Chapter 86: The Royal Heroine – Julia

The light-pink-haired girl who came over with a lamp was wearing a country-style dress, without too many fancy pleats, lace, or frills.

Instead, one could see a few patches made of linen cloth.

It seemed that this dress had been mended many times.

But on the girl, it was indeed very pretty.

The other party’s face was youthful, the kind of country girl face that looked particularly easy to trick. Her figure was also very balanced, about one meter sixty-five, capable of being cute, mature, or just girlish.

But Hall knew that the other party might not be as delicate and sweet-sounding in certain situations.

Because he had seen this girl’s face. She was the only relatively orthodox and inspiring heroine in the game.

She had no noble birth, no complicated background, and no twisted experiences.

Her birthplace was also a certain village in the Papal State.

— Julia Lilith was such a person.

This female character, like Himan and Leticia, was available to choose at the start of the game.

But unlike Leticia, who came with built-in cheats, and Himan, who was Hall’s cousin.

Julia started with nothing. Her level was very low. The player truly started from zero.

If the player didn’t know how to play at the beginning, they might not even survive until Saint Louis, and couldn’t even use Hall, the built-in cheat.

The only thing that could be said in her favor was that Julia was also a versatile warrior. She could learn many general skills and wasn’t picky about weapons or anything.

However, Julia’s versatility was slightly weaker than Hall’s in the early stages.

Her talents in the fields of swordsmanship, magic, and theology were all [A] or [A-] at the start, but her character’s innate talent was very powerful.

When her level increased by ten, she would randomly have two or three talents increase by one rank (up to [S]).

Don’t be fooled by the many types of talents in the game. In the late game, leveling up to level ninety meant at least eighteen opportunities for talent improvement. She would definitely have several [S] attributes.

With good luck, she could even get two [S] attributes, which would make her very well-rounded.

But the problem was also obvious. Julia’s level was too low at the start of this route.

It would take a lot of time just to level up Julia. According to the game’s freedom, if the leveling plan wasn’t done well.

It was very likely that by the time Julia’s level was high enough to recruit other heroines on other maps, the heroines might be unavailable due to various reasons.

So this route was also considered a beginner’s nightmare. It would often annoy you. Exploring slowly was fine, but because the other heroines weren’t recruited, the difficulty of the enemies in the late game would increase, and you would vaguely get a Bad End.

Players would get addicted after playing a few times. After all, Julia’s initial route wasn’t difficult, and you could definitely slack off. So they would start a few more Julia routes.

And then they would explode on time in the late game.

After being taught a lesson like this a few times, they would check the guide and realize that the key was to recruit other heroines. Not too much time should be spent on early-game leveling.

Once the level was sufficient, they should go and recruit other heroines. Then, leveling up together would be more efficient and better for challenging stronger enemies.

However, these were not problems for Hall.

Protecting a beginner heroine like Julia was completely fine for him now.

The problem was that Julia was the kind of heroine who was very illogical.

In the plot, after Julia met Hall, she was actually quite nice to Hall. From the early game text, she herself had also been discriminated against.

But, this character would stab Hall the longer she was with him.

One player had roughly summarized the pattern: the longer Hall spent with her, and the more heroines were in the team, the more likely Hall was to be stabbed.

Once a mana replenishment incident occurred, Hall would have a high probability of being stabbed.

It was difficult to understand Julia’s behavioral logic, because this mana replenishment was not like Lorraine’s, where the stabbing would only be triggered after many times of replenishing mana in bed.

Julia’s stabbing of Hall, according to tests, could happen even if a heroine and Hall just kissed.

Very terrifying.

Because as of now, he had already kissed Leticia and Ye Wangxue.

Moreover, it was very strange. Julia was a girl from a border village in the Papal State.

Although this was a small town, it was near Saint Louis.

Looking at the map, Julia’s hometown and this place were at least a thousand miles apart.

The start time of Julia’s route should also be the end of this year.

There was no reason for her to be here.

And she seemed to have just said “fellow monster hunters.”

Had Julia mistaken them for bounty hunters who hunt monsters for money?

Similarly, Julia should also be a bounty hunter now.

But becoming a bounty hunter was different from becoming an ordinary adventurer. An ordinary adventurer only needed to register with the Adventurer’s Guild for two silver coins to be considered an adventurer. The condition for becoming a bounty hunter required an assessment.

First, you needed to get the [Throne of Bronze of Adventurers] certification. This certification, like the [Throne of Bronze of Holy Light], required level thirty-five strength and some practical achievement assessments.

But this group of frenzied wolf monsters they were hunting had at least a dozen level forty wolves, and the strength of the wolf king was unknown.

In other words.

“Julia is at least not below level fifty?”

Hall thought this was a bit unusual.

Julia should be alone…

That meant that in this world, Julia’s route had already started…

And because Julia’s route had absolutely no cheats in the early stages, and she basically couldn’t recruit other characters, and there were no NPCs giving her important missions, she usually ran from one village to another.

