I Am Not the Heroine

Seeing the expressions of the four people, it seemed that I wasn’t getting kicked out after all.

It felt like I had slept for a longer time than expected, so I summoned a clock and found that about 15 minutes had passed.

I had just taken a deep, satisfying nap after a tough journey.

“Rui, I’ll say it again. Come join our party. I’m Aswel, the hero and the leader of this party.”

Starting with the hero, the other three introduced themselves as well.

“I’m Ariya. I’ve been assigned the mission to slay the Demon King alongside the hero. I may be called a Saint, but I don’t think I deserve that title yet…”

Saint Ariya had the quintessential look of a cliché character.

With slightly curly blonde hair, soft eyes, a gentle demeanor, and a rather voluptuous figure.

“I’m Serelin Kint. I’m Aswel’s mentor and joined this party as a knight. Nice to meet you.”

Next was the female knight with striking sea-blue hair.

Compared to the titles of Elf Princess and Saint, she might seem overshadowed, but she actually had a title that the other heroines didn’t: ‘The Hero’s Mentor’.

She also had a rather enticing figure that could make even the most dedicated pacifist a bit aggressive.

“I’m Rapirie. I’m an archer. Whether I’ll be nice to you… I’ll decide after observing.”

Lastly, there was the elf with green hair that resembled the forest.

Unlike the stereotype of elves having small chests, she had successfully shattered that cliché.

With that, the introductions of the three came to an end.

To be honest, having read the original several times, I was already familiar with their names and characteristics, but I kept quiet and listened.

Moreover, hearing the introductions of the other heroines from the novel in person gave me a strange feeling.

It was like hearing a famous catchphrase from a celebrity on TV.

‘Though I’m definitely not a heroine.’

I bowed my head while unfurling the magic labeled [Project Complete].

“I’ll reintroduce myself. I’m Rui. I’ll be responsible for general support in the party.”

Actually, I hadn’t yet come up with a proper term for what I would be doing.

For now, I was thinking of providing support in terms of equipment, buffs, and various conveniences.

‘Hmm, Supporter? Or maybe Enchanter?’

It felt more like a supporter role, but it had a bit of a mixed feel to it.

So, I just went with ‘general support’.

I may have joined the party, but that was just the beginning.

Thanks to the hero’s unwavering faith and appearance, my problems may have lessened, but they weren’t completely gone.

Hadn’t I just said something similar to Rapirie?

In other words, to be recognized as a proper companion, I had two major tasks to solve.

First, to prove my worth as a teammate.

This part needed to instill confidence in the hero who stood up for me.

No matter what, I couldn’t mess up in front of someone who believed in me, right?

Fortunately, I was skilled enough not to embarrass myself.

The second… didn’t apply to the hero.

I needed to let the three heroines know something.

‘I’m not a heroine.’

To make it absolutely clear to the hero that I didn’t harbor any romantic feelings for him!

In fact, the latter was much more important to me than the former.

Anyway, the first issue was likely to resolve itself with time.

No, it had to.

But the latter could remain unresolved even after several denials and proofs.

I was determined to do anything until their wariness was completely gone.

“Rui, your room is the one on the left side of the second floor. Mine is right next door, so if anything happens…”

“What? The hero’s room is right next to mine?”

“Yeah. I thought it would be easier to teach you a lot since you’re just getting here.”

“…I’m okay with any other vacant room.”

“Um, I’m sorry, but I couldn’t clean any other room. That one is the only one I’ve kept tidy for my training, you see. Oh, am I bothering you?”

The hero asked with a somewhat embarrassed smile.

‘No, it doesn’t really bother you.’

I glanced to the side.

Three pairs of different piercing gazes were directed at me.

Wouldn’t it be better to switch rooms with one of those three?

But the echo in my heart couldn’t reach the hero.

*

“Ugh…”

After receiving those cold stares, I entered the room assigned by the hero.

Compared to the other room that looked like a storage space, this one was remarkably tidy, indirectly revealing the hero’s cleanliness habits.

‘What does that even matter?’

In any case, I had joined to enhance my progress in magic research.

I just needed to wander for my main purpose.

Click.

The door closed, and I grabbed the door handle that appeared in thin air.

Creeeak.

A timeless, elegant door slowly opened, revealing a familiar sight.

“Ah, this is surely more comfortable…”

Beyond the door was my study.

The hero’s party’s journey wouldn’t end in just one or two months.

So, I came thoroughly packed with my belongings.

“That was far from a normal task…”

Storing the study in a space of space. Something I never wanted to do again.

It had taken me a while to finally join the hero’s party after deciding to develop that technique.

Fortunately, I managed to enter safely before meeting the witch heroine.

“First, I’ll store these results…”

As I waited for the hero party’s meeting, I placed the completed experiment results in a corner of the drawer.

If my prediction was right, the party would soon leave this town.

Therefore, rather than making progress in my research, it was more efficient to check for any mistakes.

Swish. Swish.

After taking out my pen and jotting in the journal, I closed the study door and stepped out.

