I was Thrown into an Unfamiliar Manga

There’d been a small incident in the changing room, but after finishing getting dressed, I waited for the two of them in the first-floor hall of the West Wing, as we’d agreed beforehand.
Unlike men, who are done once they change clothes, women apparently need a lot more time to get ready.
“Um, can I take a picture with you?”

“Huh? Oh, sure. But I haven’t even done the makeup yet.”
“Then I’ll take another one after you finish the makeup.”
“……”

And just like that, I kept getting asked for photos by people passing by.
To be this popular even without makeup—honestly, I didn’t expect it.
Some even recognized me as the guy who made a cameo in The Blue and asked for my autograph.

Of course, since I wasn’t aiming to be an actor, I ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ politely declined with some excuse.
As I waited for Maria-san and Rika, playing games on my phone…
“Ryu-chan! Did you wait long?”
At the familiar voice, I instinctively lifted my head—and froze for a moment.

“Rika?”
I called her name like a question because her appearance had changed completely.
Her usual blonde hair and green eyes were gone; instead, she had black hair, red eyes, an eyepatch, and was wearing a gothic lolita outfit that looked exactly like the cosplay photos I’d seen in her old photo album.

Honestly, if I didn’t see her face almost every day, I wouldn’t have recognized her.
Above all, her “size” had… shrunk significantly.
She was probably wearing some kind of body-shaping undergarment.

“You look so different I didn’t recognize you at first.”
When I said that honestly, Rika scratched the back of her head with an embarrassed laugh.
“Hehe, Mama hyped me up, saying I might as well go all out if I’m doing this.”

At least she seemed to be in a better mood than before, which was good.
“What character is that?”
“Oh, this? It’s Samael from Rondo of the Fallen Angel. It’s the Season 3 version that came out this year.”

She’d been so against this at first, yet now she happily explained everything about her cosplay character.
As expected, Rika was an otaku—
And the type who didn’t care at all about other people’s stares when indulging in her hobbies.
“Right, right. That’s impressive.”

As I nodded along to her flood of explanations, another voice chimed in.
“Rika, you’re bothering Yu-seong-kun.”
I turned my head and was shocked.
Just like Rika, Maria-san’s appearance had completely changed in that short time.

This was less cosplay and more like an actual disguise.
“Uh, Maria-san? That character is…?”
“LISA.”

“Excuse me?”
“My nickname as a cosplayer is LISA. So from now on, call me LISA, not Maria.”
She swept a surprisingly realistic black wig over her shoulder as she said that.

“Anyway, to answer your earlier question, this character’s name is Sophia. She’s the childhood friend of the protagonist who gets kidnapped by Conqueror Baou midway through the game. In Last Fantasy 7, the love triangle between Theo, Sophia, and Baou is a major part of the story.”
“I see.”
It was such an old game I’d only heard the name before, but I could guess the story.

Conqueror Baou probably loses to the protagonist and ends up letting go of the woman he loves.
Classic tragic rival vibes.
“Alright, there’s not much time left before opening, so let’s do your makeup quickly.”

“Ah, yes.”
“Then sit here.”
I followed Maria—no, LISA—and sat on a bench.

She opened an undeniably professional-looking makeup kit, picked up brushes in both hands, and gave me a meaningful smile.
“It’ll be done quickly, don’t worry.”
…Then why did I suddenly feel uneasy?

***
“Is this… me?”
The face LISA worked on looked like someone completely different.
The shading around my eyes made them look deeper, the reddish makeup emphasized a fierce gaze, and the large scar across the bridge of my nose looked real.

“This is practically special effects makeup.”
When I touched the scar on my nose in awe, LISA shot me a stern look.
“Uh-uh. If you get sweat or oil on it, the makeup will smudge. Don’t touch it.”

“Ah, right.”
I quickly pulled my hand back and just stared at my reflection.
In the glass wall, I almost looked like a game character brought to life.

Before makeup, I thought the cosplay looked decent, but now… it was on another level.
I hadn’t even known this character until I looked it up on a wiki this morning, but with the full set on, I couldn’t help feeling invested.
If I thought this looked good, what would others think?

Sure enough, some passing cosplayers were already stealing glances at me.
And of course, LISA noticed immediately and teased me.
“Yu-seong-kun’s a real crowd-puller.”

“…Please don’t tease me.”
When I looked away, LISA laughed. “You get embarrassed? That’s kind of cute.”
Anyway, with all three of us ready, all that was left was to wait for Comiket to officially open.

There was a passage connecting the West Wing to the East Wing, and the moment the doors opened, they planned to sprint straight to the target booth.
“So if there’s anything you want to buy, you’d better check in advance. Popular artists sell out fast.”
Even so…

Since today was focused on women-oriented and general-audience works, there wasn’t really anything I wanted.
“Then at least walk around. You might find something you didn’t expect to want.”
“…Alright.”

I decided to follow LISA’s advice. Maybe I’d find something interesting after doing a full loop around the booths.
While we chatted and laughed, about 30 minutes passed, and finally the doors of Tokyo Big Sight opened.
“Run!”

“Huh?”
“Hurry!”
It was a full-on open run.

The cosplayers waiting in front of the West Wing doors all bolted toward the East Wing.
Maria-san and Rika were no exception.
I didn’t understand, but I ran with them anyway.

***
At first, the East Wing wasn’t crowded, but by the time we’d bought everything on their list, it was already packed.
“Wow, there are so many people.”

The female-to-male ratio was overwhelming.
Men weren’t completely absent, but today they were clearly the minority.
And many circles were openly selling BL and yaoi doujinshi—definitely catering to fujoshi tastes.

“Isn’t there some kind of age restriction here? I see pretty suggestive stuff just hanging on signboards.”
“Oh, that? If you report it to the organizers, they’ll take care of it. Though the punishment’s basically a slap on the wrist.”
“Well, at least they do something.”

“They have to. Otherwise, they’d have no right to charge an entry fee.”
Hard to argue with that.
After buying everything on their list, we left the East Wing and headed for the cosplay plaza in the West Wing.

Apparently, it’s a rule that cosplayers can only interact in that designated area.
“Ah, Yu-seong-kun. I have a surprise for you.”
“Huh? What is it?”

“Wait and see.”
LISA winked and made a phone call.
Soon after, a van drove into the parking lot where people were lined up.

I watched blankly as a foreign man got out and started chatting fluently in English with LISA.
From the looks of it, they were friends.
Then the man pulled a long wooden crate from the back of the van.

Thud!
The heavy sound when he set it down hinted at its weight.
“Yu-seong-kun, open it.”

At this point, even I was curious about what LISA had prepared.
Creak!
When I carefully opened the crate, inside was a massive greatsword.

No—calling it a greatsword was an understatement. It was huge, solid, and looked more like a warhammer.
“This is the Demon Sword Varisada! I made a full-scale 1:1 replica of Conqueror Baou’s weapon!”
Honestly, I couldn’t hold back.

This was a man’s ultimate dream.
Like King Arthur pulling Excalibur, I grabbed the massive sword with both hands and lifted it high.
The grip felt perfect, almost like I’d used it all my life.

Then a thought struck me.
“Is this even legal under the sword possession laws?”
“The blade isn’t sharpened, so it’s fine.”

LISA gave me a bright smile and a thumbs-up.
With that reassurance, I once again savored the thrill of holding a full-scale greatsword.