She could only take missions in small towns after accumulating a certain amount of fame.

Her leveling efficiency was extremely low. Unless the player risked their life to run around the map looking for treasure spots they had already memorized.

For a novice player, leveling up from level five at the start to level fifty, according to the average leveling time in the game, would take more than a year, or even two years.

To an absurd extent, until the great war between the East and West continents broke out, Julia was affected by the war and was forced to get a Bad End at only level sixty-something.

Of course, because Julia’s talent would be upgraded every ten levels, her leveling speed was faster later on.

But no matter how he thought about it, Hall felt that this abnormal situation was a bit dangerous.

So he didn’t speak. Himan, who was about to grab her sword, was startled by Julia’s sudden appearance and only spoke after a while.

“We are knights from Saint Louis investigating and hunting monsters. Little girl, are you a local bounty hunter?”

As a girl born in the countryside, compared to the young ladies who started dressing up at thirteen or fourteen, she did look relatively younger.

“I’m not a little girl. I’m already eighteen!”

Hall felt that Julia glanced at him, her eyes carrying a hint of testing. And for some reason, she seemed a little angry that Himan had called her a little girl.

In the game, because Julia’s background was very low compared to the other heroines, she had a very humble personality.

“Oh, you just need to say if you’re a local bounty hunter.”

Himan also felt that Julia was very strange, constantly looking at Hall.

She felt that Julia was attracted to Hall. With the four previous examples of Leticia, Lorraine, Ye Wangxue, and Christine, she had no doubt that her cousin had a male succubus physique.

And a country girl like Julia seeing Hall…

Had she fallen in love with Hall at first sight?

Although Himan herself knew that this idea was ridiculous, there were too many ridiculous things about Hall, so it wasn’t so ridiculous anymore.

“I’m not a local bounty hunter.”

Julia emphasized, puffing out her cheeks.

“You’re not a local?”

Hall pretended not to know Julia and continued, “Then where are you from?”

It was just such a casual question, but Julia slightly shifted the magic lamp she was holding, and a hard-to-detect look of disappointment flashed across her face.

Then she took a deep breath.

“I’m from the southern border of the Papal State.”

“Are you serious? This place is nearly two thousand miles away from the southern border. And… the southern border is near the Southern Demon World. The bounty missions there are more than ten times more numerous than here.”

Himan was confused.

She was a bit PTSD. In short, any girl who observed Hall, she would suspect that the other party had a problem.

And Julia’s attire was too simple and plain. It seemed that only the scabbard at her waist and the magic lamp in her hand were tools for investigating and hunting monsters.

The other party’s appearance here at this time, and meeting them, was very strange.

“I came to Saint Louis to find someone… and the reward for single missions here is also quite high. I need money!”

Julia finished speaking.

Himan was more suspicious of this little girl.

Hall, on the other hand, felt that according to Julia’s normal route progression, she would indeed have the conditions to recruit heroines in Saint Louis fifty or sixty years later.

Could this be a heaven-sent opportunity?

Hall couldn’t help but think. So far, the relationships between the heroines he currently knew were not good at all. Some were even water and fire.

Now that Julia, a heroic and inspiring heroine, had appeared, it was very likely that she would reverse this chaotic situation. It would be best if Julia could become the link between the heroines.

He had to bring Julia into Saint Louis.

“I see. What is your name, Miss? As long as you help us complete this monster investigation, as a reward, we can quickly help you get a pass to enter Saint Louis.”

“Hey, Hall, she’s a woman of unknown identity. Can’t you tell her strength?”

Himan was anxious. She didn’t expect Hall to be so enthusiastic about Julia.

Was he trying to flirt with a girl in front of her again?

Weren’t the few he had enough already?

That’s right. He was that kind of person. She shouldn’t have held any expectations for him.

So angry, so anxious!

“I’m not a person of unknown identity. I’m registered with the Adventurer’s Guild. Julia Lilith. That’s my name. May I know your name, Mr. Hall?”

Julia looked at Hall, her eyes filled with anticipation.

She had been thinking about his name for more than four years. Although she had learned about it from the town newspapers, it would be even better to hear him say it himself.

“Hall Faxtius, Miss Julia. You can just call me Hall.”

Although he always felt that Julia had an abnormal enthusiasm for him, Hall wanted to help Julia become the link that could stabilize Christine and the others later.

Because Julia was a genuine yuri.

According to her profile card, her father had a preference for sons when she was a child and often beat and scolded her, not giving her food. Her older brother was the same.

If the player chose Julia’s route, they could choose to kill her father and brother, or choose to leave the village directly and never contact them again.

But no matter which route, Julia’s childhood shadow of men would accompany her for the rest of her life. So she was definitely a yuri.

The reason Julia was enthusiastic about him now was because this little girl was very polite and could distinguish between good people and bad people. After all, he had also said he could help her solve the urgent problem of entering Saint Louis.

