I Am Not the Heroine

I couldn’t help but think that I should have practiced riding a bit more.

However, oddly enough, Lux moved smoothly so that I wouldn’t feel uncomfortable.

At the front was the Hero, followed closely by Rapirie and Ariya at an angle, while Serelin and I moved together at the back.

Serelin Gint. The blue-haired female knight.

She’s the sword master who will reach the level of a Sword Master in the future and is the Hero’s first mentor.

Back when the Hero was just about to set off, she was stationed at a fortress in the east, and a month later, at the request of the Hero and Ariya who visited that fortress, she joined the party.

Overall, her personality and appearance could be described as a hero or a strong woman.

While Serelin also has a cheerful personality, she is more composed than the other two due to her familiarity with the battlefield.

So, in a way, I couldn’t help but think she might be the coldest person in this Hero’s party.

“And she’s also the one I feel the most awkward around.”

I rapidly became close with Rapirie after a series of incidents, and since the Hero is the Hero, it was natural that I had to talk with him several times.

As for the Saint Ariya, her friendly and kind personality made it hard for me to feel any awkwardness at all.

However, when it came to Serelin, the conversation would rapidly disappear whenever it was just the two of us.

While she easily conversed when others were around, there was an awkwardness between just the two of us that was hard to describe.

It felt like being left with a friend of a friend, without a friend in sight.

Neither Serelin nor I were the types to take the lead in a conversation, which made this happen.

“Aswel, speaking of which, from Trasse…”

The Hero and Rapirie started a conversation, which Ariya watched fondly.

Meanwhile, Serelin and I, who were slightly behind, were naturally conscious of each other.

Fortunately, I had a topic that I could approach her with.

“Serelin.”

“Yeah?”

“Is your glove okay?”

Talking about the gloves right away.

“Oh, it was really good. The spell you enchanted was very helpful in battle.”

“That’s great to hear. This time, I’m thinking about making shoes, is there a style or feature you would like?”

Honestly, if I really wanted to, I could have already made her shoes.

No, I could have equipped her from head to toe with my magical tools and gear.

But the reason I didn’t was because of ‘story development’ and ‘changes in enemy strength.’

Sometimes, some games have systems like that.

A system where enemies’ levels rise naturally as the player’s level increases.

While I can’t say this world has a system, there are beings that can affect it.

That’s right, the Demon Realm. The demons there.

“What if the power of the Hero’s party skyrockets, how might things change?”

A B-demon, which should appear from location A, might not show up and instead, a creature of several times greater strength could appear.

Even if my entrance caused variables like Mage Water Mill Village, I couldn’t allow it to go that far.

So I planned to carefully share the equipment over time, one by one.

“Shoes? Hmm… Sorry, I’ve never thought about it before, so nothing’s coming to mind.”

“I see.”

“I’ll start paying attention to it from now on.”

“Then please do. After all, you, Serelin, are supporting our strong front line with the Hero, so I want to give you extra care.”

“Ah…”

Of course, that’s not the only reason I’m doing this.

I plan to survey the other heroines and the Hero as well.

But even so, I’m approaching Serelin and showing care because I chose her as my second heroine to assist.

That blue-haired knight, after all.

*

Serelin is strong. That’s why she could stand on the front lines with the Hero.

However, because of that strength, she couldn’t approach the Hero with romantic feelings.

So far, Serelin has only spoken with Aswel about three topics.

Requests, battles, and training.

How stiff is that?

Among the three heroines present, Serelin couldn’t appeal to Aswel the most.

Of course, she tried her best to appeal.

But in the end, it resulted in her moving a bit closer to listen when requests were made, or subtly hinting her mentor-disciple relationship with the Hero to the other heroines.

The reason she couldn’t appeal was precisely because of that mentoring relationship she had.

Although it had only been a year, they were ultimately a master and disciple.

In a typical relationship, they could have easily approached with romantic feelings… but unfortunately, their training goal was to hunt Demons and Magical Creatures.

How could one harbor romantic feelings when the fate of the world was at stake?

As a female knight, Serelin couldn’t even dare to think about it.

However, the moment she saw Ariya by the Hero’s side, and witnessed Rapirie and several other heroines approaching him, she finally decided to act.

“Still, I was overshadowed by the late-coming heroines.”

When it got nearly to the end, she accidentally revealed her feelings for the Hero and became a true heroine.

Yes, in the end, she would confront the ending of being ‘discovered,’ while not having made a proper appeal.

