I’m Not the Heroine

This was the first time I was facing the Emperor.
Until now, I had only known him through the original story or through the letters of Tania that I managed, reading about him in writing.

So, when I saw him in person, honestly, I couldn’t help but be surprised.

'He’s younger than I expected.'

I didn’t imagine him as an old man, but I had thought he would be in his late thirties or early forties.
Yet, the man sitting before us now looked to be around Aswell’s age.

'It feels like he just ascended the throne.'

However, in the original story, he had already been ruling the massive Empire for nearly a decade.
The fact that he had successfully governed such a vast land and people since a young age was a direct testament to his abilities.

"Your Majesty."

"Your Majesty."

"Your… Majesty…"

Aswell, Miara, and I all knelt and showed our respect.
Miara probably wanted to escape right then and there, but it seemed she realized there was no way out.

So, she glanced at Aswell and me before hesitantly adopting a kneeling posture.

"Rise."

The Emperor immediately motioned for us to rise, and we slowly stood to face him.
He had curly blonde hair and purple eyes.

A special bloodline that only the Emperor could possess.

His gaze swept over each of us, and when his eyes met mine, I felt a chill run down my spine.

'Is that power…?

Although not arrogant, the three of us here were among the strongest on the continent.
Yet, the Emperor’s gaze reduced even the might of the Hero Party to a mere breeze before a storm.

"Hero Aswell. And White Smith Louis."

The Emperor named Aswell and me.

"The reason I called you here is for the growth of the Hero Party. Will you accept?"

At the Emperor’s question, Aswell flinched slightly before replying.

"I will gladly accept Your Majesty’s grace."

"White Smith Louis. I have a question for you. Do you need support from the Imperial Palace?"

This time, the question was directed at me.
It seemed that the Emperor was willing to help, not just Aswell, but me as well.

However, unlike Aswell, it seemed he had not yet decided what help he would offer.

"I would like to receive support for the research I am currently conducting, including research materials and supplies from the Mage Tower and the Imperial Palace."

"Do so."

Finally, the Emperor’s gaze turned to Miara, behind Aswell and me.

"Miara Rimfelt of the Star of the Highlands."

"…!!"

The Emperor had already figured out her identity and name.
Realizing this, Miara’s voice trembled.

"Y-Your Majesty…"

She, not being an Empire citizen, couldn’t help but use the honorifics naturally.

She must have known as well.
No matter how much Aswell and I accepted her into the Hero Party, her life was now in the hands of the Emperor.

"…"

The Emperor remained silent for a moment.
Then, he spoke a single sentence.

"Since the Hero and White Smith have accepted you, I will delay your execution."

"…!!"

Clang.

Two bright blue blades suddenly appeared, tightening around Miara’s neck.
In the time we hadn’t noticed, two Imperial Palace guards had positioned themselves to kill her.

"…Hmph."

Miara gasped for breath, but she forced herself to remain silent.

"However, if the entire Hero Party does not consent, I will carry out my orders. So, make sure you win their hearts."

I couldn’t help but think the Emperor had shown an immense amount of generosity.

'The Star of the Highlands was a troublesome faction.'

Even the Emperor, who could influence entire countries, had only cast a brief glance at the Star of the Highlands.
For him, such a faction could easily be eliminated, especially since the Hero Party, which was hailed as the hope of the Empire, had accepted her.

"Tania Astraea’s [Gate] will follow the knights."

With that, our meeting with the Emperor ended.
He slowly disappeared behind the curtains of his throne, shrouded in darkness.

Three knights led us onward, and before long, we were walking down a corridor that revealed the inner scenery of the Empire.

'How many spells did I encounter during this short walk…?
High-level teleportation, various defensive spells, detection, traps…
Honestly, if we were given the right to freely inspect just one hallway, we could probably last a week uncovering everything.

Clink.

The knights led us to a small building with three rooms and a single door.
This seemed to be where we would stay, a space connected to Tania’s estate.

Once the three of us were inside, the knights disappeared, and we could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"Phew…"

"Aswell, do you think the Emperor is scary?"

"Hm? Yeah… He didn’t get angry at me, but it’s still not easy. The aura and energy he gives off…"

"I see. Miara is… Ah."

