Warning: The following contains spoilers for Solo Leveling's manhwa!!

Solo Leveling's creator continues to reveal more details about the series, and his latest comments highlighted one character who fans didn’t give enough credit. Solo Leveling has many strong characters among the National Level Hunters, Monarchs, and Vessels, but ranking them has proven to be quite difficult due to the focus of Sung Jinwoo in the story giving them insufficient time to display the extent of their skills, which, according to Chugong, was the case with one particular Korean S-Rank Hunter.

Though Korean S-Rank Hunters are eventually left behind on the power scale ladder as the conflicts creep, the one who Solo Leveling’s author considers has given fans the wrong impression was Hwan Dongsoo. Hwan Dongsoo has scattered appearances throughout Solo Leveling's story, being mostly teased as an antagonist seeking revenge on Jinwoo for the death of his brother. According to Chugong, in a recent post on the Korean platform Dcinside shared on Reddit by xPapaGrim, Hwan Dongsoo isn’t as weak as fans believed him to be.

Hwan Dongsoo Is the Strongest Regular Korean S-Rank Hunter

The Scavender Guild Hunter’s Strength Was Underrated for a Reason

Hwan Dongsoo's most significant encounters in the story are when he interrogates Sung II-Hwan in the name of the American Federal Bureau of Hunters in Solo Leveling chapter 59 and when he kidnaps Jinho to lurk Jinwoo in the International Conference Arc in chapter 142. However, this confrontation ended quickly with Hwan Dongsoo's imminent defeat, which gave fans the impression that he wasn't a particularly strong S-Rank hunter. This was pointed out by Chungong, who stated that Dongsoo was very strong but didn't have the chance to prove it in the story due to only fighting Jinwoo and Sung Ii-Hwan.

Hwang Dong-Su didn't get much spotlight in the novel because the only ones he fought were Jin-Woo's dad and Jin-Woo himself. But he was very, very strong. Originally, he was an S-Rank hunter who sured even Cha Hae-in, and on top of that, he received a power boost from Madam, making him incredibly strong... However, as a result of only being beaten up by overpowered characters, he seems to have been perceived as very weak. That's why many people were puzzled when he received the General rank. I find that a bit disappointing. - Solo Leveling's Author, Chugong.

The author confirmed that Hwan Dongsoo is stronger than Cha Hae In even before being boosted by Norma Selner, which has been stated to increase up to 20-30% of the hunter's original strength. This is no small feat, as Cha Hae In was capable of defeating Igris when he had the General rank and was equipped with Baran's lightning sword in Solo Leveling chapter 114. This proves why Hwan Dongsoo deserves the general rank upon being awakened as the shadow soldier Greed but was questioned by many fans who perceived him as weaker, which leads to the author's disappointment.

This places Hwan Dongsoo as the strongest among the regular S-Rank Hunters, just behind Go Gunhee and Sung II-Hwan, who are Ruler's vessels, and Sung Jinwoo, who became the Shadow Monarch. Also, it puts in perspective how if Hwan Dongsoo had fought Jinwoo earlier in the story, the fight could have gone in a different direction. Nevertheless, Hwan Dongsoo was reckless enough to provoke Jinwoo's father, who had divine powers, and defy an angry Jinwoo, who was already the Shadow Monarch.

Changes in Solo Leveling’s Manhwa Adaptation Contributed To Making Hwan Dongsoo Look Weaker

Goto Ryuji Also Experienced Some Bad Matchups in Solo Leveling’s Story

Another reason why Hwan Dongsoo is often seen as weaker is due to a change made from Solo Leveling's novel in the manhwa adaptation. In Solo Leveling's novel, Hwan Dongsoo never went to Korea during the Red Gate Arc, which means that his clash with Baek Yoonho, where they seem matched in strength, was a narrative decision exclusive to the manhwa. Additionally, in the novel, when Thomas Andre arrives to save Dongsoo, even though the latter is badly injured, he is still capable of speaking, asking his master to kill Jinwoo.

This played differently in the manhwa, as he just thought about it before becoming unconscious, when, in the novel, Jinwoo punched Dongsoo in the head again to knock him out. This way, the changes might have contributed to why Hwan Dongsoo was considered weaker than Cha Hae In. Likewise, in the same post, Chugong confirmed that Goto Ryuji was stronger than Hwan Dongsoo, being another hunter who had bad matchups in Solo Leveling's story, as he was only featured losing against Jinwoo and the Ant King. His defeats tainted Goto Ryuji's reputation, but he was at the top among S-Rank hunters.

In the novel, upon losing to Jinwoo and returning to Japan, he sparred with 3 Japanese S-ranks at the same time and still won without much effort, proving that he deserves his recognition. Nonetheless, even if characters like Hwan Dongsoo don't get nearly enough appreciation as Solo Leveling's author intended, the fact that he shares details that shine a light on some aspects of the story continues to fuel the power-scaling debates of the series.

Source: Reddit