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The following contains manhwa spoilers forSolo Leveling.
TheSolo Levelinganime has not yet touched on the true reasons for Jinwoo obtaining the power of the system after the double dungeon. Although we know that his performance in the double dungeon unlocked the system, we don’t really know the criteria by which it chose to grant him the immense powers of the Shadow Monarch.
Jinwoo seems like an odd choice at firstfor these kinds of powers. At the beginning ofSolo Leveling, he is the weakest hunter in the series. If the goal of the system, as we later find out, is to prepare the best vessel for the Shadow Monarch, Ashborn, then why was such a weak hunter chosen?
Someone Close to Death
Why Jinwoo’s Weakness Is an Advantage
In theSolo Levelingmanhwa, it is implied that at least one of the major reasons Ashborn choseJinwoo to be the successor of his poweris precisely because of his weak hunter awakening.
“I see. You’re someone who has spent a lot of your life living in the realm of the living and the dead. So that’s why the Shadow Monarch Ashborn was able to pass on such a power to a mere human.” -The Monarch Anteres commenting while seeing Jinwoo change forms.
During Jinwoo’s fight with Anteres in Chapter 175, we learn that Jinwoo’s ability to wield the Shadow Monarch’s power comes from his many brushes with death. As the former weakest hunter, Jinwoo was constantly in a state of near-death when trying to survive nearly any dungeon. In the beginning, he is shown losing to the weakest monsters, requiring Lee Joohee’s help to last any amount of time. While this weakness may make him seem like a bad candidate for power, it was actually this constant banging on death’s door that gave Jinwoo an advantage as an Ashborn vessel.
“This human has been fighting a battle against himself all along, even before he received this power… I must… kill [him]. He’s too dangerous.” -Anteres.
It is likely that Jinwoo is the one hunter who has struggled the most in the entire world, making him the best candidate for powers related to death. Anteres realized that, despite being merely a human, Sung Jinwoo could draw out the full power of death onto the Earth. Even one of the strongest beings in existence, this ability frightened Anteres to the point that he decided he needed to kill Jinwoo before he realized his full potential.
The System Acts as Narrative Enforcement
Why Choosing Jinwoo Makes for a Better Story
Another reason thatJinwoo was the best choice for the system’s powerover another stronger hunter is because of the meta implications for the system itself. In a way, the system is a kind of meta-stand-in for the author and narrative, placing limitations on the protagonist for him to overcome.
In this type of setting, it makes the most sense for the system to choose a hunter with the most growth potential. While choosing a stronger hunter may seem more sensible, the story actually needs a protagonist with the greatest drive and willpower. This makes Jinwoo, who is implied in the story to have the strongest will of any character, the perfect protagonist to fight against the system’s limits and, by extension, the story itself.
Because Jinwoo starts at the lowest place, he has the most potential to grow in power compared to every other hunter. If the system’s power were granted to an already powerful hunter, it’s unlikely they would have been able to draw out its full potential because they had less room to grow.
“Your will to carry on everything by yourself… Reminds me of Ashborn, your predecessor.” -The Rulers to Jinwoo before he used the Cup of Reincarnation.
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.
