This post contains SPOILERS forSolo LevelingandSolo Leveling Ragnarok.
Solo Leveling Ragnarokis an incredible spin-off or sequel manga series that expands on the universe ofSolo Leveling. While the original series focused on the leveling-up of Sung Jinwoo,RagnarokputsJinwoo’s son, Sung Suho, in the spotlight.Solo Levelingintroduced us to beings like Monarchs and Rulers, sentient beings who have been fighting a war for eons.
Solo Levelingexplained that Itarim, a godly entity, created Monarchs and Rulers in Jinwoo’s universe. However, just as there is more than one universe, there are more than one Itarim being. WhileSolo Levelingfocused on the creation of a single Itarim being (Monarchs and Rulers),Ragnarokintroduced us to the creation of other Itarim. Yes, we are talking about Apostles, beings who want to capture Jinwoo’s world at the behest of their creators. Since Apostles are also created by other Itarim Gods, it’s normal for fans to assume that Apostles are similar to Monarchs and Rulers, but it’s a little more complicated than that.
Apostles Are Nothing More Than Tools For Itarim InSolo Leveling
Their Only Purpose Is To Serve The Itarim
In theSolo Levelinglore, we learned that there are not one butseveral Itarim beingsin the multiverse. Each Itarim, or Outer God,created their respective universes and watched their creations fight each other for eons. The Itarim of Jinwoo’s universe created Monarchs and Rulers and allowed his creations to fight each other just for the sake of entertainment. Later on in the story, the Rulers realized that they are nothing but pawns to the Absolute Being, so theyrebelled and killed their creator.You could say that Rulers escaped the Matrix by killing off the entity that created them in the first place.
However, this realization of self isn’t common, and maybe that is why theApostles never broke free from the programming set by their creators.Just like Monarchs and Rulers, Apostles were created by the Outer Gods, from the other universes, of course. However, unlike the Itarim of Jinwoo’s universe, these other Outer Gods didn’t make their creations fight each other. Instead, they produced or created Apostles so they could serve their creator for eternity. And unlike Rulers, the Apostles never broke free from the programming. Instead,these Apostles have been fighting Jinwoo’s Shadow Army at the behest of their creators.
Apostles Are The Same As Monarchs And Rulers
But The Apostles Are Much Weaker
One may wonder if Rulers were able to kill the Absolute Being, can the Apostles do the same if they ever rebelled against their creators? Certainly not. To understand this, we’d have to go back and discuss how the Apostles were created.
When there was nothing in the universe, the Absolute Being split the light to create eight Rulers, and the darkness to create a similar number of Monarchs.The other Outer Gods also utilized the Primordial Light and Darkness to create Apostles, but there was a slight variation in their strategy. Interestingly, the Absolute Being split the Primordial light and darkness among eight Monarchs and eight Rulers.Apostles, on the other hand, were mass-produced by their creator.
InSolo Leveling, the amount of Primordial Darkness of Light each entity has within themselves defines their overall strength. That iswhy Jinwoo is stronger than other Monarchs and Rulers, because he hasbothLight and Darkness inside of him. And since Apostles were mass-produced, the amount of Primordial Light they hold inside of them is comparatively less than the Rulers. Of course, the Apostles are strong in numbers, butthey are much weaker than the Rulers when it comes to raw power or strength. So, to answer the above question, no, Apostles can’t ever kill an Itarim like how the Rulers killed the Absolute Being.
In fact, inSolo Leveling Ragnarok,Apostles didn’t even come close to killing any Ruler so far.Of course, the Apostles are way more in numbers, so they can attack Jinwoo’s universe from different directions, but so far,the Shadow Armyhas successfully prevented the Apostles from taking over the universe. All being said, Apostles aren’t some weak foot soldiers either. Even an S-Rank Hunter will struggle against an Apostle, and it will take the strength orpower of a National Level Hunterto defeat these puppets of the Itarim.
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.
