I Was Possessed By An Unknown Manga

Despite a minor incident in the changing room, after changing into my full costume, I waited for the two of them at the agreed-upon location in the West Hall, first floor.

Unlike men, who just change clothes, it seemed women had much more to prepare, taking more time.

“Excuse me, may I take a photo with you?”

“What? Oh, sure. But I haven’t fully done my makeup yet.”

“Then I’ll take another one after you’ve done your makeup.”

“……”

And somehow, I kept getting requests for photos from passing people.

It was surprisingly popular, even though I hadn’t done my makeup yet.

Some even recognized me as a cameo from ‘The Chronicles of Youthful Blue’ and asked for my autograph.

Of course, since I wasn’t aspiring to be an actor, I politely declined and sent them on their way.

While waiting for Maria and Rika, the mother-daughter duo, I was playing a game on my phone.

“Ryu-chan! Did you wait long?”

Hearing that familiar voice, I reflexively looked up and was momentarily stunned.

“Rika?”

The reason I questioned her name was due to her completely changed appearance.

Her usual blonde hair and green eyes were nowhere to be seen; instead, she had black hair, and red eyes, and was wearing a gothic lolita dress with an eyepatch, resembling the cosplay I saw in her photo album.

Honestly, if it wasn’t a face I saw almost daily, I wouldn’t have recognized her immediately.

Especially since the ‘heart’ size had noticeably shrunk.

It seemed like she was wearing some kind of body-shaping underwear.

“I barely recognized you; you’ve changed so much.”

Hearing my sincere comment, Rika scratched the back of her head and giggled.

“Mom encouraged me to go all out if I was doing it anyway.”

She seemed to be in a better mood than earlier, which was a relief.

“Which character is that?”

“Oh, this is Samael’s costume from ‘Rondo of the Fallen Angels,’ an anime I liked in middle school. Specifically, it’s the version from the third season released this year.”

Despite her initial negativity, Rika happily explained the character she cosplayed.

Rika was definitely an otaku.

The type who didn’t care about others’ opinions when she was into her fandom.

“Yeah, yeah, that’s amazing.”

As I humored Rika with her enthusiastic explanation, I soon heard Maria’s voice.

“Hey, Rika. You’re troubling Ryu-seong.”

Hearing that, I turned my head and was surprised.

Maria, like Rika, had completely transformed in just that short time.

It was almost beyond cosplay; it was more like a disguise.

“Uh, Maria? That character is…”

“It’s LISA.”

“Yes?”

“My nickname as a cosplayer is LISA, so from now on, call me LISA, not Maria.”

Maria casually swept her almost-real-looking black wig over her shoulder as she spoke.

“Anyway, to answer your earlier question, this character’s name is Sophia. She’s the childhood friend of the protagonist, who gets kidnapped by Baoou in the middle of the game. In ‘Last Fantasy 7,’ the love triangle between the protagonists Theo, Sophia, and Baowu plays a significant part in the story.”

“I see.”

The game was so old, I had only heard of the name but never knew the content.

Still, I felt I got the gist of it.

Baoou probably ends up defeated by the protagonist and sadly lets go of the girl he likes.

It was like I had seen it all without actually watching it.

“Let’s get your makeup done quickly. We don’t have much time before the event officially starts.”

“Ah, yes.”

“Why don’t you sit here?”

I sat on the bench as directed by Maria… No, Lisa.

Lisa then opened her extraordinary makeup box, holding various makeup tools in her hands with a meaningful smile.

“It’ll be done soon, don’t worry.”

…Why did I suddenly feel uneasy?

---

“Is this really me?”

My face, transformed by Lisa’s expertise, felt completely different.

The use of eye shadow emphasized a deep and fierce look in my eyes with red makeup.

And the large scar across the bridge of my nose looked almost like a real wound.

“This almost feels like special effects makeup, doesn’t it?”

As I touched the scar on my nose in wonder, Lisa cautioned me sternly.

“Don’t touch it now. The makeup will get ruined if you sweat.”

“Ah, yes.”

