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The following contains spoilers for Solo Leveling.
One constant theme that boils under the surface ofSolo Levelingis the question of how much agency or choice Jinwoo has in his decisions. The original promise of the System inSolo Levelingis a way forJinwoo to enjoy immense freedom over other hunters. Unlike the rest of mankind, Jinwoo can level up his abilities and get stronger. This opportunity is presented to Jinwoo in the form of video game status windows, where he gets to allocate skill points, does quests, and chooses his equipment and eventually his class during the job change arc.
However, as we find out more about the System’s origins and purpose, it calls into question Jinwoo’s agency as the protagonist. Perhaps this point is best underscored by Jinwoo’s job change quest, and how he ends up with a job that might have been inevitable from the start.
The Job Change Arc
Jinwoo Goes the Extra Mile For Additional Abilities
As Jinwoo enters the instance dungeon for the job change quest, he is greeted by an array of different classes among the enemies. He gets to experience the durability of armored knights, the magical utility of mages, and assassins using stealth. Along with testing his combat prowess, this diversity of enemies also allows Jinwoo to see the abilities of his potential new class in action.
“Since there are diverse types of monsters, I need to utilize different stats for each of them. Strength for knights, Sense of assassins, Agility for archers, and Vitality for magicians” -Sung Jinwoo in Chapter 38 of the manhwa.
After defeating the Knight Commander Igris in the boss room, Jinwoo’s real evaluation begins. A System window promises that how long he survives against seemingly unending waves of enemies will determine which job options he will get to choose from.
“The longer you last, the more points you can collect that will place you into a higher-tier job.” -The System window’s message in Chapter 41.
Jinwoo greatly struggles to survivefor more than a few minutes, but is fortunately saved by the penalty zone because he forgot to do his daily quest earlier. After being allowed to heal and properly equip his items, he returns to the job change quest with the extra bonus time he spent safely away from it added to his score.Despite expecting the System to give him class choicesbased on his stats or behavior, he is immediately awarded the necromancer class, which surprises him. He is given an option to refuse the job, which he initially does. However, as we learn later, his job choice might not have mattered, and he would have ended up with the same abilities anyway.
A False Choice
Would He Have Always Ended Up as a Shadow Monarch?
After rejecting his necromancer class, the System tries to tempt Jinwoo into reconsidering by saying it’s a “hidden” class and the class itself will be upgraded to Shadow Monarch because of his performance. However, as we learn later, the System’s power comes from an entity called the Shadow Monarch, meaning Jinwoo’s powers could have only ended up as one thing in the end. Despite being advertised as a hidden class, Jinwoo’s transformation into a Shadow Monarch was most likely his only option as he continued to level up.
It seems like the premise behind the job change quest was nothing more than set dressing to motivate Jinwoo to enter the dungeon and get stronger in the first place. Indeed, the System,despite threatening Jinwoo at times, actually seems to be more interested in protecting him and seeing him grow as strong as possible. While the story doesn’t end up going this way, it’s interesting to think about what would happenif Jinwoo rejected shadow extraction powersentirely. Would the System cut him loose because he wasn’t following the plan? Or would Jinwoo’s strong will have somehow changed the fundamental aspects of his powers to allow him to do something different? Perhaps Jinwoo would have inherited the powers of other classes like the System implied he would, but the ultimate power of the Shadow Monarch would remain locked away until he was ready for it. It’s possible the System, if it were set on Jinwoo being the vessel, might threaten him with death if he didn’t choose the necromancer-type class.
Despite Jinwoo breaking free of the normal rules of hunters to forge his own path, the way the System works means that much of his path was already pre-chosen for him. This idea permeates the story ofSolo Leveling, raising interesting questions about Jinwoo’s agency and the extent of free will in the series’ world.
Solo Leveling
Cast
A-1 Pictures' Solo Leveling is an anime based on Chugong’s popular web novel. Set in an unforgiving fantasy world where hunters explore dungeons filled with monsters, the vulnerable Sung Jinwoo gains a significant power boost after he is picked to be a solo player by the System.
