NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 10
High-quality official limited edition goods.
Life-size display figures in 1:1 scale.
Various experiential events.
Stage performances.
And countless photo requests pouring in.
This year’s AGC had more than enough reasons to get Hayoon excited.
Particularly, considering the 2019 event was one she couldn’t even muster the courage to attend back when she was too young.
New and fresh experiences are always enjoyable.
However.
“It’s cold…”
Hayoon’s expression wasn’t particularly bright as she shook a hot pack with a rustling sound.
The current time: 5:30 AM.
Ticket checks start at 8:00, and entry begins at 9:30.
In other words, it meant waiting for another five hours before entering the exhibition hall.
‘I should probably draw something…’
Honestly, no matter how much one might get used to all-nighters, it never truly becomes easy.
With a sigh that felt like the ground beneath her was sinking, Hayoon took out an iPad from her bag and began drawing.
After all, she’d been scarce on Pixiv uploads recently due to creating illustrations for product goods.
If the commissioned illustrations for backers start piling up, fan outrage can flare up, so it’s important to keep producing them whenever you have time.
‘It’s been a while; maybe drawing Lamia once would be good.’
It didn’t take long to decide what to draw.
She’d be drawing Lamia, the snake-human hybrid with the lower half of a snake.
The key is to depict the lamia’s scales with a metallic sheen while portraying the human portions softly, creating a textural contrast.
The aesthetic of hybrid illustrations lies in the dissonance between the human and animal parts.
She added a slightly bluish hue to the skin, a long tongue, and for the backer-exclusive illustration, intended to reveal the hidden privates underneath the scales.
“Alright, I’m getting into it.”
Just as Hayoon was happily progressing with the rough sketch of the Lamia illustration,
-…?
Her status screen popped up a question mark, implying why she didn’t draw a furry instead of something like this.
Of course, Hayoon had no time to address such queries from the status screen.
She was a true die-hard otaku who loved both the process and the result of drawing such illustrations.
Once she got into it, everything else around her ceased to exist.
However, if Hayoon had noticed the status screen’s inquiry, she would undoubtedly have responded.
“Furries and hybrids are different, goddammit!”
And with that, Hayoon kept sketching Lamia.
While her status screen looked on helplessly, time flowed rapidly to around 7:30 AM.
“Yo, the line is moving!”
“Finally!”
Cheers erupted everywhere, signaling that admission was near.
—
“Alright, please proceed this way.”
Although the line started moving at 7:30, it wasn’t until nearly 9:50 that Hayoon finally made it close to the entrance of the exhibition hall.
“Finally!”
Still, this was relatively quick, and Hayoon, trying her best to suppress the urge to cheer, turned toward the stage admission ticket distribution area.
Facing yet another line just after entering was exasperating, but after only about ten minutes of waiting, the line disappeared.
“Please take your desired ticket.”
“Yes.”
She didn’t spend long pondering. She’d already decided which stage performance she wanted to see.
Taking the ticket for the last stage, Hayoon turned and headed toward her favorite booth.
Even as a woman now, Hayoon was still a hardcore otaku through and through.
Whenever she missed out on merchandise or couldn’t participate in events, she felt a pang of regret.
In that sense, this 2019 AGC was extraordinary. It was an event she couldn’t attend back when she was too young, and it included plenty of goods that Hayoon, with her school cafeteria lunch money at the time, couldn’t afford.
“Ugh, this one…”
The booth Hayoon arrived at was that of Memory Store, a renowned domestic visual novel company.
They weave the worlds from a scenario writer’s mind together with illustrations, voice acting, and background music to create a complete product.
Isn’t that impressive?
At least, it was to Hayoon.
“Such a bargain. This is a steal.”
Acrylic stands, mugs, power banks, acrylic keychains, multi-cleaners—she ticked off every item on her checklist before heading to the cashier.
“The total comes to 320,000 won. Will you be paying all at once?”
“Yes, please.”
And with a cool demeanor, she paid the entire 320,000 won.
Hayoon barely managed to suppress her overflowing joy and headed toward the famous item storage area as if her task was done.
People who come just to enjoy the booths typically don’t need the item storage, but for someone like Hayoon who planned to change outfits on-site, the storage area even had a changing room facility next to it.
“It’ll take some time…”
Naturally, there was another line to wait in here too.
It seemed even longer than the stage ticket line due to the growing crowd, and after waiting a solid 30 minutes, Hayoon finally entered the changing room and started undressing immediately.
She took off her long padded jacket that had kept her warm through the all-night wait, then removed her hoodie.
She left on just a long-sleeved t-shirt for warmth, then put on her HK-M4 cosplay jacket and tactical gloves. Moving on to the lower half…
After taking off the leggings she’d been wearing, she clenched her lower lip against the cold air striking her thighs and slipped on black knee-high socks.
Once both legs were clad, she finished with a plaid pleated skirt.
“Alright, clothes are done.”
Hayoon checked her outfit two or three times, feeling satisfied, and smiled faintly.
Now, it was time to add the details.
She strapped a pistol holder to her thigh, placed the pistol within it, slipped on tactical gloves, and donned a hat.
Finally, grabbing the prized HK-M4 Airsoft gun, she declared—
“Perfect.”
It was so flawless that even a passerby could’ve fallen in love. The HK-M4 cosplay was now complete.
Her change of clothes finished, Hayoon entrusted the clothes she’d removed and the goods she’d bought at the booth to the item storage facility, stepping outside with a confident smile as people turned their gaze to her.
“Damn, this is crazy…”
She knew she shouldn’t feel this way, but…
It felt great.
It was like feeling the eyes of the world upon her.
Men sent her adoring glances, and the few women in the crowd seemed to view her with faint envy at having drawn the attention that could have been theirs.