“I am Himan Von Braun, Hall’s cousin.”

Himan saw that Hall hadn’t introduced her at all, and was so polite to Julia. That gentle tone.

It made her very uncomfortable!

She had just been about to reward him…

But in the middle of it, he encountered a cute girl and was more enthusiastic towards her.

“I see. So you and Mr. Hall are cousins.”

Julia observed Himan, her expression looking much more playful.

“What, are you very concerned about this, Miss Julia?”

“I’m not concerned, but when I came here just now, seeing Miss Himan’s actions, I thought you were fellow travelers, a man and a woman…”

The insinuation in Julia’s words was very obvious.

Himan understood what she was saying.

“You can think that. Hall is engaged.”

As soon as she said this, the magic lamp in Julia’s hand shook a few times.

Hall thought Himan said this because she thought Julia liked him.

That was impossible. Julia was a true yuri.

So among the heroines, she was the one who most resembled a true yuri at the start. The other heroines gradually became yuri during the course of the strategy.

But to be on the safe side, he still nodded in agreement.

“I see. Mr. Hall, which one is prettier, your fiancée or Miss Himan?”

Julia’s question stumped Himan.

So she looked at Hall, meaning, “What do you think?”

Hall thought, ‘Why are you looking at me? She didn’t ask you, did she?’

But he quickly understood that Himan wanted him to answer. So he gave the simplest answer.

“They each have their own merits. My fiancée is an Eastern beauty, and Cousin Himan is a Western beauty. It’s hard to compare.”

“Oh, then I was rude, Mr. Hall.”

Julia’s eyes darted around. Just as she was about to speak again.

Hall quickly interrupted.

“Then, Miss Julia, do you have any new findings about the monster group?”

“Yes. I have a strange magic stone that seems to be able to track and sense the traces of nearby monsters. But it’s a bit strange. I’ve sensed quite a few traces along the way, so I planned to come to this farm that was attacked by monsters to confirm the demonic energy mentioned in the mission description.”

“Quite a few, meaning there are many monsters?”

Himan felt that Julia’s stone was suspicious. Firstly, this place was less than a hundred miles from Saint Louis, and the population was dense. In a situation where there was only one sighting report, it was absolutely impossible for there to be many monsters active.

Secondly, how could such a valuable item appear in the hands of this seemingly simple country girl?

“I don’t know. That’s what the magic stone’s reaction is like, but I haven’t seen any other monster attack reports or missions along the way.”

Julia replied.

Hall, however, realized the seriousness of the problem.

This magic stone was called the [Demon Sense Stone] in the game. It could be found in a deep mountain cave near the village where Julia lived. The game text described it as being left behind by an ancient adventurer who had died in that cave, and the authenticity of its function was absolutely undeniable.

But there were no other sightings reported. Could it be that the Church had a secret underground facility nearby that specialized in researching how to control monsters?

And the wolves that were sighted this time were probably escapees from the lab.

Since this was the early stage of the game’s plot, the Church’s research results should not be complete yet, so those wolves were basically in a state of hunger.

Hungry wolves were more aggressive, but their strength was weaker than in a full state. They were excellent experimental materials.

Hall, who had arrived at a rough answer, hesitated about whether to continue the investigation.

Exchanging a glance with Himan, he could only say.

“Why don’t we trust Miss Julia this once? In my opinion, as long as we can eliminate this group of wolves, the mission will be completed.”

“Alright.”

Himan nodded.

Julia, on the other hand, said, “I will definitely not fail to live up to Mr. Hall’s high expectations.”

Then Julia squatted down and began to collect the hair left by the wolves.

Then she took out a hollow crystal magic stone with four holes on the sides.

When the hair was put into the holes, the crystal stone began to glow brightly. Finally, the light gathered into a flat map.

The white dot was Julia’s location, and the red dots were the wolves’ locations.

“I didn’t think it was very far. It’s in a nearby valley. Let’s go now.”

Hall felt that delays were dangerous. He wanted Himan to complete this mission as soon as possible and not investigate too deeply.

Seeing that Hall was getting a little stubborn again, Himan said, “That’s more like it, Hall.”

Julia, on the other hand, saw Hall and Himan start walking away quickly and hurried to catch up with them.

But before leaving, the pink-haired girl looked at Hall’s back and muttered in a low voice.

“Sure enough, no matter when, you, who are so outstanding, are never lacking in women… so you must have long forgotten the unremarkable me.”

When she and he had first met, there was also a blonde girl as exquisite as a doll by the young man’s side. Her conversation and temperament were far superior to her, a country girl.

But Julia also knew that Himan, who also had golden hair, was not the person that girl had grown up to be.

But whether it was that blonde girl or Himan, they were both existences she could not reach.

It was precisely because of this that for many nights, the feeling of inferiority seemed to drown her.

Until one day, Julia suddenly understood.

“It’s okay. You will ultimately belong to me… as long as they all disappear…”