Episode 1 of Solo Leveling: Season 4 – "Return of the Shadow Monarch"
Timeline:
Several years after Jin-Woo reset the world. Gates are gone. Hunters live normal lives, unaware of their past battles. Jin-Woo remains in the shadows, watching over them silently.
But now, a new cosmic force beyond the Monarchs and Rulers threatens to unravel reality—a being from before the System itself.
Key Themes:
Memory vs. Destiny
Hidden truths about the Absolute Being
Jin-Woo's sacrifice being tested
A new war not against monsters—but against forgotten gods.
EPISODE 1: "The World That Forgot"
[COLD OPEN – SEOUL, PRESENT DAY]
The city is calm. Children play. Workers rush to work. Digital news boards flash:
NEWSCASTER (V.O.):
> "It's been five years of peace—no magical gates, no awakenings. Just normal life."
Jin-Ho sits at a cafe, sipping tea. His face looks relaxed, content. Yet his eyes flicker with strange unease—like he's forgetting something important.
WAITER:
> "Refill, sir?"
JIN-HO (blinks):
> "...Yeah. Sorry. Zoned out."
A child nearby plays with a plastic sword.
CHILD:
> "I'm the Shadow King! I'll protect everyone!"
Jin-Ho freezes.
JIN-HO (murmurs):
> "Shadow... King?"
[SCENE 1 – GYMNASIUM – NATIONAL TRAINING CENTER]
Cha Hae-In now teaches martial arts to self-defense students. She's calm, serene—but distant.
A student trips, and Cha helps her up. Their hands touch—and the girl gasps, seeing a vision: Cha covered in blood, fighting alongside shadows.
STUDENT (trembling):
> "Wh-What was that?!"
CHA:
> "You must've hit your head. Get some water."
She turns away, shaken.
[SCENE 2 – PARALLEL REALM – BETWEEN WORLDS]
A silent realm of shifting mist. Jin-Woo stands alone, watching the world through magical threads. He's unchanged—still the Shadow Monarch, but now a guardian no one remembers.
JIN-WOO (monologue):
> "They live without fear. That's what I wanted. But why… why does it feel like something still waits in the dark?"
A black mist pulses. A message appears in front of him—glitching and red.
> [SYSTEM ERROR: ANOMALY DETECTED]
[NEW ENTITY: DESIGNATION "PRIMORDIAL"]
[THREAT LEVEL: BEYOND MONARCH CLASS]
Jin-Woo narrows his eyes. The shadows around him whisper in alarm.
IGRIS (bowing):
> "My liege. A hunger from before the gates… before the Absolute Being… stirs."
[SCENE 3 – THE VATICAN]
A secret meeting between former awakened priests and arcane historians. They're nervous.
PRIEST:
> "The scriptures changed. Words are missing."
SCHOLAR:
> "No. Not missing. Erased. Something's rewriting fate again."
A faded mural on the wall shows a 13th being—a shadow with no face—standing behind the Monarchs and Rulers. It was never there before.
[SCENE 4 – SEOUL – NIGHT]
Jin-Ho stands on his apartment balcony. A flicker of black mist passes.
JIN-HO:
> "...Jin-Woo?"
Behind him, a glowing eye opens in the sky for just a moment. Then vanishes.
[FINAL SCENE – SHADOW REALM]
Jin-Woo dons his armor. The shadows kneel.
JIN-WOO:
> "I gave them peace. But if something threatens that peace…"
He raises his sword, and the realm darkens.
JIN-WOO (calmly):
> "...Then I'll become their shadow again."
[TO BE CONTINUED]