I was Thrown into an Unfamiliar Manga

August 10, 2017.
Friday, 8 a.m.

On a normal day, I’d be finishing my morning workout and eating breakfast at the restaurant by now.
But right now, I was outside.
Not by choice—by force.

“Fufu, I feel relieved because you agreed to help, Yu-seong-kun.”
Maria-san, sitting next to me as she drove a white mid-sized sedan, said that with a smile.
“You even prepared all the costumes for me… It didn’t feel polite to refuse.”

Maria-san chuckled softly.
“I thought of you the moment I saw your cameo in that drama The Blue. There’s no one better than you to play the role of ‘Conqueror Baou.’”
“Conqueror Baou?”
I tilted my head at the unfamiliar name.

“Oh my, you don’t know? He’s a character from Last Fantasy 7. I guess it’s a bit too old now?”
I froze when I heard Last Fantasy 7.
And for good reason—Last Fantasy 7 came out over twenty years ago.

“Anyway, that character is really tall and muscular, so it was hard to find anyone who ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) could fit the role. I never tried to do it before, but the moment I saw you, I knew you were perfect.”
Well, at least I understood why she recruited me.
But still—

“Rika’s coming too, right?”
Rika suddenly stuck her head out from the back seat.
“Ryu-chan! Today I’m Mama’s watchdog! If I’m not here, Mama might go wild!”

“What’s that supposed to mean? What do you take your mother for?”
I glanced at the two of them bickering and then looked out the window.
Something told me today was going to be… eventful.

***
Comiket.
Short for Comic Market.

One of the world’s largest doujinshi events, Comic Market is held twice a year—in mid-August and late December.
The summer event is called Natsu Comi, the winter one Fuyu Comi. The one we were attending was the summer Comiket, C92.
The “C” stands for Comic Market, and the number 92 indicates that this was the 92nd event to be held.

Considering that it used to be held three times a year in the past and now twice, that number spoke volumes about how long its history was.
As we headed to Tokyo Big Sight, the venue for C92, I skimmed through a wiki page on my phone. The realization that this was my first time ever going to Comiket hit me, and I asked Maria-san,
“Which day are we attending?”
“The second day. Auntie’s been busy, so today’s the only day I could make time.”

“I see.”
I was relieved it wasn’t the third day.
According to the wiki, the third day is overwhelmingly male-oriented, packed with doujin booths, and is by far the most crowded.

Just imagining being squeezed in a sardine-can crowd made me nauseous.
I’m not a fan of crowds; if I’d been told to wait outside for hours, I probably would’ve gone home halfway through.
Thankfully, cosplayers had a certain privilege.

“Early admission?”
“That’s right. Cosplayers can enter early, from 7:30 to 9 a.m., to use the changing rooms.”
“Ohh…”

Definitely felt like a sweet deal.
Regular attendees have to wait in line for hours, but cosplayers can skip most of that.
“Ah, we’re almost there.”

I turned my head when she said that.
In the distance stood Tokyo Big Sight.
Its futuristic design looked like two upside-down pyramids stacked on top of each other, standing as a landmark in the area.

The parking lot in front was already packed with people waiting to get in.
“Wow. There are so many people.”
Maria-san smiled.
“Comiket attendance exceeds a million every year. That’s about 100 to 150 thousand people per day.”

As expected of the world’s largest doujinshi event—those numbers were on a whole other level.
Maria-san’s white sedan pulled into a paid parking lot near Tokyo Big Sight.
After smoothly parking, she turned to Rika and me.

“Alright, let’s get out.”
I stepped out immediately and stretched my arms.
Stuffing my large frame into a car for 30 minutes had left no part of me uncramped.

As I loosened up, Maria-san opened the trunk and pulled out something you’d expect to see at an airport—a large travel suitcase.
Actually, three of them.
She handed one handle each to Rika and me.

“Mama, what is this?”
“I prepared one for you just in case. Ordered it custom-made from someone I know.”
“I told you, I quit cosplaying after middle school!”

“Oh? Then you’re planning to wait alone in that long line over there?”
Maria-san gestured toward the massive queue stretching across the parking lot.
“Ugh!”

Rika clamped her mouth shut with a frustrated look.
Clearly, she didn’t want to wait alone for hours.
“Fine! But only this once! I’m only doing this to keep an eye on Mama so she doesn’t do anything weird to Ryu-chan!”

“My, my, listen to this girl. People will think I’m really some villainous mother if you keep talking like that.”
Maria-san chuckled, clearly winning this round, while Rika fumed silently.
From an outsider’s perspective, Maria-san had clearly won, but for the sake of peace between the two, I kept quiet.

“Alright, let’s go. We need to get there early enough to finish makeup in time.”
Maria-san started walking toward the crosswalk first.
I glanced at Rika, still sulking, and reluctantly followed, dragging the suitcase behind me.

***
“Wow… So many people.”
It had looked impressive from afar, but up close, the crowd was overwhelming.

Especially on the second day, since most of the doujinshi sold were women-oriented or general-audience works, the majority of the line was women.
Men weren’t absent, but the ratio seemed like 7:3.
“This is still on the lighter side. The third day is way worse,” Rika explained.

Hearing that only made this place feel more like a demon’s den.
We arrived around 8:20 a.m., nearly an hour after early admission had started, so we didn’t have to wait long before entering the changing rooms inside.
Maria-san explained before entering the women’s changing room with Rika.

“Change into the clothes inside the case first. Auntie will handle your makeup after. And if you don’t know how to wear the wig, just ask someone around you.”
“Got it.”
I reassured them, then rolled my suitcase into the men’s changing room.

Whoosh!
The moment I entered, I felt how stuffy it was.
Maybe because of last night’s rain, or just too many people crammed into one space, but it felt like a sauna.

I headed to a coin locker in the corner and opened my case.
Time to check out this so-called Conqueror Baou costume.
I’d only heard the name; never seen it in person.

Clunk!
“……”
And then I realized something.

If the character came from a 20-year-old game… the fashion sense was also stuck 20 years in the past.
I stared at the massive, thick shoulder pads in disbelief.
‘…I’m supposed to wear this?’

***
Once I finished changing into the Baou costume Maria-san had prepared, I had to admit—it was better quality than I expected.
Well, guess you get what you pay for.

The craftsmanship even looked better than my regular clothes.
I put on the red wig, then finally the huge horned helmet. Striking a pose in front of the mirror, I was… surprised.
It actually didn’t look bad.

No—
It looked really good.
I was basking in self-satisfaction when—

“It’s Conqueror Baou!”
“Look at that quality!”
“Those muscles! Did he train just for cosplay?”

People around me started murmuring.
But unlike usual, the looks they gave me weren’t filled with fear or intimidation.
There was admiration. Even excitement.

What was going on?
Still bewildered, I heard someone speak up.
“Um…”

I turned to see a man with a pink mohawk and a black mask with a skull mark, standing awkwardly.
“If it’s okay… can I take a photo with you?”
“Eh? Oh, sure.”

The man lit up and hurriedly pulled out his smartphone.
Click! Click!
Then, bowing deeply, he dashed out of the changing room.

‘Well… that was something.’
It all happened so fast, I was still dazed.
But I couldn’t deny—

It felt… good.
So this is why people cosplay?