Then I retrieved four magical tools from another space of space.

Each pair of gloves had unique designs and colors, and they were my first gifts for the hero’s party.

“Though they’re prototypes, they should work fine.”

Testing them out was work for die-hard men. I, as someone like me, made them with care in advance so they could use them right away.

“Hmm, for Ariya, her overall movements seem more agile yet sluggish than expected…”

I took out my pen again and began etching letters onto the gloves.

There was indeed a huge difference between making something from scratch and estimating it from memory.

Just analyzing Ariya’s body shape and movements, I had modified the spell over fourteen times.

But this was a more stable approach than making them on the spot.

With that, I concluded the processing of the gloves meant for the four, starting with Ariya.

As the sun began to set and I was dozing off after finishing the glove work…

Knock knock.

“Ah.”

“Rui, are you in there?”

It was the hero’s voice.

“Y-yes.”

“Can I come in?”

Why was he asking for permission about something so trivial?

He was just like a hero.

“Yes, please come in.”

“Thanks, we’re planning to go out for dinner, and I wanted to ask if Rui… is…”

As I yawned while welcoming the hero, I felt an odd gaze directed at me.

As I looked at him, his expression shifted, and he hurriedly turned his head away as if realizing something.

‘What?’

“Um, Rui. I’m sorry but your clothing…”

Clothing?

‘What’s wrong with my clothing?’

I hesitated and glanced down at myself.

‘Oh.’

Only then did I recall.

Upon entering this room, I had naturally changed clothes.

It wasn’t that I changed into something relaxing because I felt tired; I had switched into a soft, silky nightgown.

And because of my severe sleeping habits, the buttons on the front were quite undone.

‘Ugh.’

At least it was fortunate that only my stomach and shoulders were visible.

But since it was my first time in such a situation, I froze without realizing it.

“I-I’m sorry. W-we’re going to have dinner, so if you want to join, come down. Or I could bring it up… I’ll just go out for now.”

The hero hurriedly left, and silence filled the room.

‘We just met today.’

To think I’d face him in such a state on the first meeting.

I began to resent my past self for not correcting my habits.

But resentment was one thing, and I still had to eat dinner.

I also needed to give the gloves to the four.

There was absolutely no feeling of embarrassment at meeting the hero’s gaze, nor any emotions like that.

Absolutely not.

*

I made a mistake.

I should have realized it was just after Rui’s voice woke up that I walked in.

Ignoring it led to this disaster.

‘I should apologize.’

Though it was only part of her body, she was undeniably a woman.

No matter the circumstances, there are things that are and aren’t acceptable.

The hero, Aswel, felt guilt as he waited downstairs.

“What’s wrong, hero?”

“Uh?… It’s nothing.”

Ariya was concerned about his state, but he couldn’t respond as he usually would.

The more he tried to erase it from his mind, the more vivid the earlier scene replayed in his head.

‘What if Rui got offended and decided to leave…?’

What on earth should he do?

Despite resolving various incidents wisely over the last year, right now, he couldn’t think of a single solution.

Then he heard it.

Creeeak… Creeeak…

Somebody was coming down from the second floor.

Excluding the hero, there were already three others on the first floor, so there was only one person who could be coming down.

“Good evening, everyone.”

She came down with a nonchalant expression, holding four unknown bags smoothly in her hands.

“You’re here. Shall we go now?”

“I’m still a bit awkward around Rui, but… we can just get to know each other while eating!”

“Hmph.”

The three of them started walking ahead, and the hero and Rui followed a step behind.

Originally, Aswel would have walked at the front, but now he had an apology to make.

“Um, Rui… about earlier…”

Aswel tried to apologize, but the shorter mage interjected.

“It’s okay. That can happen. I wasn’t careful.”

“…But…”

“More importantly, I should be the one apologizing. I showed you something unseemly.”

Something unseemly?

Aswel realized, even before acknowledging it, that he was internally denying that statement.

No matter how dark it was, glimpsing her figure was quite…

‘Crazy.’

“But I’m sorry. If you ever need a favor later, let me know. I’ll make sure to comply.”

“Um, yes. In that case…”

“Hero! We’ve arrived!”

With that, the conversation between the two came to an end.

The five of them entered a restaurant famous even in this town.

Whether the reputation was justified or not, the restaurant was suitably large, filled with many patrons inside.

The five of them entered a room that others couldn’t see and ordered food, falling into a brief silence.

It was the newly arrived mage, Rui, who broke the silence.

“Everyone, please take this.”

As if something had been determined, she handed the designated bags to the four.

They all started pulling the contents out of the bags to examine them.

“This is…?”

“Are these gloves?”

“They look to be made with quite high-quality material…”

“Rui, what is this?”

In response to the hero’s question, the mage replied.

“You can see this as the first magical tool I’m supporting you with. I’ve infused appropriate spells according to each of your attributes and combat styles.”

They looked like gloves made by a skilled craftsman.

Wait, ‘according to each of you’, ‘appropriate spells’?

Suddenly, a silence descended upon the room.

And it was understandable because they had just met today.

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