Vol 1 Chapter 17 – Lunch with Everyone

“Alright then, shall we eat?”

With a piece of paper simply reading “Sold Out” hanging in place of our poster, we folded up the chairs in our circle space, spread out a small picnic sheet, and started our early lunch.

Each of us had brought our own boxed lunch to share.

President Takahashi’s eyes went wide when she saw my bento.

“Kajiwara-kun, your bento box is massive. No, that’s clearly not for one person.”

“My mother got a little carried away. She said to please share it with everyone in the club…”

I took out a three-tiered juubako, the kind you’d usually only see used for New Year’s feasts.

The contents weren’t New Year’s dishes, however, but a more typical assortment of hors d’oeuvres.

“Sorry, I know this is a bit much.”

“No, no, not at all. But, well, we all made a little extra, too. We probably should have told you beforehand.”

Toudou-san added that they always trade a little of what’s in their bento boxes during events. She said they’d gotten all fired up thinking they’d have me try some of their food.

That made me happy.

We all cheerfully arranged our lunches together. There were no chopsticks; most of the food was easy to eat by hand, like sandwiches and onigiri, or meats like fried chicken and nuggets that could be picked up with plastic toothpicks.

“You have the afternoon event, Kajiwara-kun, so you need to eat up.”

“…I’m heading to the cosplay booth, but what exactly happens there?”

I’d agreed to go, but I had to ask.

I had no idea what the rules or etiquette for cosplaying were.

I figured I had to ask here and now.

“I’m not the expert. Hatsune, you used to be a bit of a kameko back in the day, right?”

“Kameko?”

“Kamera Komachi. Kameko for short.”

Toudou-san answered as she plucked a piece of fried chicken from my tiered box.

I see. So what we called a “camera boy” in my past life is a “Kamera Komachi” in this world. That’s pretty clever.

“Back in middle school, I took pictures of male cosplayers for smutty reasons. That’s the kind of kameko I was. Forgive me. A middle schooler is a creature that wants and needs and can’t get enough smut.”

“Uh, you don’t need my forgiveness. There’s nothing to forgive.”

Honestly, in my past life, there were plenty of cosplayers who used sex appeal to their advantage with revealing outfits. And there were tons of camera boys who loved taking their pictures. I can’t exactly blame Toudou-san in this world, either.

“Around the latter half of middle school, smut became easier to come by, so I quit. My parents stopped trying to prevent it at all. The floodgates for smut were officially open. Man, I was a kameko with no love for the art of cosplay.”

“Huh.”

Still, Toudou-san is ridiculously candid about her personal smut history. Not that I dislike that about you, Toudou-san. I mean, you groped me all over this morning, and it didn’t really bother me.

“I was a famous supplier of lewd photos at my middle school. I provided Chihiro with a ton of stuff, so she’d better be grateful. It’s no exaggeration to say I shaped her sexual preferences. I bet she went home from conventions and did all sorts of naughty things with the hand that a male cosplayer had just shaken.”

“Hatsune, I’m gonna deck you.”

The instant she said it, a nice, crisp sound rang out as President Takahashi’s hand connected with Toudou-san’s head.

thwack

“Whaaat? It’s true, isn’t it?” she cackled.

President Takahashi and Toudou-san really are close.

“But really, Kajiwara-kun, I wanted to ask you. Is cosplaying fun? Doesn’t it bother you to have all these women looking at you in a sexual way? The number of male cosplayers is really, really small, you know?”

Segawa-san asked, looking genuinely curious.

Well, the thing is, when you actually do it, it’s incredibly fun.

“It was fun. To be perfectly honest, once I tried it, I had a great time.”

“You like being fawned over? I mean, that might be a rude way to put it.”

Having someone say it so bluntly was, as expected, a little embarrassing.

I glanced over at President Takahashi.

I was especially happy when President Takahashi, of all people, complimented me.

“I do. Well, I suppose part of it is that I’m not used to being fawned over so casually.”

“Huh? I’d think you’d be fawned over all the time, Kajiwara-kun.”

Toudou-san tilted her head, looking truly perplexed.

