I Am Not the Heroine

Nia Bella had always admired the Hero.

Even when the bakery lady cursed her for touching the bread, and the guards on the street looked at her with disdain, the Hero was the support that kept her smiling.

A hero straight out of a fairy tale.

He was incredibly kind and strong.

For years, she had lived longing for the day the Hero would appear.

But the more hope she held, the harsher others became towards her.

The reason was simple.

Because she was the daughter of a witch.

Witches’ daughters would eventually become witches themselves.

Nia Bella couldn’t understand.

By the time she was old enough to think for herself, her mother, and even her father were already gone.

She had grown up all alone and could only see her survival as sheer coincidence.

Life had been harsh in that city.

Then one day, she met her first benefactor.

While gathering herbs in the nearby Forest at the command of a neighbor, she came across a woman.

“Oh my, a fellow kin!”

Kin.

To call someone kin meant they belonged to the same race.

But it felt strange. In an Empire where most were human, calling another human kin felt awkward.

It wasn’t like there were many beastfolk or elves around here.

So, the answer was simple.

“I’m a witch, you know. You look pretty rough, you must have had a hard time.”

The woman introduced herself as Dia Yurcil.

From then on, Nia Bella had a new routine.

Every day, just about sunset, she would head into the Forest to meet Dia Yurcil.

Dia had claimed to be searching for a mysterious gem in the Forest.

“It seems you haven’t quite grasped your strength yet, huh?”

Dia Yurcil patted young Nia Bella’s head as she spoke.

“But you must learn on your own. That’s the first step for a witch.”

No one can take the first step for you.

So she helped Nia Bella not through conventional magic training, but in different ways.

“We witches live alone. Occasionally we meet through gatherings called witch councils, but…”

Teaching her how to live as a witch and imparting knowledge.

“Oh dear, that must hurt. For that wound… here, crush this herb and apply it.”

Helpful knowledge for living.

“Your face looks so sad today. Come here, let me hug you.”

And finally, the affection that her parents couldn’t provide.

In just a short time, it was no wonder Nia Bella became attached to Dia Yurcil.

But soon enough, the time for Dia to leave came.

“Nia Bella, will you follow me?”

Dia Yurcil made her proposition.

It was an offer to leave the city she was living in and open a shop alongside her.

Nia Bella wanted to follow Dia, who had been like a teacher and parent to her, but it was precisely because of Dia’s teachings that she declined.

“Why?”

“Because when the Hero finally appears, I don’t want to look powerless.”

The Hero.

The prince in her dreams and her savior.

Though she had learned that witches lived alone from Dia Yurcil, that was the biggest reason.

The one who still supported her was the Hero.

Fairy tales are just that—fairy tales.

But for Nia Bella, the story of the Hero was more than just a simple tale.

In the end, Dia Yurcil couldn’t change her mind, and they parted ways.

Days after Dia had left, Nia Bella awakened her powers.

Fire, but it was just a feeble spark for now.

She was the spark witch.

So it happened that Nia Bella was heading towards loneliness and rejection again when someone approached her.

“Hey, you said you’re a witch, right?”

A girl with blue hair.

“I’m Rozen. I want to see some really cool magic. Can you show me?”

Rozen became her second connection.

*

Rozen was a poor girl living on the streets.

But even though she was poor, her spirit didn’t lose its shine.

Nia Bella found her fascinating, and they quickly became close friends.

“Hahaha! They say a witch can’t even use magic!”

“Get over here…!”

Nia Bella spent more time with Rozen than with Dia Yurcil, and their friendship deepened with each passing day.

However, the citizens of the city did not view this kindly.

“Ugh, what’s that? It’s a witch, right? Spit!”

The more love she received, the more hatred she bore.

Eventually, Nia Bella, who had smiled more thanks to the help of both girls, began to lose her smile.

Then one day, news arrived in the city.

“The Hero has appeared!”

“The Hero? Isn’t that just a fairy tale? Is there really such a thing?”

…Huh?

The Hero?

Nia Bella couldn’t believe it when she heard the citizens of the city discussing her support.

But soon after, more news came in, and she had to accept it.

The Hero had truly been born.

His name was Aswel.

He had black hair, a rarity even in the Empire, and was chosen by the Holy Sword on his very first day.

He looked just like the Hero from the fairy tales that Nia Bella had longed for.

“What? He’s going to become an adventurer?”

She heard that the Hero would embark on a journey taking on difficult requests from the Adventurer’s Guild.

If that was the case, then to meet him, she needed to become an adventurer herself.