I wanted to ask Miara for her thoughts, but I couldn’t.
Before I could, Miara lost her grip on her mental state.

I quickly placed my finger on her nose to check if she was still breathing, then picked her up and carried her to one of the rooms.

"I’ll carry her."

"Huh? Ah, okay…"

I didn’t feel the emotions one might expect when carrying a heroine, but perhaps it was fate.
As I watched Aswell carry Miara, I felt a slight pang in my chest.

'It’s okay. I’m just a bit disappointed, that’s all…'

"I don’t want to see you struggling."

"Ugh…!"

Wait, I take it back!

Caught off guard by the unexpected response, I quickly threw Miara onto the bed and quickly escaped.

Anyway, we were starting our life in the Imperial Palace today.

***

The first thing I had to do was talk to Tania.

Knock, knock.

I knocked on the grand, old-fashioned door, and soon, the familiar sight greeted me along with a burst of light.

"Oh, you must have finally arrived?"

Tania, sitting elegantly with a cup of tea, and Nia, trembling in front of her.

"Nia?"

"Ah, sister...!"

As soon as I entered the mansion, Niabella ran toward me, crying uncontrollably.
I couldn’t help but wonder how much she had been reprimanded, considering she was the mage of the Hero Party and still came running, crying like this.

"How harshly did they treat her...? Huh?"

But when I felt Niabella’s mana as she clung to me, I couldn’t help but marvel.

'Her mana flows much smoother than before.'

'It’s more refined, perhaps.'

To be more accurate, it could be said that her mana manipulation and magical manifestations, up until now, had been somewhat jagged and inefficient.
Though there were more efficient methods, she hadn’t been able to find the one that fit her body well, resulting in much wasted mana during spellcasting.

I had given her a temporary solution to this, but it was never a permanent fix, and there was no real breakthrough.

However, during the roughly two weeks I had been away, Tania had managed to accomplish this.

'Or rather, Niabella did it herself.'

The genius who had been touched by the eccentric genius had made a lot of progress.
It was likely that her magical abilities and scale were even greater than what had been shown in the original story.

"Nia, good job."

"Whew... sniff...!"

"Still, from what I can see, there’s progress. How did you do it?"

As I patted Niabella’s head, letting her vent her emotions, I asked Tania.

"It’s simple. I helped her bring out her strengths."

"Strengths?"

"Survival."

"......"

"I threw her out of the mansion and into the outside world. She did the rest on her own."

Niabella had lived through many hardships, facing discrimination, and as a result, her survival instinct had been highly activated.
Tania hadn’t given her direct magical training; instead, she strengthened that survival instinct.

'Putting aside the fact that she didn’t talk about Niabella’s past, can that really work...?

I understood the idea of focusing on enhancing one’s strengths rather than eliminating weaknesses.
But it wasn’t like throwing a cub off a cliff to make it grow stronger, and yet here she was, thrown out of a floating mansion.

What was even more surprising was that this method had actually worked.

'Her muscles feel more toned now.'

I could feel the difference in Niabella’s arms and back, where there was now muscle I hadn’t noticed before.
And conversely, the soft flesh that used to be there had been replaced by a more healthy and refined figure.

"Do you think my training method is strange?"

"It’s extremely strange."

"Hahaha! That’s too much!"

Tania laughed, clutching her stomach, then wiped the corner of her eyes and asked.

"So, where’s the hero?"

"He’s probably still training alone since the Emperor hasn’t called for him yet. I came to check on Nia’s progress and get some research advice from you."

"Hmm... Well, if my beloved little sister needs help, of course, I’ll help! What do you need?"

"Honestly, it’s a bit annoying..."

Tania smiled gently and leaned closer to whisper in my ear.

"By the way, you’ll have to prepare well."

"…?"

"Otherwise, the Star of the Highlands’ cat won’t be able to join the Hero Party."

Was she talking about Miara?

Though she didn’t directly say so, it seemed she knew.
I simply nodded at her unnecessary concern.

Then, my attention was caught by the three doors in front of me.

I couldn’t help but wonder what kind of life they were leading now.

...

Ching!

"Ugh...!"

"Get up. And swing again."