Well, it’s true that people in my class talk to me a lot. During break, before I head to my club, all sorts of people strike up conversations. Or rather, well, they’re hitting on me. I’ve even been confessed to by people I barely know. I get some pretty aggressive propositions—but I have no intention of accepting them. I’m not sure if they’d get it, but…

“It’s just that… romantic advances from classmates who expect a relationship are kind of a heavy burden. It’s not much fun. It’s totally different from having a fellow otaku praise you by saying, ‘Hey, that’s a great cosplay.'”

“Is that how it is?”

“That’s how it is.”

I said it plainly.

As I’ve said over and over, I was truly happy when President Takahashi complimented my cosplay.

There’s no way I’d dislike it. Besides, I love the original character, too.

“Having people ask to take my picture, or ask for a handshake… it’s—it’s not bad.”

Not bad at all. In fact, it’s the first time I’ve ever experienced this kind of pleasure, in this life or my last.

“I mean, the main purpose of cosplay is probably to dress up as a character from a work you love and enjoy that world… but still, even I’m happy when people praise my appearance, you know?”

I’m not ashamed of my well-trained body, but it’s surprisingly rare for anyone to compliment me on it.

The simple pleasure of “being looked at” is ticklish, but it certainly satisfies my self-esteem.

“…Do you find that despicable? Saying it out loud is a little embarrassing. I sound like a narcissist.”

“Nah, not at all. What’s wrong with it? Who’s getting hurt here? You, Kajiwara-kun? The kameko? Neither of you, right?”

Toudou-san spoke the truth.

She’s right. No one’s getting hurt.

“Kajiwara-kun, you know the original character, and even though it’s a store-bought costume, you’re cosplaying on top of that knowledge. There’s nothing wrong with that. As long as your love for the original work is there, enjoying cosplay should be perfectly acceptable and—”

She paused, then continued.

“And besides, you know what it is? It’s ero. Ero is good. Ero enriches the soul. It’s the pinnacle of culture created by the Lilin.”

Toudou-san really does love her smut. She’s an open and unabashed pervert. And I don’t dislike that part of her.

“Still, what’re we gonna do this afternoon? Those kameko are definitely gonna come swarming.”

“You think so?”

“They will. Male cosplayers are seriously popular.”

She looked concerned. No matter how well-behaved the crowd at this convention was, she seemed to doubt they could keep things under control, as they weren’t exactly used to the cosplay area themselves.

“Hmm…” Toudou-san groaned, a troubled look on her face.

She popped a piece of fried chicken into her mouth and, after a long moment of chewing and thinking, she said,

“Is it cool if I call a friend?”

“A friend?”

“Yeah, someone I know from my kameko days. An older person I met back in middle school who’s super experienced with cosplay photoshoots. They’re kind of a big deal at this convention. They should be here today.”

Someone like that exists? I know President Takahashi is an otaku of the light with fan acquaintances all over, but Toudou-san is pretty well-connected, too.

“If we leave it to this person, I think you’ll be pretty safe. They’ll even manage the line for the photoshoot, which is bound to form. In exchange, they’ll probably take a ridiculous number of pictures of you, though.”

“If it’s a recommendation from you, Toudou-senpai, I’ll leave everything in their hands. But still, you think a line will actually form?”

I tilted my head.

Sure, a popular male cosplayer might draw a line so long you’d need someone to manage it, but this is my first time. I didn’t announce that I’d be cosplaying or anything. I have zero name recognition.

I was about to say as much, but…

“Ah, I know what you’re thinking, Kajiwara-kun. But you should never underestimate the libido of an otaku. Especially since a super-buff macho man like you is an extremely rare treasure in the world of male cosplaying. The kameko who are into that type will swarm you in packs, no doubt about it.”

Swarm me… like I’m an ant or something.

That was my first thought, but…

“In that case, could I ask you to please do that?”

“Leave it to me. I’ll call them right now.”

Toudou-san took out her smartphone and started making contact.

As I watched her silently, Emma timidly and hesitantly offered me her bento box, as if begging me to eat from it, and I accepted a sandwich.

Still, a photoshoot at the cosplay booth, huh?

ba-dump, ba-dump

My heart is starting to pound.

As I felt the strange rhythm in my chest, I couldn’t help but notice the slightly worried look in President Takahashi’s eyes.