I'm Not a Professional Cosplayer
Even on the walk from the train station, I could feel the number of people carrying the same vibe as us steadily growing.
Most of them were hauling carriers or oversized duffel bags, all heading the same direction.
And then there were the ones without any luggage who still looked, at a glance, like they were bound for G-STAR.
As expected of a game expo — some were coming to try demos, others to meet streamers. Come to think of it, my fans had said they'd follow me out to G-STAR too. Hope they were making it okay.
I wasn't particularly worried. Sure, I had two guides with me, but a place like this was the kind of venue where even a first-timer alone wouldn't get lost.
When big events like this rolled around, you just followed the people who looked like they were going the same place. Same concept as reserve force training, that kind of thing.
But thinking about it, that was kind of unfair. I'd done my full active-duty service and finished every last reserve drill — and of all times, I had to turn into Camilla after that? If only I'd transformed a little earlier…
While I was walking on autopilot with those pointless thoughts, Nikang's voice came from beside me.
"We're here."
The vast plaza in front of the building with BEXCO written across it.
People were already lined up to get in, even at this early hour.
There were outdoor booths and food trucks too — looking at all that, it really hit me that we'd arrived at G-STAR.
"We'll let you in in the order you arrived!"
Following the staff's guidance, the front of the line started filing in. From what I'd seen in the community beforehand, a lot of people had been saying this year's G-STAR was going to be a flop — but for all that talk, there were still plenty of people.
"So what do we do first?"
Swept along by the crowd, slowly advancing, I asked Nikang.
"Nothing set in stone. Just cosplay, walk around, look at stuff, turn on stream somewhere in the middle — that should do it?"
"Let's change clothes first. Muna, wait here a sec."
Once we got inside, Ririyang and Nikang headed off to change into their full cosplay outfits.
And I was left alone.
"Hmm…"
Since I couldn't really wander off by myself, I just stood still and looked around the interior.
The inside was divided into a bunch of booths. Each game company had its own titles on display, and booth sizes varied wildly depending on the company's scale.
Among them were cosplayers like me, standing at booth entrances.
Taking photos with the throngs of people in turn, striking professional poses for anyone with a dedicated camera — they were so practiced it was clear this wasn't a one-or-two-day thing for them.
"Oh…"
That was a real sword. Did they sell the swords separately?
The cosplay quality was higher than I'd expected, so there was a lot to look at. I was observing it all with interest when—
"Um…"
"?"
Someone approached and spoke to me.
A somewhat portly-looking man in thick-rimmed glasses.
"Camilla — you're doing a Camilla cosplay, right? The quality is incredible. Could I maybe get one photo…"
"Me?"
The man nodded shyly. Well, I hadn't expected this the moment I walked in, but taking a photo wasn't exactly hard.
When I nodded, his face lit up. Then he stepped back, dropped to one knee on the floor.
I'd thought he wanted a photo together, but when he pulled out the camera hanging around his neck, it was clear he wanted a solo shot of me.
"Uh…"
I was a little flustered. I'd gotten used to photos after meeting fans a few times. But those had all been group shots standing next to fans.
Someone trying to capture just me alone like this was a first. This was literally no different from those cosplayers over there. And I wasn't a pro like them.
But I couldn't back out now. He'd already gotten all excited and set up — saying no at this point would be kind of mean.
And I was curious too. At a glance it looked like an expensive camera used for pretty models or landscapes — I wondered how a solo shot of me would turn out with that.
Even so, the awkwardness made me absently pinch the hem of my skirt between my fingers. A smooth yet unfamiliar texture came through.
"Are you posing?"
"Just a second…!"
His words snapped me out of it with a jolt.
What pose should I do? I thought for a moment, then had my answer. Simple. I was cosplaying Camilla, so I just needed to pose like Camilla.
Similar to when I'd gone to watch the Abyss League live. Like when I'd recreated the cinematic trailer with that cosplay team we'd randomly run into.
Just like then, I recreated a pose Camilla would strike, channeling Camilla's emotions.
It wasn't hard. Every one of Camilla's lines, motions, and actions was stored intact in my head.
