Implement a node server without using Express.js

He used expressjs and his issue is different from yours. You are not trying to use Express.js you want use Incognito instead.

pls help me

I think its time you took this conversation to the Amethyst Network and since it uses Ultraviolet proxy as its primary proxy method (which is buggy - will make pages not even load) I would also recommend you just run SSG/SSR with Express.JS. There are several node fameworks supported out of the box which are more robust than incognito - AdonisJS, LoopbackJS etc

I also realized I don’t have an .htaccess file. Do I need that?

Yes if you want to force ssl or www redirection