“Hmmm, can’t I just skip it? I’m really nervous…”

But Rozen ultimately couldn’t talk Nia Bella out of it, and she headed to the Adventurer’s Guild.

“Register as an adventurer? Hmm. Sure.”

Surprisingly, registering at the Adventurer’s Guild wasn’t met with any major hostility.

Having grown used to the hateful glares, she wasn’t easily hurt anymore.

“Okay, here’s a sewer cleaning request. It’s the only one available right now.”

That day, Nia Bella started tackling random odd jobs in hopes of leveling up her adventurer rank.

About a year later. She had completed hundreds of small requests.

Then.

“What? Rank? You can’t level up!”

A sudden notification.

The reason was simple.

“What does a witch have to do with adventuring? Be grateful you were even accepted.”

Feeling grateful for just being accepted, was she really going to remain at the lowest rank forever?

While she was in despair one day, a middle-aged man with a mustache appeared.

“Want to level up? I have a fitting request for you.”

A massive Magical Creature horde had appeared at a nearby ruin.

He said that if she could take care of that, he would immediately upgrade her adventurer rank.

“If you complete this request, it’ll do a lot for the city.”

Nia Bella happily accepted the request and secretly left the city at dawn, hoping to once again avoid Rozen’s attempts to stop her.

She sensed something was off when she finally faced the target she was supposed to defeat.

A creature much larger than what was described in the request. Countless tentacles, sharp teeth, and a mane covering its entire body.

A high-risk Magical Creature that ordinary adventurers could never dream of defeating.

It was nothing like the creature she was supposed to face.

That’s when Nia Bella realized.

She got tricked.

Or maybe she had known from the very beginning. They were too busy bashing her to think about accepting her as part of the city.

But she endured it all.

Hoping a little more, being a little friendlier, maybe one day they would accept her.

In that moment, fire ignited within her heart.

The small spark roared to life, fueled by Nia Bella’s sadness and anger.

The flames engulfed the creature.

The hunt ended in an instant. Yet, Nia Bella neither felt joy nor anger.

The roaring flames were no longer hers.

The untamed power began to take the shape of a giant, trapping Nia Bella in the place where her heart should have been.

The fire giant, fed by anger, sought the source of its wrath and slowly moved toward the city beyond the ridge.

And now.

“Stop! Stop it!”

Nia Bella struggled with all her might to halt the giant amidst the rising inferno.

No matter how much mana she poured, or even when she attempted to cut off the mana supply, the giant wouldn’t stop.

What should she do?

She rightly felt furious towards the city and its citizens who had hated her.

But she didn’t want to repay them this way.

She wanted to succeed in an outstanding manner, painting a future where none could ignore her.

But if this continued, hundreds of citizens would perish, and the city would crumble.

“Don’t move… don’t move…!”

Nia Bella’s hands limply struck the giant.

But the giant wouldn’t listen.

Instead, at some point, it began to entice her from deep within her heart.

Do you not wish to be rewarded for the life you’ve lived being ignored?

If you close your eyes just for a moment, it’ll all be over.

It’s their fault anyway.

Simultaneously, she felt her mana rapidly draining away.

Although Dia Yurcil had taught her a little, in the end, she didn’t know how to handle her mana efficiently.

This resulted in early-stage mana exhaustion, and her vision began to blur.

‘Really, if I can just close my eyes once more…’

Rozen’s face flashed across her mind.

She must be waiting for me back in that city.

I should tell her to run.

Come to think of it, I heard a Hero has arrived in a nearby city.

Is he really as handsome as they say?

In that fleeting moment before losing consciousness, many thoughts rushed through her mind.

She didn’t want to lose hope until the very end, and she wanted to stop the giant.

But the choice laid before her was simply to stand back and watch.

Still.

What if.

What if he really is like the Hero from the fairy tales?

Wouldn’t he come and save me from here?

Wouldn’t he stop this giant?

With that thought, Nia Bella whispered softly.

“Hero…”

In that moment.

Whoosh!!

“Nia Bella!!”

White light poured into the heart of the giant where she was trapped.

At the sudden event, she opened her eyes, and there stood a man.

“Are you okay? Take my hand!”

A man with a glowing white sword reached out as he spoke.

His hair was… black.

“I’ll save you. You don’t have to worry anymore. Everything will be alright.”

He casually said the very words Nia Bella had longed to hear, and grasped her hand.

With heavy lidded eyes, Nia Bella gazed at him as she exclaimed softly.

“Hero…?”

Is it really you who has come to rescue me?

With him, Nia Bella finally lost her consciousness.

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