For a mundane situation like this, the basic idle animation from the loading screen would work well.
I tilted my chin up slightly and cast my gaze downward. An arrogant yet prideful look — as if to say the likes of you could never keep up with my dance…
"Oh, ohhh…!"
The cameraman in front of me, true to being a pro, started snapping photos right away without me needing to say anything. The flash didn't go off, but admiration kept spilling from his mouth. At the same time, the soft shutter sound kept clicking away.
"Is that enough…?"
I called it when my immersion started breaking and boredom set in.
If I left him alone he'd shoot all day, so I decided to stop here. I wasn't a booth girl — just a regular person. Letting him take this many was plenty.
"Ah, yes! That's plenty. I got carried away and shot for too long. Have you been active for a while? I'm bad with faces. Last year, what cosplay did you do besides Camilla—"
"No, this is my first time here."
"What? First time?"
First time and she looks this identical to Camilla—
The man muttered under his breath, staring at me with surprised eyes. Seemed like I'd dashed his expectations, but oh well. What was I supposed to do? I couldn't claim something that wasn't true.
More importantly, I had my own question.
"Could I get the photos you took?"
"Yes, I'll send them over by end of day. Do you do Instagram?"
When I shook my head, he looked surprised again. What, it wasn't like it was mandatory. Come to think of it, both Ririyang and Nikang didn't do Instagram either, and people always reacted like that was weird. Rare species or something.
Anyway, we arranged for him to send the photos through another social platform and parted ways. He must've really liked shooting me — he even handed me a vitamin drink from his bag. Even though it was brief, the unfamiliarity of it all had definitely worn me out.
So there I was, leaning against the wall with an ugh, sipping the drink the departed man had given me, when another man approached — looking similar to the last one, holding what was clearly a nice camera.
"Are you a Camilla cosplayer? Would it be okay if I took just one photo?"
"Ah, no — I'm a bit… right now…"
How to put it — my mental energy was drained. I was psychologically exhausted.
So I declined, and he turned away looking dejected. I felt a little bad, but also just baffled.
Seriously, there were plenty of obvious pro cosplayers and booth girls over there — why come to me standing off by myself? I wasn't even smiling brightly and waving or anything.
With a premonition that this kind of thing would keep happening, I wandered the area, wary of anyone else asking for photos.
"So that's what happened. Sounds rough."
"I should've just gone in with you. Didn't think people would crowd like that."
Ririyang and Nikang, finished changing and back out. Gone was their train-ride look — Theodora and Calliope from Nikang's house had reappeared.
I could feel people's gazes suddenly concentrating on us. Groups really were stronger than individuals — we drew more attention than when I'd been standing alone. Other cosplayers were looking our way and murmuring among themselves too.
"Let's move. This is the entrance area, so we can work our way from here to the end."
"The Ionix booth is on the opposite side."
The developer of Abyss, which we were cosplaying, was on the other side. I'd heard they were exhibiting a mobile version of Abyss. Not sure what they'd made, but that was a mandatory stop on the tour.
"Nikang, shouldn't you turn on stream? You've gotta show the viewers."
"Should I turn it on right now?"
"Yeah, why not. Turn it on, show them a bit, turn it off — whatever."
At that, Nikang pulled out her phone and started fussing with something. Honestly, that was the root of all this. Coming here, even getting Ririyang into cosplay — all of it.
"Ah, everyone. You got here fast. Yeah. As you can see, it's cosplay. What cosplay, you ask? Can't you tell at a glance? It's Calliope. 'My Calliope isn't like this'? What exactly were you expecting? I've told you how many times — cosplay isn't like that."
I didn't bother looking at chat, but I could guess. See? I was right.
Most people thought cosplay meant something revealing, a bit of skin showing. Not all bundled up like Nikang.
Of course, the viewers being thirsty was part of it too. "Powder scent," they called it — the moment even a cyber whiff of girl hit the air, they swarmed in like ghosts demanding to see tits.
Our room was like that, at least. Seemed Nikang's stream wasn't much different.
Together with Nikang, who was delivering her cosplay lecture to the viewers the same way she had to me, we moved on to the booth ahead.