The crowds at Tokyo International Exhibition Center surged like waves.
The clamor, the clicking of shutters, and various anime songs playing in the background intertwined together, creating a massive celebration belonging to the 2D world.
Fujiwara Ai shielded Yotsuya Miko while weaving through the dense crowd.
Even though he wore both a mask and a hat, his 80 points of charisma still allowed the passive skill [Succubus Aura (Pseudo)] to function terrifyingly well.
Whether they were cosplayers or ordinary visitors, girls passing by would subconsciously glance toward him several extra times.
Some bold succubus cosplayers even deliberately tried brushing against his body.
“Tsk.”
Fujiwara Ai frowned slightly and stepped aside, avoiding a passerby who pretended to stumble into his arms.
He seriously could not understand why this was still happening even after covering half his face.
Miko clung tightly to his arm, her entire body practically pressed against him.
Although the Pure Heart and Few Desires Tea had stabilized her emotions considerably, the instinctive reaction toward her “territory being invaded” still left her body tense.
“Um…
Ai kun.”
She raised her voice slightly over the noisy surroundings.
“There are too many people here…
should we find somewhere to rest first?”
“Let’s deliver the item first.”
Fujiwara Ai shook the large bag containing Marin’s cosplay outfit.
“We’ll leave after that.”
“Okay…”
Miko nodded obediently, calming down slightly.
She quietly looked toward Fujiwara Ai’s side profile.
Even though most of his face remained hidden beneath the mask, those exposed eyes still appeared deep and captivating.
Actually, she didn’t dislike crowded places like this.
Large crowds carried strong Yang energy, so those filthy things hiding in dark corners usually wouldn’t dare approach easily.
But compared to that, she would much rather remain alone together with Fujiwara Ai inside a quiet enclosed space.
Like his apartment.
Thinking of that, Miko suddenly remembered something.
“By the way, Ai kun.”
She asked seemingly casually.
“If people found out I stayed at your house last night…
would that be bad?”
Fujiwara Ai paused before lowering his gaze toward her.
“Doesn’t your family care?”
That was something he had wanted to ask for a while now.
For a girl, staying outside overnight was a huge matter even if it involved hiding from ghosts.
Yesterday had been too chaotic for him to think carefully about it, but now that he reflected on it, Miko’s family situation seemed strangely unrestricted.
Miko froze slightly before forcing out a bitter smile.
“My mom went to Hokkaido on a business trip recently.
She won’t be back for another half month.”
She lowered her head while staring at the tips of her shoes.
“As for Dad…”
Her voice softened considerably while a trace of sadness flickered through her amber eyes.
“Dad…
isn’t here anymore.”
Fujiwara Ai’s heart stirred slightly.
In the original story, Miko’s father had indeed passed away and remained within the house as a guardian spirit.
As for her younger brother Kyosuke, although he was an obvious sis-con, he was still just a kid, and apparently he had recently left for a baseball training camp.
In other words, the current Yotsuya Miko truly lived alone inside that empty and haunted house.
“So…”
Miko slowly raised her head, her amber eyes carrying a pleading look.
“Right now…
I only have Ai kun.”
“If even Ai kun doesn’t want me anymore…
then I’ll really have nowhere to go.”
This wasn’t merely emotional manipulation.
For a girl capable of seeing terrifying spirits, facing an empty room and unknown horrors every night by herself was enough to drive anyone insane.
Fujiwara Ai’s apartment wasn’t simply a refuge for her.
It was her only remaining “home.”
Fujiwara Ai quietly looked at her.
Although the mask concealed his expression, his originally cold black eyes now carried traces of helplessness and faint indulgence.
“Understood.”
He raised his hand and gently ruffled her hair through the hat.
“As long as you’re obedient.”
“Mhm!
I’ll definitely be obedient!”
Miko instantly revived with energy, the gloom on her face swept away immediately.
She tightly hugged his arm while secretly rubbing against it slightly more.
While the two remained immersed inside their strangely warm atmosphere, a sudden commotion erupted not far ahead.
“Wow!
What character is that?
The resemblance is incredible!”
“Is it an original character?
That gloomy atmosphere is perfect!”
“Little sister!
Look at the camera over here!”
“That trembling acting is too realistic!”
A large group of photographers crowded tightly together while flashes continuously exploded toward the center.
And standing in the middle of the crowd was a pink figure trembling uncontrollably.
Goto Hitori.
She wasn’t even wearing cosplay.
She still wore her signature pink tracksuit with a large guitar bag strapped behind her.
But inside a Comic Convention filled with bizarre outfits, her appearance was instead mistaken as some hardcore introvert themed cosplay.
Combined with her body trembling violently, her pale expression, and the way her social anxiety nearly made her foam at the mouth, ignorant passersby found her performance unbelievably convincing.
