I Am Not the Heroine

If you want to enter a certain place freely, who is the person you should befriend the most?

The leader of that place? Or perhaps the key figure?

Nope.

It’s the ‘Gatekeeper.’

The Gatekeeper is a being assigned to protect that location. In other words, they are responsible for the safety of those who exist within that place. So if you win the heart of the Gatekeeper, it’s almost like you have a guarantee of your own safety.

Here, Rapirie is the Gatekeeper of the Hero party.

Among the heroines currently in the party, she is the one who is most wary of me.

So, if I show that I’m getting close with Rapirie, I could naturally win the favor of Ariya and Serelin as well.

‘I’m very genius.’

If being smart is a crime, then I must be committing a serious offense level with a cosmic revelation.

How could I be this smart?

“To charm someone, how…?”

Rapirie looked around and asked in a small voice.

Without realizing it, she seemed to have thought of the Hero, a subtle blush had already appeared on her cheeks.

“Rui, do you happen to know how to charm a guy?”

Then, with her innocent face, Rapirie asked me.

“Of course. I’m really good at it.”

“O-oh….”

Fortunately, she didn’t immediately suggest trying to charm a guy from the village right now.

I was worried that Rapirie might catch onto me, so I quickly got to the main topic.

“So, how do you act in front of the Hero?”

“How, you ask…?”

“Like, cheerful personality or cool behavior, something like that.”

“Um… I try to approach him casually and friendly-like.”

“First, you need to change that image and show something different.”

“Change it?”

“Yes. Think about it. Our Hero has a very kind nature, right?”

“That’s true?”

“But what if one day, Rapirie gets hurt in battle? At that time, the Hero comes over, grabs your injured arm, and gets angry.”

“Um… I can’t really imagine Aswel being angry.”

“Just assume it for a second. While he’s angry, he says, ‘How dare you get hurt without permission!'”

In simpler terms, I was asking how it would feel to approach like a bad boy with a tsundere vibe.

Then Rapirie, who was trying to imagine that, suddenly blushed deeply.

This Elf Princess seems to blush quite easily.

“Ugh, umm. That sounds… not bad.”

“Now you just reverse that.”

“Are you saying if Aswel gets hurt, I should get angry?”

Just when I thought the Elf Princess was doing well, she stumbled there.

“Will the Hero actually get hurt?”

“…That’s true.”

“And getting angry doesn’t suit you, Rapirie. What you should show is ‘seriousness.'”

“O-oh….”

“I found out some rough information about our next journey from the Hero yesterday. However, on the way, there’s a flower field here…”

“Hm. So, so what?”

That conversation kicked off a meeting that wrapped up around the hour mark.

By the end of the meeting, Rapirie couldn’t help but giggle at the thought of getting along with the Hero.

‘Was this operation a bit too much for the Elf Princess?’

Still, I pretended to rub my nose with satisfaction.

“Thank you, Rui…! Ah, but there’s an important issue.”

“What is it?”

“The flower field here is a bit off the road, right? How do we bring Aswel here…?”

“That’s something you need to figure out, Rapirie.”

“How am I supposed to do that? I’m scared!”

“…I’ll figure something out.”

Didn’t I have something that happened with the Hero yesterday?

I could use that as an excuse to lead him to the flower field.

*

Two days later, the Hero party left the village and set off on their journey.

The party had been staying in the southern part of the Empire.

Now, they planned to slowly head towards the western part of the Empire, chasing rumors related to various magical creatures and the demon race.

‘The most important events are… the Witch Heroine and the Twilight Fortress.’

Both events will occur within the next three months. That means there’s plenty of time.

‘Of course, battles will persist in between.’

In this world, magical creatures pop up whenever they please, threatening people.

They aren’t the original inhabitants but rather come from the demon realm through spatial movement, making them difficult to predict.

As a result, most villages and towns prepare forces to deal with magical creatures, but even that sometimes isn’t enough.

When that happens, if the Hero party is nearby, they come to take care of it.

The village the Hero party is heading to has sent such a request.

The river, which they use for clean water, has been taken over by a horde of goblins and orcs.

So, how do we get to that village?

Fortunately, we did not use the primitive method of walking.

Instead, we would be using a means of transportation I had never used before—horses.

“I’m sorry, Rui. I couldn’t get a horse for you.”

Puhuhung.

‘Am I a prince now?’

A pristine white horse was swinging its groomed mane while waiting for the Hero.

Next to it were the three heroines’ horses, gathered around the white horse.

By the way, that white horse was said to be a gift from the Emperor. Anyway, it’s supposed to be a good breed.

The heroines seemed to be aware of that fact, trying not to move too far from the white horse.

Just as a reference, horses have the same gender as their owners.

“So, I guess we’ll have to ride together until we can get another horse…”

“Umm.”

I looked around to see if there was a cart available for transporting luggage, but unfortunately, there was none.

I longed to stay hidden in my research lab and only come out when needed, but the limitations of magic made that impossible.

The door to the lab is fixed in spatial coordinates, so I couldn’t follow the moving horses.

In the end, it meant I had to ride one of the four horses.

“Then I’ll ride with Rapirie…”

Three large figures were definitely going to make my neck and back ache, but I couldn’t just ditch the Hero and ride alone.

