Solo Leveling Ragnarok: Are Apostles Different Than Monarchs And Rulers?

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This post contains SPOILERS for Solo Leveling and Solo Leveling Ragnarok.

In an exceptional continuation or follow-up comic book series titled “Solo Leveling: Ragnarok“, we delve deeper into the cosmos of “Solo Leveling“. Unlike its predecessor, which centered around Sung Jinwoo’s progression, this spin-off highlights Sung Suho, Jinwoo’s son. The initial series unveiled entities such as Monarchs and Rulers, ancient beings locked in a timeless war.

In the universe of Solo Leveling, Itarim, powerful entities, were responsible for creating beings known as Monarchs and Rulers. However, much like how there exists multiple universes, there are also multiple Itarims. While Solo Leveling mainly explored the genesis of a single Itarim (Monarchs and Rulers), Ragnarok introduced us to the creation of other Itarim in the form of Apostles – beings who seek to conquer Jinwoo’s world under the command of their creators. Despite fans often drawing comparisons between Apostles and Monarchs/Rulers, it’s essential to understand that the relationship between them is more nuanced than simple similarities.

Apostles Are Nothing More Than Tools For Itarim In Solo Leveling

Their Only Purpose Is To Serve The Itarim

In the world of Solo Leveling, we discovered that there exist multiple beings known as Itarim across the multiverse. These Itarim, or Outer Gods, are responsible for creating their individual universes and have been observing their creations engage in conflict with each other for an eternity. The Itarim of Jinwoo’s universe produced Monarchs and Rulers, encouraging them to battle one another for amusement. However, as the story unfolds, the Rulers came to understand that they were merely playthings to the Supreme Being. Consequently, they rose up against their creator and ultimately succeeded in ending its existence. Essentially, the Rulers broke free from their predetermined roles by eliminating the entity that brought them into being.

Although it’s not typical, this understanding of self is uncommon among the Apostles, which might explain why they never managed to free themselves from the influence of their makers, similar to Monarchs and Rulers. Just as these latter figures were fashioned by gods from other realms, so too were the Apostles. Unlike the Itarim in Jinwoo’s universe who were encouraged to fight each other, these Outer Gods used the Apostles for a different purpose: eternal service. Unlike Rulers, the Apostles didn’t break free from their programming. Instead, they have been waging war against Jinwoo’s Shadow Army on behalf of their creators.

Apostles Are The Same As Monarchs And Rulers

But The Apostles Are Much Weaker

One might question whether Apostles could harm the Supreme Entity if rulers couldn’t. However, it’s important to note that Apostles wouldn’t be able to do so even if they ever rebelled against their creators. To clarify this, we need to delve into how the Apostles came into existence.

Initially, when the universe was void, the Supreme Entity divided the light to fashion eight Governors and the darkness to form a corresponding number of Kings. Other Deities also employed the Original Light and Darkness to generate Servants, but they followed a different approach in their creation process. Notably, the Supreme Entity apportioned the Primordial light and darkness among eight Monarchs and eight Governors. In contrast, Servants were mass-produced by their creator.

In the story of ‘Solo Leveling’, an entity’s inherent amount of Primordial Light or Darkness determines their overall power. This is why Jinwoo surpasses other Monarchs and Rulers, as he possesses both Light and Darkness within him. It’s worth noting that Apostles, being mass-produced, generally hold less Primordial Light compared to the Rulers. While Apostles have numerical superiority, they are significantly weaker than Rulers in terms of raw power or strength. Therefore, it’s not feasible for an Apostle to defeat an Itarim, as the Rulers did with the Absolute Being.

To put it simply, in the story of “Solo Leveling: Ragnarok,” no Apostles have managed to kill a Ruler yet. Although they have a numerical advantage, allowing them to attack from multiple directions, Jinwoo’s Shadow Army has been successful in preventing the Apostles from conquering their universe so far. It’s important to note that Apostles aren’t pushovers; even an S-Rank Hunter finds it challenging to face an Apostle. Defeating these puppets of the Itarim requires the strength or power equivalent to a National Level Hunter.

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2025-07-22 17:35