Tanaka-san Is Cuter Than the Main Heroine - Chapter 14: I’m Not the Main Heroine—I’m Just a Mob Character

Chapter 14: I’m Not the Main Heroine—I’m Just a Mob Character

Sorry for the sudden question, but—

What kind of dreams did you have as a kid?

Maybe you wanted to become a pro soccer player and compete on the world stage.

Or an idol, dazzling on TV screens across the nation.

Or maybe even a brilliant scholar who’d win the Nobel Prize someday.

Everyone probably had their own version of a big, sparkly dream.

Because back then, we all believed—without a hint of doubt—that we could become anything.

And of course… I was no exception.

“Su-chan’s so cute!”

“Sumika, you’re seriously adorable!”

“That outfit looks amazing on you. That’s my girl!”

“Dehehe, thanks everyone! Hey, hey—when I grow up, I wanna be a princess! Like, a main heroine kind of princess!”

Completely swept up by all the praise from my family, I actually believed I was cute.

So much so, I set my heart on a dream that was… way out of my league.

I started to sense the truth—just a little—

Sometime around fourth grade, right in the middle of my painfully awkward, overly dramatic puberty era.

“Tanaka, got a sec?”

“Uh, yeah, sure. What’s up?”

“Not here—can we talk over there instead?”

Who likes who.

Who started dating who.

It was around mid-autumn when whispers like that started drifting through the classroom.

That’s when it happened.

The most popular boy in our class—Matsukaze-kun—suddenly called out to me.

He led me to a quiet, empty gym.

And on the inside? I was freaking out with excitement.

Can you blame me?

Matsukaze-kun was basically a prince—handsome, cool, admired by every girl our age.

And now, maybe… just maybe… I was the one he liked.

Maybe I was finally about to become the princess.

The main heroine of my very own story.

My heart was pounding with the possibilities.

But reality?

Yeah—reality doesn’t care about your dreams.

“S-So… what did you want to talk about?”

“Hey… does Haruna-san have someone she likes right now?”

“Huh? My sister…? You wanna know if my sister likes someone?”

Yup.

Turns out, the one Matsukaze-kun liked wasn’t me.

It was my big sister.

But really… that wasn’t surprising.

She was two years older—beautiful, smart, athletic, and always stood up for people.

The kind of person who could do everything, and still made room for others to shine.

Of course tons of guys admired her.

Of course she’d be the one people liked.

And honestly?

I was proud of her. I really was.

“As far as I know, she doesn’t like anyone right now.”

“Seriously!? Then—then do you know what kind of stuff she likes? Or what kind of guys she’s into!?”

“U-Um, well… let me think—”

So yeah, I was a little disappointed at the time—

But more than anything, it just… made sense.

I mean, of course Matsukaze-kun would like my sister.

She was amazing.

I couldn’t even be mad about it.

But that moment ended up being the start of something else.

After that, more and more boys started coming to me—

Not to talk to me, but to ask about her.

And every single time, it happened in some quiet, tucked-away corner—

Because, y’know, talking about crushes out loud during puberty is like social suicide.

“Thanks a ton, Sumika-chan.”

“Sure… Good luck, senpai…”

That made ten.

Ten guys.

Ten hopeful confessions.

All of them asking about my sister.

“…Haha. Guess I’m just not that charming, huh?”

After going through that same scene over and over, even I—the queen of oblivious—finally got the message loud and clear.

I wasn’t the beloved princess in the story.

She was.

My sister had always been the real heroine.

Not me.

“No, it’s okay. I mean… I’m her little sister, after all. And my super cute big sister always says I’m cute too. So it’s fine. Really. I can become a princess too… Once she graduates… I’m sure of it.”

Even so… I couldn’t let go of that dream so easily.

Pathetic as it was, I clung to the tiniest shred of hope—

That maybe, just maybe, a princess’s little sister could become a princess too.

But reality?

Reality was cruel.

After my sister graduated, the boys who used to be so kind to me slowly drifted away.

And before I realized it, the only people who helped me when I was in trouble were my girlfriends.

No one ever pulled me aside anymore.

No whispered questions.

No secret meetings behind the gym.

And just like that, my post-sister elementary school life came to a quiet end.

Then middle school started—

And people started talking to me again.

But not because of me.

It was just like before—because I was her little sister.

Some were just curious.

Wondering what kind of person the “younger sister of the amazing Haruna” was.

Others wanted insider info—things only family would know.

Some even flat-out asked me to help them get closer to her.

It was the kind of reality I already saw coming.

And the kind I couldn’t do anything to stop.

Honestly, it hurt.

I felt like I was going to shatter.

But I held on.

I kept telling myself—once my sister left this school too, finally, someone would look at me.

A prince would come for me.

So I pushed through that first year… clinging to that fragile little belief.

But what was waiting for me after that?

Was even worse.

“Hey, hey, Tanaka-san—can you introduce me to your friend, Fuyusara-san?”

“Tanaka-san, you’re friends with Fuyusara-san, right? Do you know what kind of stuff she likes?”

Yeah.

Back in elementary school, there was no one who could ever take my sister’s place.

But in middle school… someone like that did exist.

Her name was Reno Fuyusara.

We’d been in the same class since our first year, and she was one of the few people who actually understood the stuff I’d been quietly struggling with back then.

And when I saw it for myself—

That my friend, not my sister, had become the new princess of the school…

Something inside me just broke.

That was when I finally got it.

“Sumika!? I’m so sorry! I never meant to hurt you—this is all my fault!”

“No, it’s okay, Reno-chan. Please don’t apologize. But… I’m sorry too. I’m just… really tired.”

That’s when it finally sank in.

I was never the princess.

I wasn’t the main heroine.

I was just a side character. A background extra.

And being close to someone like them—that bright, dazzling dream—

That’s what made it so hard. So painful.

So in the end, the weak little me ran away.

I gave up on being the princess.

I gave up on the dream.

Author’s Note:

I, your humble author, am a hopeless sucker for stories where a girl with zero self-esteem slowly finds her confidence and blossoms into the absolute best main heroine ever.

(Yeah, yeah. I know. You totally saw this coming.)