I Am Not the Heroine

In the northwest of the Empire, there are many rugged mountains.

These mountains continue in a range all the way to the Northern Region, creating a massive wall-like feeling shaped by nature.

Mine City Lakr is located at the starting point of that mountain range.

Kugung…

Kwang!

“Wow… it’s loud…”

“Must be because there’s a mine or something.”

It’s almost as if this city is not just fantasy but also steam punk.

The proportion of metal tools and structures was higher than in other cities.

Dozens of railways and mine carts stretching from beyond the mountains to the city.

Countless chimneys and smithies spewing various fumes.

The sound of metal being hammered and cut without rest could be considered a characteristic of Lakr.

“Ahaha!”

“Come here!!”

And to prevent metal dust or powder from settling on their heads, both adults and children wear something like hats.

“Hero, please bend down for a moment.”

“Huh?”

When in Rome, do as the Romans do, so I made sure to put a hat on the hero that I had prepared in advance.

A hat reminiscent of what a cowboy would wear.

Given the hero’s looks, even with the hat on, he has a striking presence.

But just placing it on his head left some hair sticking out, so I re-styled his hair and put it back on.

Then I tucked the slightly fallen hair behind his ear, inspecting him one last time.

“…Thanks.”

Okay, that’s solid.

“You all should wear some too.”

“Ooo…”

“Oh yay.”

The heroines’ hats had similar designs with slight variations.

For instance, Rapirie’s hat had bird feathers as decorations, and Nia’s hat had a longer brim.

If anything, my hat was the one most similar in shape to the hero’s.

I chose to just engrave patterns without adding extra decorations.

And since the reason for wearing hats was dust, I inscribed purification and cleaning-related spells onto them.

At least, while wearing these hats, they wouldn’t have to worry about their clothes getting dirty.

“Are you the hero!”

Kang! Kang!

With a loud voice, the district guard captain asked, probably due to the nearby large smithy.

The hero nodded vigorously in response, and the captain let us through the gate.

“Sorry, it’s noisy outside; we’re in the middle of working. Here should be a bit calmer.”

“No problem. I actually liked feeling the city come alive.”

The hero really speaks kindly as if he was born for it.

Honestly, as an outsider, the noise would be hard to get used to, but he might as well be understanding about it.

“I received news that the hero would be coming. If you wait a moment, someone sent by the Marquis will arrive.”

Lakra’s Marquis family.

‘What was it like?’

In the original work, they were less significant than the Count Alphrees family, so I don’t remember much.

Just that they were a key family supplying numerous resources and technology to the Empire as rulers of this mine city.

‘And…’

I believe I remember something about a child suffering from an illness.

Shortly after, a butler came to the gate.

“The Marquis wishes to invite you all.”

We headed to the residence of Marquis Lakr.

The first time seeing the Lakr Marquis residence, it had a distinctly different atmosphere compared to Count Alphrees’s.

“Please wait a moment.”

Unlike Count Alphrees’s mansion, built of pure white stone, this one had a dreary feeling with its gray bricks.

But perhaps a great artisan built it, as it exuded a magnificent and noble feeling rather than appearing shabby or dull.

“Nice to meet you. I am Marquis Lakr.”

In contrast to the stately Count Alphrees, who had a robust physique, this Marquis had a rather slender appearance.

He looked exactly like someone from a desk job.

“…It feels a bit quiet.”

“Yeah.”

As Rapirie and the hero noted, the Marquis’s residence felt exceptionally quiet.

Noble mansions tend to have a calm atmosphere, but this place was even quieter.

The explanation for this situation came from none other than Serelin.

“The Marquis Lakr’s son is naturally frail. That’s why.”

“Oh…”

“Is he often ill? If that’s the case…”

“Aria, if you step in, it’ll be fine for a while, but…”

“We won’t solve the root cause, and it will eventually return to the same situation. So you don’t need to feel too down, Aria.”

“Lady Rui…”

The saint possesses the ability to heal most wounds and illnesses.

The divine power bestowed by the goddess the Church believes in is so potent that even those on the brink of death can find hope.

However, that is merely recovery, not ‘growth’ or ‘development.’

The Lakr prince has been weak since birth, and due to the nature of being in a mine city, he has spent most of his life in bed.

Thus, he has various respiratory and skin ailments that Aria can heal.

