Hero Julian Attracts Attention (2)

What matters most in a game?

Levels?

That's only half the answer.

Sure, in games, levels are everything. They're the ultimate symbol of power, and power is all that counts. But the whole point of raising your level is to become stronger, right?

What if you could get strong without ever touching a level?

Then levels wouldn't mean a damn thing.

What the hell is this?

Woooong…!

Junil stared at the mana swirling in both palms, utterly dumbfounded.

This is ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠several times more efficient.

Several times? That was putting it mildly. The actual difference was closer to dozens of times.

Then why the hell would I bother leveling?

It felt like a salaryman who'd been diligently saving every paycheck suddenly becoming an influencer on a dating show and making bank selling random crap on Instagram.

All that hard work slaughtering goblins suddenly felt pointless.

Having more Constellations is the real jackpot.

In the end, the number of eyes watching you was what truly mattered.

Hmm…

Junil realized his strategy needed a serious tweak.

I still need to hit level 10 for the quest, but… from now on, getting stronger through Constellations seems like the way to go.

That night, Junil only pushed himself to level 4.

Even that required clearing out every last goblin on the mountain.

“Huuuaaaam…”

Back home, he collapsed into bed like a corpse and passed out instantly.

The next day.

The moment he opened his eyes, he checked the clock.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

He’d slept for twelve straight hours.

“What the hell happened?”

He’d never been the type to sleep this much.

Is this really the same Moon Junil who used to be called a grade-grinding monster?

He was starting to doubt his own body.

The seventy-two hours he’d been given had already shrunk to thirty-seven. All because ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠he’d overslept!

Is this because of Julian’s legend?

It was the only explanation that made sense. Using Julian’s power inside Moon Junil’s body was clearly taking a toll.

Damn it… Well, it’d be weirder if there weren’t any side effects.

Junil clicked his tongue and first checked the number of Constellations watching.

How many are there now?

The number had dropped sharply. Of course no one wanted to watch someone sleeping.

Still, twelve is better than nothing.

At least a dozen were still tuned in.

But why?

Thinking about it again, the fact that twelve people were watching him sleep was actually the weirder part.

A chill ran down Junil’s spine.

His prediction had been spot on.

Yeah… these guys are definitely pervs.

He already knew the Constellations came in all flavors of weird, but seeing it live hit different.

Still, thanks for not dropping to zero…

If the viewer count had hit zero, he might’ve actually died. In a way, these freaks were his lifesavers.

Even if it was a little gross.

Whatever. Time to wash up.

With messy bedhead, he dragged himself to the bathroom.

Shhhhhhh…!

Huh?

He’d just hopped in the shower out of habit.

But now that he thought about it—weren’t those weirdos watching this too?

Luckily, it seemed the system was blocking the view.

Phew…

But why were the numbers suddenly skyrocketing?

Does that mean they’re not completely blocked?

Junil scratched his head. Oh well.

Screw it.

Shhhhhhhhhhh!

If they wanted to watch, let them. He finished his shower without a care.

A short while later, Junil sat in front of his computer, towel-drying his hair.

He skimmed the news first.

Any major Gates open somewhere?

He was done grinding small fry. He wanted to aim for something big.

Something stronger than goblins.

F-rank monsters gave terrible experience efficiency. Paradoxically, he needed to hunt stronger prey to level up faster.

But every headline was about goblins. Nothing else stood out.

Still nothing but goblins everywhere…

Instead of reading more news, Junil typed something into the search bar.

[Search: 4th Line Goblin Slayer]

He had searched for the name that had practically become his second identity: 4th Line Goblin Slayer.

Let’s check how popular I am.

Popularity was literally his lifeline now. He had no choice but to keep a close eye on it.

It wasn’t at the explosive level it had been when the news first broke, but there were still tons of posts about him across news sites and communities.

Still safe for now.

Among the sites, he found one where his name was mentioned an overwhelming number of times.

Twenty-eight mentions? What is this place?

One site had used the exact phrase “4th Line Goblin Slayer” a staggering twenty-eight times.

Its name was How to Survive as an Awakened.

Shortened to Awakened Survival Guide.

It looked like a community forum where people discussed everything related to being an Awakened.

Modern society really moves fast.

As a hero who had only known the medieval era, Junil couldn’t help but be impressed by the speed of modern civilization. Even though it was still small, communities like this were already forming, and people were actively discussing Awakening.

Among the popular posts, many caught his eye.

Oh. This one’s about me.

The number one trending post was, shockingly, about him.

1) Goblin Slayer is the real deal? C+ Mage class user confirmed it (shiver)

The post included a verification photo with the two big guys he’d met yesterday.

The post had nearly two thousand views.

This is interesting.

The users here were extremely interested in him. That made sense—they were all Awakened themselves, desperate to level up.

Everyone here wasn’t avoiding goblins. They were actively hunting them.

People were posting verification shots of their goblin hunts. Some were even sharing strategy guides.

Popular Guide!) How to level up smoothly as a Mage Duo

Junil suspected the two big guys from yesterday had probably read this exact post.

Mage class…

Those guys had been incredibly proud of being mages.

Looking at the posts, he could see why.

The biggest problem in the current Awakened community was that close-combat classes struggled massively against goblins.

So normal Awakened from E-rank and up get assigned proper classes.

Junil was technically not a real Awakened, so he had no class. But from E-rank onward, people received classes—and that was apparently causing more problems than it solved.

In the current meta, melee classes simply couldn’t hunt goblins effectively.

Why?

After reading through the posts, Junil’s conclusion was simple.

They’re just cowards, aren’t they?

They were scared. The very idea of killing something up close with a blade terrified them.

It made sense, really.

Yeah… even in my first life, it took me forever to cut off a goblin’s head.

Even with the full hero buffs, the first-life Julian had struggled against goblins. For modern people, picking up a weapon and actually killing something was no easy task.

So that’s why they’re so interested in me?

It also explained why the community kept mentioning the 4th Line Goblin Slayer so frequently.

3) Why Sagosul Could Kill Goblins With a Box Cutter

7) Close-Combat Analysis of Sagosul

11) Melee Classes Are Just Wine…

These guys are exactly like I was back in my first life.

Junil smirked, feeling a strange sense of kinship as he read the posts.

Huh?

Then he found a strange one.

18) Hyungs, fuck, my neighborhood is completely screwed. If you’re gonna hunt, can you please come here?

The link led to a map app. The photos showed a scene so horrific it looked almost photoshopped.

That alone was interesting enough.

But then came the real comment.

S-rank?

Someone had stepped up to help. And they claimed to be S-rank.

Everyone thought it was a lie.

But it feels real.

Junil’s gut told him otherwise.

Could this guy… be the protagonist?

If he was really S-rank, it made perfect sense.

The person claiming to be S-rank replied again.

The Constellations were also showing interest.

This doesn’t feel normal.

Junil’s hero instincts were kicking in.

Is this the place?

No matter how vast the stage, the flow of the story always converged on specific locations. Even in a massive medieval continent, only the paths the hero’s party walked became the true stage.

It was the same here.

The place where the story’s current flowed strongest.

The main stream.

There was only one main stream.

The sheer number of goblins gathered was no joke, and the Constellations’ interest was massive.

What if I go there and put on a show?

If Junil performed brilliantly in a place where so many Constellations were watching, then revealed himself as the 4th Line Goblin Slayer after resolving the incident?

That would be a massive pump.

Both his level and his viewer count would skyrocket. Two birds with one stone.

Junil checked the timestamp.

Posted twenty minutes ago.

He could still catch up.

“Myeonmok-dong. I need to go there.”

He stood up, deliberately speaking loud enough for the stream to hear.