, and play well.
“Don’t say something so obvious. He is a descendant of the Fang Monarch. Is there any special method?”
-Eating is very important. The reason why he became so weak in the first place must be because Broki kept starving him because he was afraid of this little one’s growth.
Rakan’s Sword raged again as he remembered what Broki had done.
If the child of the canine clan had grown normally, there would have been no way he would have been held captive by someone like Broki.
-So, feed him consistently. If you give him enough sleep and let him play freely, he will grow into a much stronger predator than Broki.
“Really? What can I feed him?”
-Right, he’s a magical beast. It’s even better if he is a monster that is self-hunting. Originally, children of the clan play hunting from the moment they are born.
“It’s called hunting. Hmm.“
It was absurd.
To make a guy who doesn’t even have the strength to walk on his feet go hunting.
[Ugh. They are worse than ants. Still, our ants can be left alone when they are larvae.]
Suho came up with a good idea upon hearing that.
Who was it that raised Suho, who was a baby in the first place?
“Beru, you take care of him from now on.”
[Out of nowhere?]
“Yeah. You are the best nanny I know.”
[Kehehehe. I don’t know what to do after hearing such compliments from Young Master.]
Beru twisted his body and was embarrassed.
“Let’s go, then.”
[Ehh? Where?]
Clueless Beru.
Suho picked up Gray’s and inserted the key to the Shadow Dungeon into his own shadow.

“Where else? Here, of course.”
Clack.

Swoosh!

* * * 

After entering the Shadow Dungeon, Suho put Beru on Gray’s back.
“From now on, you guys are a team.”
[Ehh?]
No matter how small Gray was, he was twice as big as Beru.
Of course, even if you put the two together, they were still just a handful.
-This place can’t be…
Rakan’s Fang, who had come along unintentionally, felt a strange feeling while looking around the shadow dungeon.
-Is this the world of the Shadow Monarch?
[To be exact, this is the world Young Master inherited. Of course, it was neglected so much that the wild monsters hid in it.]
Beru realized why Suho had brought them here and his eyes lit up.
Disquieting gazes were glaring at him from all over the dungeon.
[These are wild goblins. They are perfect opponents to train a pet.]
Beru smirked and tapped Gray’s butt.
[Now, wake up! Descendant of the Fang Monarch! Show those ridiculous guys your ferocity!]
“Hnnggg…”
Whine.
[Hmm?]
Gray seemed completely unwilling to fight.
It was as if he didn’t even have the will to get up, he crouched flat on the floor.
Seeing that, Rakan’s Sword couldn’t hide his anger.
-Keugh! You have lost all of your innate fighting instincts due to your life in confinement! What should we do with this?!
”Well, then.”
[Ah, right.]
Suho and Beru’s reactions were resolute.
Beru’s skill is Predation.
He was able to absorb some of the power and memories of the monster he consumed.
[Arise, young warrior.]
Beru, the best nanny Suho knew, tapped Gray’s butt once more.
Harshly.

“Grrrrr!”
Gray’s eyes, which had no motivation at all, suddenly changed.
Beru laughed evilly and continued tapping Gray’s butt.
[Good! Start with that momentum!]
“Growl!”