I was going to make a post later, but I was already beaten to it.
Ragnarok is a fan service spin-off. “like one of many possible scenarios” and “similar to Marvel’s parallel universes” makes it sound non-canon.
Source of Interview (Not in English):
https://m.vk.com/wall-198303655_39892
It’s like very late at night but I’m gonna post this comment.
The source came from a Russian third-party book distributor, not the original publisher (Kakao), and that the so-called interview hasn’t even been published on their official website or press outlet. That alone should be enough to raise a red flag.
Treating that telegram post as gospel and running with the idea that it’s a “fanfic” spin-off, but again, he gives zero new evidence, just assumptions and repetition. None of them show an official Chugong quote, a direct scan, a press interview, or even a verified tweet. They’re just reacting to a second-hand translation and making judgment calls based on it.
Meanwhile, the facts are clear:
Solo Leveling: Ragnarok is officially published by KakaoPage, the same company behind the original SL.
It’s set after the events of the main story.
It follows Sung Suho, Jinwoo’s son.
Kakao themselves promoted it with the phrase “Leveling continues.”
So yes, it's a spin-off in authorship, but a canon continuation in timeline and publication. You can’t declare something non-canon based on whispers and telegram screenshots, especially when even the people repeating the rumor didn't sourced it properly.
Until someone can provide the full interview with Chugong’s direct words in korean, not a reworded translation from a telegram message backed by a Russian e-book site, the canon status of Ragnarok stands. Everything else is noise.
It's like ignoring how franchise canon works.
Ragnarok was:
Commissioned by Kakao, the IP holder
Serialized on KakaoPage, same platform as OG SL
Set after Solo Leveling’s ending, continuing the timeline
Following Jinwoo’s son, referencing past events and characters
That’s literally how a sequel works. Even if it's labeled a "spin-off" in tone or author, it's still canon in-universe unless the IP owner or Chugong clearly says otherwise.