Solo Leveling: Who Is Igris?

The following contains spoilers for Solo Leveling, Episode 11, "A Knight Who Defends An Empty Throne", available on Crunchyroll. It also contains plot-shattering spoilers for the overall Solo Leveling story. The webcomic is available to read on Tapas.

Fans of Solo Leveling were treated to a highly anticipated battle teased in the show's opening sequence in the series 11th episode: Jinwoo vs Knight Commander Igris, The Bloodred. In a beautifully animated bout, Jinwoo overcame the odds and managed to defeat this enemy who was far stronger than he was despite all the solo leveling Jinwoo had been doing up until this point.

The Job-Change Quest issued by the System transported Jinwoo to a castle in which varieties of living armor tried their hand at defending the throne room. When Jinwoo arrived, he was met with a terrifying aura, and an empty throne, hence the episode title. Just who is Igris, and why was this Jinwoo's most important battle of the series?

Job-Change Quest

Test of Courage: The Reprise

As we saw in episode 10, Jinwoo's recent leveling has triggered a brand-new Quest from the System, and after going somewhere remote, Jinwoo opens up the portal to begin. Just before going inside, he remembers that he hasn't done his Daily Task, which is a bit concerning because he has used the Full Recovery reward to get out of very sticky situations. When the portal opens, there are brilliant arcs of purple electricity that erupt all around him, and after a number of impact frames, a brief impact frame shows the clear grinning visage of the Cartenon Temple's god from the Double Dungeon incident.

That frame was the one clue that the ensuing Quest would be extremely dangerous, but also directly related to Jinwoo's current state as Player of the System. Another aspect of the Job-Change lies in the fact that we still don't actually know what type of Hunter he is, as seen in the fight against Kang Taeshik, who kept trying in vain to figure out what kind of Hunter he was up against.

The Knight's Important Test

Knight Commander Igris, the Bloodred

Jinwoo encounters Igris in the castle's empty throne room after taking down several regular knights, mages, assassins and archers. Unlike those enemies, who only really possess tough armour and numbers, Igris's movements, strength and speed are incredible, and almost impossible for Jinwoo to deal with, even with his Kasaka's Fang or the Dash Skill. We've seen at various junctures that Jinwoo's primary colors often feature a light blue, and his eyes glow this color in intense moments; while Igris is represented by a bright red. During their battle, a clash of blades unleashes arcs of red and blue electricity, indicating the struggle between Igris and Jinwoo, but also as a nod to the purple lightning that erupted from the portal when it opened at the beginning of the episode.

Igris's speed and strength drove Jinwoo to remember how he dealt with the Great Serpent in episode 4, so he holstered his weapon and attempted to go at Igris with his bare hands. Interestingly, Igris also puts away his weapon in what seems like an attempt to meet Jinwoo on somewhat equal grounds, but since Igris doesn't talk, his motivations aren't exactly clear to those who don't know where Solo Leveling is going with this arc. As they duke it out with their fists, Jinwoo is still overwhelmed, with Igris beating him silly with a mid-air combo that slammed him against the ground only for the knight to catch him on the rebound with more powerful hits. He's sent flying towards the throne, slamming into it in a way that props him against the seat – like he's a tired king on the throne. This moment, combined with the metaphor brought forth by the empty throne, was an important visual clue – Igris, the highest-ranked entity in this scenario, is testing Jinwoo's strength and seeing if he's worthy of becoming the king.

Rebirth of the Shadow Monarch

Jinwoo Passes the Test

As it turns out, the entire point of the Job-Change Quest is to test if Jinwoo is a worthy vessel for the Ruler known as Ashborn, otherwise known as the Shadow Monarch, who fell while defending the Absolute Being when the Rulers; beings of light, came to realize that their unending war with the Monarchs; beings of darkness, was merely entertainment for the creator god of the Solo Leveling universe. The Statue of God seen during the Double Dungeon incident was actually created in the image of the Absolute Being by an entity known as The Architect; who built the System currently being used to strengthen Jinwoo. This is also why the impact frame of the eerie grin can be seen when Jinwoo begins the Job-Change Quest, and also why he and Igris were represented by contrasting colours of lightning – the interaction between Jinwoo and Igris is a catalyst required to bring back Ashborn, who is represented by the colour purple.

It is also for this reason that the most important reward Jinwoo received for defeating Igris is the Ruler's Hand Skill, which will turn out to be the most important ability Jinwoo has in his arsenal. Jinwoo's victory is perceived to be a symptom of plot armor; which is technically true; however, it's possible that Igris allowed Jinwoo to win after seeing his ability and desire to become even stronger, and therefore, created the path through which his king can be reincarnated. Jinwoo snatching victory out of the jaws of defeat specifically from the seated position on the throne is meant to be representative of his worthiness to sit there. The so-called Job-Change is Jinwoo's progression from Hunter to vessel of the Shadow Monarch, the one individual who would sit on the empty throne behind Igris.