The three heroines would surely catch fire in their eyes, and I couldn’t ignore that.

But then, something unexpected happened.

“No way. Wish doesn’t allow anyone else to ride. It has a bit of a temper.”

“What?”

Wish is Rapirie’s horse. As I looked at it with a dumbfounded expression, it shot me a glare as if asking, ‘What are you looking at?’

Honestly, the big thing giving me a threatening look made me instinctively take a step back toward the Hero.

“Then how about Serelin…”

“I’m in armor, so it’ll be quite uncomfortable for me. Is that okay?”

“Umm….”

It wasn’t just armor. There were various weapons and gear, and there was even a bit of armor on the horse.

With that, I would undoubtedly end up broken like I was lying on a rocky road.

“How about Ariya…”

“Oh, I’m fine!”

“…I’m not fine.”

After hoping for a chance, I stopped after seeing her bust.

If that horse trips over a stone, its neck would snap, no doubt.

“Why…?”

In the end, there was only one option left.

“Then let’s ride together.”

“That seems like the best plan.”

The Hero was wearing comparatively simpler armor than Serelin’s, so it would be less uncomfortable.

Of course, the three gazes following would be awkward, but still.

“Climb up… ah, wait. Let me help you up.”

“Huh? No, you really don’t have to.”

Before I could even resist, the Hero swiftly stepped down from the white horse, intertwined his hands around my arms, and lifted me effortlessly.

I awkwardly grabbed the reins while flailing around and finally managed to get on.

“…I could have climbed up myself.”

“Sorry, sorry. Next time I’ll grab your hand to help you up.”

Honestly, I couldn’t climb up by myself.

That horse was as big as its owner, meaning I couldn’t even get my foot in the stirrup.

In the end, I had no choice but to sit there like a child with my feet not reaching the ground and awkwardly swaying.

“Whoops.”

Then the Hero lightly jumped back onto the horse.

“Huh? Why do I have to be in front?”

“Then where should I put you?”

Isn’t it supposed to be behind? It felt like I was tied up with his arms holding the reins in this position.

With such a big shoulder and torso, it felt like I was trapped inside an impenetrable prison.

“Hmm.”

“If it’s uncomfortable, just let me know?”

“I’m fine.”

‘It’s not the position but the three gazes behind me that are uncomfortable.’

I was nervously trying to ignore the three following girls.

No matter how big the horse was, the space was limited, and the horse’s movement meant my body had no choice but to press against the Hero.

‘This won’t do.’

Trying hard to ignore them, I pulled out my pen to continue my research.

To not affect the Hero or the horse, I also took out some paper and began scratching out words.

“Are you researching?”

“Yes.”

“What kind of research?”

“You probably wouldn’t understand even if I explained.”

“Ha ha ha… that’s true, but I’m just curious what you’re doing.”

“It’s a gravity reduction spell.”

“Gravity…?”

“In simple terms, if you attach it to the Hero’s shoes, he can jump higher or fall slower.”

“That sounds amazing….”

“I know.”

I heard a chuckle from above, looked up, and saw the Hero smiling at me.

I had just stated a fact, so I couldn’t figure out what was so funny.

Time kept flowing, and eventually, the first night approached.

“I think we’ll arrive by morning. Let’s set up camp here tonight.”

“Sounds good!”

“Do you want me to take first watch tonight?”

After enjoying Ariya’s delicious cooking, the four of us diligently set up tents and a campfire.

As I watched, I quickly set up a door connected to my lab at the corner of the campsite.

“I’ll be sleeping over there.”

“There? Huh? A door?”

“What is that…?”

What could it be? It’s my sweet research lab.

It has a bed inside, so I can just sleep there.

“Wow, wow….”

The Saint showed a vague reaction and clapped her hands.

Meanwhile, Rapirie and Serelin turned away with somewhat sullen expressions.

Lastly, the Hero… was awkwardly folding up another tent he was about to set up.

‘Did he actually want to make one for me?’

The Hero had already finished making his tent.

The other heroines had set theirs up too, leaving only mine unbuilt.

“Wait a moment.”

I hurriedly entered the lab before any of them could misunderstand further.

Then, I tightly gripped four keys in my hand and came back out.

“Here, take this.”

“Huh?”

“Then turn the key at a suitable spot in the air as if opening a door.”

Clunk.

As the Hero turned the key, a door appeared in the air.

As the other three heroines curiously turned their keys, brown wooden doors also materialized.

“It’s a trial version I made, but it can be used.”

These four keys in their hands were a result of many trials and errors to fit my lab into a pocket space.

Though smaller than the lab, these keys provided a small one-room-sized space that can fit people and equipment.

“If you’d like, you can sleep in there. There’s basic furniture and magical tools for washing, so feel free to use them. Ah, but if you prefer sleeping outside…”

“That’s impossible!”

“Thank you!”

“Thank you!”

The three heroines replied almost instantly, bringing their bags and entering.

Well, with a simple bed inside, sleeping there shouldn’t be a major issue.

Finally, for the Hero.

“…I’ll make good use of it. Thank you, Rui.”

“Not at all.”

He thanked me and vanished through the door.

As I looked at the four doors now appearing in mid-air, I spread some defense magic around before entering my own sleeping area.

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