“Uh… I think I’m getting addicted…”
Managing a professional expression was harder than she thought, and just as she was about to start mingling and taking photos with the crowd,
“High quality.”
An unexpected clear voice cut through the exhibition hall’s noise and captured Hayoon’s attention.
And the woman in her field of vision…
“You too, huh. Haha.”
She, too, was dressed in an HK-M4 cosplay — an overwhelmingly beautiful one.
By the noticeable height difference alone, Hayoon could tell she was probably around 166 cm — quite tall for a woman.
“Ah, haha…”
Even though Hayoon was now a cute girl, her original self was still a hardcore otaku from the corner of a room, so perhaps that’s why meeting such a beautiful cosplayer left her tongue-tied.
And just as she was awkwardly smiling,
“Can we take a picture together?”
“Uh?”
“Thank you. Please give me your pose.”
“Ah, yes…!”
Suddenly, the other cosplayer pulled out her phone to take photos.
With no choice but to go with the flow, Hayoon assumed a gun-aiming pose, her Airsoft gun experience ensuring she struck a sharp angle despite never having actually seen the army.
“Hmm, this is good. Can you smile a bit more?”
“A, yes…!”
Following the instructions of the other M4 cosplayer who continued snapping photos from all angles,
“Your modeling made it look amazing. Thank you for letting me take pictures.”
“Oh, not at all.”
The other M4 cosplayer approached and bowed deeply in appreciation.
And now…
“It’s my turn to take a photo.”
“Uh?”
“A selfie. Let’s do it together.”
“I’m all for it.”
Time for Hayoon to enjoy.
Asking for numerous poses and angles, Hayoon warmly took pictures with the other M4 cosplayer.
A pretty girl next to another pretty girl!
And the fact that Hayoon herself was one of those pretty girls was beside the point — this was as close to a perfect photo session as it gets.
“Thank you!”
“Not at all. We were both doing each other a favor!”
After taking more than ten photos, Hayoon finally turned off her camera, satisfied, and exchanged shy pleasantries with the M4 cosplayer.
“Um, this…”
“What is this?”
“I also draw illustrations on Pixiv. I participate in Comic Market at the end of the year, and I’ll have a booth there.”
“Really? You look so young, but that’s impressive.”
“Hehe… Anyway, just scan the QR code. Please come take a look.”
“Yes, I’ll stop by during my break.”
“Thank you!”
“Not at all. It’s thanks to you.”
Hayoon handed over the QR-coded promotional flyer she had prepared in one of her cosplay props, a bag of crackers, and after exchanging awkward thanks once more, they parted ways, heading off in opposite directions to continue their AGC experience.
—
Thanks to the impressive looks granted by her status screen akin to a leading character from a novel,
Hayoon found herself constantly asked for photos, barely taking a few steps before needing to stop again for more.
Inevitably, people kept gathering, forming a line just to take photos with her.
“Umm, could you hold the pistol for the photo?”
“Possibly. What’s difficult about that?”
“Thank you!”
“Here, take this. It’s my Pixiv address.”
“P-Pixiv?”
“Yes, I’ll have a booth at Comic Market as well.”
And more requests…
“Could you take a photo with me holding the M4?”
“Sure.”
“Thank you!”
“Here’s my QR code. Please stop by some time.”
“Understood!”
She granted each request quickly, dispersing the photo queue effectively.
“Could we do a heart shape with our hands…?”
“I’ll do a V instead.”
“Alright.”
“Check out my work; there are lots of beautiful illustrations.”
“Understood.”
Certainly, there were those whose requests she firmly denied if they crossed a line.
How much time had passed since she began clearing the photo queue?
“Hmm…”
Hayoon checked the time on her phone, realizing it was about time to go.
“I’ll only take photos with those currently in line!”
“Understood!”
She now needed to head to the stage.
Finishing with the last three people at the end of the line, she moved toward a designated corner of the exhibition hall where the stage performance would take place.
“Ticket confirmed. Please proceed.”
“Yes.”
After checking her ticket, she entered the stage area and waited at her assigned seat.
—
“Huh…”
“Eh…!”
It was the previous M4 cosplayer sitting next to her.
What a serendipitous coincidence.
—
Thanks to the impressive looks granted by her status window akin to a leading character from a novel,
Whenever Hayoon took a photo and took a few more steps, another photo opportunity would arise, and she ended up rooted to the spot like a post in the middle of an increasing crowd.
The people kept congregating, to the point where a line formed of those who wanted to take their photos with her.
“Ah, would you please take the photo with a pistol in hand?”
“Yes, that’s not difficult.”
“Ah, thank you very much.”
“Here, take this. It’s my Pixiv address.”
“P-Pixiv?”
“Yes, I will also be participating in Comic Market events.”
One after another…
“I’d like a picture with you holding the M4 gun.”
“Yes, of course.”
“Thank you!”
“Here is a QR code. Please visit once.”
“Alright.”
She efficiently granted each request, moving through the queue of people waiting for photos.
“Uh, could we form a heart with our hands…?”
“I’ll do a V instead.”
“Alright.”
“Take a look at my other works; there are many pretty ones.”
“Understood.”
Naturally, there were requests she firmly rejected when they felt too intrusive.
After clearing the photo queue for quite some time,
“Hmm…”
Hayoon checked the time on her phone, realizing it was about time.
“I’ll take photos only with those currently in queue!”
“Understood!”
It was time to head to the stage.
Upon finishing photos with the last three in the queue, she headed toward the corner of the exhibition hall where the stage would be held.
“Tickets have been confirmed. Please enter.”
“Yes.”
After her ticket was checked, she entered the stage area and waited expectantly at her assigned seat.
“Eh…”
“Ah…!”
It was the M4 cosplayer from earlier sitting beside her.
What an incredible coincidence.