Heeding Lisa’s warning, I quickly withdrew my hand from my nose and decided to just admire it with my eyes.

My reflection on the large glass wall.

Even without makeup, I thought the cosplay was quite complete, but now it felt like the game character had literally jumped into reality.

Although I didn’t know this character until I searched on Wiki today, having the full set definitely sparked my interest.

If this was what I thought, what would others think?

Already, several cosplayers passing by were sneaking glances at me.

Noticing this, the observant Lisa teasingly commented.

“Ryu-seong, you’re quite popular.”

“…Don’t tease me.”

As I said that and averted my gaze, Lisa said, “Are you shy? You have a surprisingly cute side,” and smiled brightly.

Anyway, now that all three of us were ready, all that was left was to wait for Comiket to open.

There was a passage connecting the West Hall to the East Hall here, so as soon as the doors opened, the plan was to rush to the booths of the desired authors.

“So, Yu-seong, if there’s something you want to buy, it’s best to check it in advance. Popular authors’ books sell out quickly.”

Even hearing that…

The second day was mainly for female-oriented and general audiences, so there wasn’t much for me to buy.

“If there’s nothing to buy, let’s look around anyway. You might find something you want.”

“Understood.”

I decided to follow the advice of Lisa, who was older.

If we took a round of each booth, we would find something, right?

As we laughed and chatted, about 30 minutes passed, and the doors of Tokyo Big Sight officially opened.

“Let’s run!”

“What?”

“Hurry!”

It was literally an open run.

After changing into cosplay outfits, all the cosplayers waiting in front of the West Building started running towards the East Building.

And that included Maria and Rika as well.

I started running with them, not knowing why.

---

Initially, the East Building was quiet due to the lack of people, but by the time we finished buying what we wanted, it was already crowded.

“Wow, there are so many people.”

And overwhelmingly female.

It wasn’t that there were no men, but today, they seemed relatively fewer.

And throughout the venue, there were quite a few circles selling BL or Yaoi-type doujinshi targeting specific tastes.

This was what was commonly referred to as fujoshi tastes.

“But isn’t there any age restriction here? There are somewhat risqué images hanging as banners.”

“Oh, that? Usually, if you report it to the organizers, they will take action. But the punishment is often light.”

“It seems they do take some action, at least.”

“If they didn’t do at least that, they wouldn’t deserve the entrance fee, right?”

Everything she said made sense.

Having bought everything we aimed for, we left the East Building and headed towards the cosplay plaza near the West Building.

It was kind of a rule that cosplayers participating in Comiket could only interact in the cosplay plaza.

“Ah, Yu-seong. I have a surprise gift for you.”

“What is it?”

“Wait a moment, and you’ll see.”

Lisa said that, winked, and then made a phone call.

Soon, a van drove into the parking lot, where people were lined up.

Wondering, I stared blankly as a foreign man who got out of the van conversed fluently in English with Maria.

They seemed to be friends.

Then, the foreign man took out a long box from the back seat of the car.

Thud!

He put it down on the ground. The wooden box made a heavy sound.

“Yu-seong, open it yourself.”

At this point, even I, who wasn’t interested, became curious about the gift Lisa had prepared.

Creak!

Finally, carefully opening the wooden box, inside was a large broadsword.

It was so large, sturdy, and crudely made that calling it a broadsword almost seemed an understatement.

It was almost like a mace.

“Behold the Demonic Sword, Barisada! I’ve created the beloved sword of the Conquering King Baoou in a life-size 1:1 scale!”

Honestly, this was unbearable.

It was every man’s dream.

I felt like King Arthur pulling Excalibur, lifting the huge broadsword from the box with both hands.

The grip felt so natural in my hand, as if I had been using it for a long time.

Then, a sudden concern crossed my mind.

“Is it okay to possess a sword like this under the sword possession law?”

“It’s okay since the blade isn’t sharpened.”

Lisa said, and then she cheerfully smiled and gave a thumbs up.

With the GO sign given, I once again savored the overwhelming sensation provided by the life-size broadsword.