That’s why I decided to help Serelin this time.

Before the Witch heroine, or rather, before a new heroine comes in, I needed to get ahead to avoid being overshadowed in the future heroine battles.

But why didn’t I help her first? Because of trust.

“Rui.”

“Yes, Serelin.”

“So… it seems you’ve gotten really close with Aswel.”

Ah.

Hearing her words, I instantly understood.

She was on ‘guard’ like Rapirie had been. Guarding against what?

Of course, against becoming a heroine.

So she pretended to say “it seems you’ve become close” to hide her true feelings.

This was something she said to the heroine assassin who came in late within the story.

“It seems, since it’s new, he’s been taking a lot of care for you.”

If I blatantly deny it from the start, it would only raise suspicion.

In such situations, it’s best to slowly break down that image while building a new one at the same time.

“I see…”

“And he often talks about all of you too. For example, how Rapirie shoots her bow.”

A flinch.

I could see Serelin’s agitation from that statement.

Seizing the chance, I continued speaking as if I hadn’t noticed anything.

“He also told me some things on the day I first joined. Thanks to that, I could select spells to reflect on the gloves.”

Knowing about all of you is a great asset for me, after all.

Serelin paused for a moment.

“…So, um, what did Aswel say about me…? I’m a little curious…”

“About you, Serelin?”

“Yeah…”

I’m not talking about my feelings. I’m conveying what the Hero feels.

And the source of that information is the Hero and the Hero from the story.

“He said without a doubt, you’re the most trustworthy person in the party.”

“Huh?!”

“He stated that you support him flawlessly as he fights at the front, sometimes even guiding the battle’s direction and feeling like a true mentor.”

“Uhh…”

“And he said you’re someone he can rely on more than anyone.”

“Ah, um, is that so…?”

Calmness is Serelin, and Serelin is calm.

But right now, that calmness has completely shattered.

Unlike Rapirie, who turns red when flustered, Serelin speaks much faster.

“Let’s stop here.”

I just needed to convey how the Hero views her.

I can slowly reveal my plans and the fact that I’m not a heroine later.

“I still have time until we arrive at the Fortress.”

Until then, I could approach her little by little like getting familiar with a wild wolf.

If that happens, she would gradually let her guard down and come closer to me.

“Let’s all take a short break before we reach the grassland!”

With the Hero’s remark, everyone went down from their horses to rest.

“Ugh.”

Thanks to Lux, I jumped down and set up a makeshift seat nearby to sit.

Whirrup.

Lux casually moved towards the four horses that were cautiously glancing at him.

And, remarkably, he made his way up first, surpassing Tempest, and began galloping with the other horses across the grassland.

‘Could Lux be of royal blood?’

He might possess genes worthy of leading a pack of animals or something.

If not, he wouldn’t be able to lead the emperor’s horses with such confidence.

“Rui.”

“Yes, Hero.”

“Is there anything you want to eat? I was thinking maybe I’d make a simple snack.”

“Hmm…”

“I was planning to stir-fry some bell peppers and meat and put it in bread…”

“Ugh.”

“Uh, huh?”

I didn’t like bell peppers. Unknowingly, as soon as I heard the word bell pepper, I shook my head left and right in denial.

The Hero, too, seemed surprised, as if he didn’t expect me to refuse all at once.

“Please leave out the bell peppers for me.”

“Oh, okay! You don’t like bell peppers. Um, hoo.”

“No, it’s not that I dislike them, I just don’t eat them.”

“Oh, I see.”

Yes! By subtly switching my words, the Hero seemed to accept that.

Since becoming this body, I’ve truly developed a complete aversion to bell peppers.

That peculiar crunch and faint aroma feel like a rejection from my entire being.

Some might think I’m childish for disliking bell peppers, but it’s true.

Honestly, it’s not that it’s not concerning…

No, wait, I’m actually a bit more irritated, but there’s nothing I can do.

In the end, I genuinely dislike bell peppers.

“Hero.”

But I had a weapon too.

“Yeah?”

“I can’t eat… I mean, I don’t eat bell peppers, but I do like carrots.”

That’s right, I do enjoy my carrots.

“So please don’t misunderstand.”

I spoke clearly while looking directly at the Hero.

Hehe.

At this moment, the image of ‘childish Rui’ blooming in the Hero’s mind was undoubtedly shattered.

I hastily covered my smile and watched the Hero walk away with satisfaction.

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