“Uuuu…
help…
why did things turn out like this…”
Bocchi crouched on the ground while hugging her head tightly, her entire existence practically collapsing.
She had only wanted to find Master…
no, Fujiwara san.
Because he hadn’t replied to any of the messages she sent last night, she worried she had annoyed him too much and ended up hated, so she came to the Comic Convention hoping to encounter him by chance.
Actually, it was because she saw Fujiwara Ai’s location post online.
As a result, the moment she entered the venue, enthusiastic photographers immediately surrounded her after mistaking her for a cosplayer.
“Master…
Master save me…”
She screamed desperately inside her heart while tears gathered in her eyes.
Just as Bocchi’s SAN value was about to completely shatter and she prepared to disintegrate into pink dust and scatter away with the wind.
A slender hand suddenly reached through the crowd and grabbed the strap of her guitar bag.
Then pulled hard.
“Let’s go.”
A cool and low voice sounded directly above her head.
Bocchi instantly raised her head.
What entered her vision was that familiar figure wearing a black mask and baseball cap who still looked absurdly handsome despite hiding most of his face.
Fujiwara Ai.
“M…
Master!!”
Because of excessive excitement and relief, she accidentally shouted out the title she always used inside her heart.
The surrounding photographers froze briefly.
“Master?
Is this some kind of roleplay setting?”
“Could they be master and servant characters?”
“Wow!
That guy is insanely handsome too!
Is he her partner?”
Fujiwara Ai’s eyebrow twitched violently.
Ignoring the surrounding gossip completely, he grabbed Bocchi’s guitar bag with one hand before dragging her out of the crowd like a frightened little chick.
Although Yotsuya Miko felt extremely unhappy seeing this pink-haired girl appear again, after noticing Fujiwara Ai’s expression of “I’m handling a problem,” she forcibly endured her irritation while helping block several photographers attempting to chase after them.
The three finally escaped into a relatively quiet resting area.
“Huff…
huff…”
Bocchi collapsed onto a bench while panting heavily as though she had just completed a marathon.
“I…
I’m saved…”
Her teary eyes looked toward Fujiwara Ai like he was some divine savior while her hands pressed tightly together.
“Thank you, Master!
If Master hadn’t saved me…
I would have suffered complete social death under hundreds of cameras today…”
“Stop.”
Fujiwara Ai raised his hand, interrupting her emotional confession.
After removing his hat and casually fixing his messy hair, he stared coldly toward Bocchi with his dark eyes.
“What did you just call me?”
“Eh?”
Bocchi froze before finally realizing what she had said.
Her face immediately turned bright red.
“S sorry!
I…
I got nervous and accidentally said it…”
She waved her hands frantically while trying to explain, only making herself sound more suspicious.
“I’ve always called you that inside my head…
no!
I mean…
Fujiwara san is just too amazing, like a real Master…
aaaah!
What am I even saying?!”
Fujiwara Ai sighed helplessly.
How exactly did this girl’s brain function?
“Say that title again.”
He leaned down slightly toward Bocchi, his voice low and dangerous.
“And I’ll throw you back into that crowd.”
Fujiwara Ai, you devil.
“Eeeek!!!”
Bocchi immediately shrieked while tightly covering her mouth with both hands and shaking her head desperately.
That horrifying scene from earlier…
Just imagining it already felt like the end of her life.
“I…
I won’t!
Definitely won’t!
Fu…
Fujiwara san!”
She shouted while trembling violently, finally correcting herself properly.
“Good.”
Fujiwara Ai straightened back up before nodding with satisfaction.
Although this kind of fear based education method seemed somewhat inhumane, it worked absurdly well against creatures like Bocchi who only learned through trauma.
Right then, Fujiwara Ai’s phone rang.
It was a call from Kitagawa Marin.
“Hello?”
Fujiwara Ai answered calmly.
“Fujiwara san!
Where are you?
I’ve already changed clothes!
Hurry and come to the East Hall 3 dressing room entrance!”
Marin’s excited voice exploded from the other end while chaotic background noise echoed loudly behind her.
“Coming now.”
Fujiwara Ai hung up before looking toward the two girls beside him.
One was a socially anxious guitarist still trembling from his scolding.
The other was a partially stabilized yandere whose mental state remained dangerously unstable.
And waiting ahead was a passionate gyaru preparing to enter the battlefield.
This team composition looked less like a normal outing and more like Journey to the West.
“Let’s go.”
Fujiwara Ai picked up the large bag containing the cosplay outfit and walked ahead first.
Miko immediately followed while tightly hugging his left arm.
Bocchi hesitated briefly before timidly trailing behind them while maintaining a safe distance like some mistreated little wife.
Several minutes later.
At the entrance of East Hall 3’s dressing rooms.
A large crowd had already gathered there.
Standing in the center was a girl with long purplish black hair wearing an exquisitely detailed black maid outfit while confidently posing for cameras.
