Chapter 1

Sung Jin-Woo opens the chapter mid-pant, already bloodied before the day's work has begun. He explains that he holds the E-Rank, the very bottom of the hunter ladder, and admits how mediocre everything about him is, from his barely above-average regeneration to his frequent injuries. The one thing keeping him in the trade is money: his mother lies hospitalized, and her bills demand income he can only scrape together through dangerous raids.

The scene moves to a Seoul construction site where hunters gather. After a guild employee hands over his daily pay, Jin-Woo runs into Bae Yoon-Seok, an acquaintance who had quit hunting but came back with a second child on the way. The two trade worries about how perilous yet lucrative the work is, and Jin-Woo quietly reflects that he has grown even weaker. Kim Sang-Shik greets him kindly and frets over him, while nearby hunters explain to Bae that Jin-Woo is famous as the world's weakest, a man who gets hurt even in E-Rank dungeons and drags the difficulty down by his presence. They fall silent when they notice he overheard, and Jin-Woo shrugs it off, only to be told the coffee has run out.

Ju-Hee, the party healer, panics at the fresh wound on his face and coaxes the truth from him: his last raid left him hospitalized because the party brought no healer, assuming the higher-ranked members would not need one. Mr. Song Chi-Yul, the strongest present, gathers everyone and is unanimously accepted as party leader. As the team prepares to descend, Kim reminds Jin-Woo to stay safe, and the chapter ends with the group entering the dungeon, Jin-Woo trailing behind with a mix of dread and resolve.

Sung Jin-Woo is established as the E-Rank weakest hunter, surviving on raid income to pay his mother's medical costs. Bae Yoon-Seok, Kim Sang-Shik, the healer Ju-Hee, and the veteran Song Chi-Yul are introduced as members of the gathering party. Other hunters openly discuss Jin-Woo's notoriety within earshot. Song is chosen as party leader by unanimous agreement, and the group steps into the dungeon to start the raid.

This is the first chapter of the Solo Leveling webtoon, a series authored by Chu-Gong with artwork by Dubu, published on March 5, 2018. It falls within the D-Rank Dungeon Arc, runs thirty-six pages, and corresponds to the first episode of the anime adaptation. It follows the Prologue and precedes Chapter 2.