But that won’t necessarily improve the city or his physique.

‘Dust…’

Could I combine several minerals into mana stones to minimize the smoke and dust erupting from Lakr city?

I had never researched this area, so I only had a rough design in mind.

“Thank you for the saint’s kindness, but it’s fine. Our family is making efforts in various ways.”

The gentle refusal from the Lakr Marquis left Aria with no choice but to withdraw her offer.

“In that case, is there something we can help with?”

“Actually, not really. The city is peaceful.”

Even with the hero’s inquiry, the Marquis’s answer was still a refusal, and he finally bid us farewell.

“I must attend to some duties now. Please rest comfortably.”

With that, the Marquis disappeared from before us.

After a brief moment, we were left with just ourselves in the hallway, following the butlers’ guidance to our respective rooms.

Once I entered my room, I pulled out a pen and began inscribing letters in the air.

“It seems the Marquis doesn’t need the hero’s help, but…”

That’s simply impossible.

By now, there should be demons lurking deep in the mines connected to this city.

To be precise, one demon and the magical creature that serves him.

The moment they materialize, the hero party must block them.

Otherwise…

‘The Empire’s technology and resources could collapse in an instant.’

Can a solitary demon and magical creature achieve that?

They certainly can.

Because they are not just any common demon.

‘They are direct subordinates of a Duke.’

The four strongest demons existing under the Demon King.

Those referred to as Dukes possess powers that transcend their own race.

Essentially, the Dukes carry strength comparable to that of the Demon King.

So, naturally, their subordinates must be just as formidable.

Perhaps they possess powers stronger or similar to the first heir.

“I need to prepare adequately until then.”

Kugung…

From afar, the sound of a massive hammer striking metal echoed from the smithy.

*

Kugukung…

Thud…

The big and small sounds resonating throughout Lakr day and night.

But at some moment, a strange noise began to overlap amidst those regular sounds.

Kwaaaang!!

“Ahaha, calm down. We’ll be setting out soon.”

A demon that felt like it was made entirely of metal softly caressed something.

What had initially appeared to be a massive ore began to writhe and move under the demon’s touch.

What the demon touched was not an ore, but rather, a limb of something.

Soon, the ground shook, revealing an array of limbs that appeared and vanished from the demon’s sight repeatedly.

“Hmm, even so, this body is too uncomfortable. Don’t you think so too, Behi?”

Around the demon was an incredible accumulation of blood.

It appeared like a scene of ‘molting.’

“Anyway, even the child who has become a host for Behi will understand. After all, they are up against the hero party.”

Pzz!

The demon’s body cracked as it collapsed onto the ground.

“Oh, it cracked again.”

Even though it was forcibly taken, it had tried to maintain this body out of consideration for its subordinate.

“Seems like I can’t hold my magic much longer…”

This means, even if the demon wished to don its subordinate’s body for combat later, it wouldn’t be able to due to it potentially splitting apart.

“…Well, that can’t be helped.”

Being a demon is all about that.

It is natural to sacrifice for the stronger.

That’s why even those arrogant vampires adhered to the rules of demons.

“Facing the hero party is unfortunate, but…”

However, thanks to that, it could rise to the occasion.

Thanks to the slaughter of the fifty-first castle and the countless vampires living within, it had gained the ‘causal’ chance to embody here.

“Hehe~ heh~.”

“Huh, huh… what is that!”

“Eh?”

Suddenly, a light appeared from afar.

Upon closer inspection, it was a miner shining a lantern in this direction.

“Could it be… a demon…?”

Terrified, the miner beamed the lantern at the demon, making eye contact.

“Kuh, huh…!”

“Have they already dug this far… Humans are remarkable.”

Even though it had hidden very deep…

The demon slowly stood and approached the miner.

Just by making eye contact, the miner succumbed to the demon’s magic.

Blood and flesh stickily adhered to the ground, and blood flowed from its eyes.

“The hero… must be able to meet my gaze directly.”

As it attempted to gently stroke the miner’s head, a sizzling sound caused the head to dissolve away.

I hope the hero is strong enough to withstand direct eye contact and feel the demon’s touch.

Demon Rastok.

No, that was merely the name of the subordinate who had once owned this ‘body.’

Blood Gold Duke Merkhad Karachioni.

Her two gray eyes shone in the darkness.

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