Kitagawa Marin.
The character she cosplayed this time was Kuroe Shizuku from Slippery Girls 2.
The black Gothic maid dress with its intricate lace details, combined with Marin’s naturally curvaceous figure and perfect makeup, made her appear as though the character had stepped directly out of the game itself.
Especially the waist section that had originally risked bursting apart due to sizing issues.
After Fujiwara Ai’s repairs, not only did it fit perfectly, but it also emphasized her figure even more attractively. Enjoying the story? Read on at novelping.com.
“Wow!
That Kuroe Shizuku cosplay is perfect!”
“That waistline is insane!
The craftsmanship on those clothes is amazing!”
“The cosplayer herself is gorgeous too!
Is she a newcomer?”
The surrounding crowd and photographers continuously praised her.
Although Marin maintained a professional smile externally, her eyes nervously searched through the crowd for someone specific.
Until finally.
She spotted that tall masked figure.
“Fujiwara san!”
Marin’s eyes instantly lit up.
Completely forgetting that photographers still surrounded her, she lifted her skirt slightly and rushed directly over.
She resembled a Golden Retriever spotting its owner.
The crowd subconsciously parted to create a path.
Marin rushed directly toward Fujiwara Ai intending to hug him, but after noticing the gloomy black-haired girl beside him and the pink creature shrinking behind him, she abruptly slammed on the brakes.
“Ahem…
um…
the clothes!”
She awkwardly pointed toward the bag in Fujiwara Ai’s hand while trying to change the topic.
“Thank you for bringing them over!
And thank you again for fixing the outfit yesterday!
Everyone says it’s unbelievably accurate!”
Fujiwara Ai handed over the bag calmly.
“It’s nothing.”
His gaze naturally swept across Marin’s outfit.
Thanks to [God-level Tailoring (Temporary)], he could clearly see not only the perfection of the clothes themselves but also the enormous effort Marin had poured into recreating the character faithfully.
“The wig styling is good.
The contact lens color also matches perfectly.”
He gave an extremely professional evaluation.
“Hehe~ right?
Right?!”
After receiving praise, Marin smiled even more brightly.
She leaned closer toward him while completely ignoring the murderous aura radiating from Miko nearby.
“Hey, Fujiwara san, since you’re already here…
why don’t we walk around together?
That photographer is still waiting for us!”
“Us?”
Miko suddenly spoke.
Her voice sounded soft and calm, carrying the terrifying stillness before a storm.
“Excuse me…
classmate.”
She smiled toward Marin, though absolutely no warmth existed inside that smile.
“Ai kun came here with me.”
“And besides, he doesn’t enjoy taking photos.”
The battlefield officially opened.
Marin froze briefly before turning toward Miko.
As a gyaru with extremely sharp instincts, she instantly smelled the thick gunpowder scent lingering in the air.
“Eh?
Are you his girlfriend?”
She bluntly asked without hesitation.
Miko nearly answered “yes” immediately.
But Fujiwara Ai spoke first.
“She’s my neighbor.”
He calmly pulled his arm free from Miko’s grasp without drawing attention.
“And also a friend.”
“A friend, huh…”
Marin thoughtfully nodded before suddenly smiling even more brightly.
“Then there isn’t any problem!
Since we’re all friends, let’s all hang out together!
The more people, the more fun!”
After saying that, she even enthusiastically grabbed Miko’s other hand.
“Hello!
I’m Kitagawa Marin!
What’s your name?
That purple dress looks super good on you!
It has this…
gloomy but mysterious beauty!”
Miko: “…”
She stared silently at this girl radiating sunlight itself and suddenly found herself unsure how to react.
Was this the legendary Light Attribute attack?
For someone like her who spent years living inside fear and darkness, this kind of straightforward warmth felt even harder to deal with than evil spirits.
Meanwhile, Bocchi standing furthest behind silently shrank herself smaller again.
‘Scary…’
‘That blonde girl is way too dazzling…
and that black-haired girl is terrifying…’
‘Is this a battlefield?
Is this the world normies live in…?’
‘Uuuu…
Fujiwara san…
save me…’
Fujiwara Ai looked toward the three girls with completely different personalities who somehow gathered together around him and immediately felt his temples begin throbbing painfully.
The side effects of 80 charisma truly deserved their reputation.
This wasn’t a Comic Convention anymore.
This was obviously a divine tribulation site.
“Enough.”
Fujiwara Ai sighed before interrupting the increasingly dangerous atmosphere.
“Let’s leave first.
There are too many people here.”
The crowd surrounding them continued growing larger.
If they stayed much longer, they might actually end up becoming tomorrow’s headlines.
He turned around before walking deeper into the venue.
Behind him, the three girls glanced at each other.
Although each carried entirely different thoughts, all of them still followed after him simultaneously.