Why Didn’t Sung Jinwoo Join The Jeju Island Raid From The Beginning In Solo Leveling?

The Jeju Island raid is one of the most significant arcs in Solo Leveling anime and manhwa. The author had hinted at the arc since the beginning of the series. This intrigued the fans’ curiosity over time and led to fan speculation on how Jinwoo would tackle the adversity at Jeju Island.

However, to their dismay, Jinwoo was the only S-rank hunter from Korea who did not join the raid and chose to stay home. This enraged fans globally questioning Jinwoo’s loyalty and care for his nation.

However, the reason behind Jinwoo ditching the raid at first was a much more special, important and personal victory that far exceeds his loyalty towards his country. Let’s find out the reason.

Why Didn’t Sung Jinwoo Join The Jeju Island Raid From The Beginning in Solo Leveling?

To understand this, one must understand why Jinwoo started hunting in the first place. Jinwoo was merely a teenager when his father went missing in one of the A-rank gates. Presumed dead, Jinwoo’s father, left his family of 3 to fend for themselves.

Although Jinwoo’s mother worked hard as a single mother to provide for her kids. She too succumbed to Mana poisoning aka Eternal Slumber. As an elder brother, Jinwoo had to step up to perform his duties towards his ill mother and younger sister.

To support his mother’s medicinal needs and his sister’s education, Jinwoo constantly put his life at risk to earn money. This journey led him to the double dungeon which changed his life and provided him with a reward far too good to be true, a medicine that can cure his mother.

Before this, eternal slumber had no cure in the human world. To keep his mother alive, Jinwoo spent most of his earnings on her treatment and his sister Jinah’s education. He lived his life paycheck to paycheck. A lifestyle which always keeps one on the edge and gives no leisure time.

So after betting his life in various dungeons in the “system” acquiring ingredients for his mother’s illness, Jinwoo was finally able to heal his mother back to perfect health. This moment meant that his life’s mission was achieved.

He finally had the time to relax a bit with his family and be a kid in front of his mother instead of an adult. Furthermore, after his father’s disappearance, Jinwoo’s mother did not want to lose her son.

So she was initially hesitant to let Jinwoo go since she had just now returned from a coma to be with her kids. Although she did not explicitly say it aloud, Jinwoo understood his mother’s concern and decided to stay back.

This proves that Jinwoo is a good son and a family man. He understood his mother’s emotional dilemma and decided to stay back. However, after a nudge from his mother Jinwoo did decide to join the raid and emerge victorious and gain his most powerful Non-Ruler shadow soldier.

One may argue that if Jinwoo had joined the raid many lives wouldn’t have been lost. However, after going through what Jinwoo had gone through and also understanding how strong the other S-rank hunters (including Japanese) are, it was a safe bet for him to stay back.

The emergence of the Ant King was a surprise move from the Ant Queen which many did not foresee and the betrayal of Japanese S-rank hunters against Korean S-rank hunters also led to the mission being jeopardised.

It was not Jinwoo’s fault at all for wanting to stay with his family when there are more than 15 S-rank hunters joining a mission which should have been a cake walk for them with their firepower. If its anyone’s fault then it is of them for being so incompetent at planning and betraying fellow humans for their greedy behaviour.