Vol 2 Chapter 2 (1/2)

Hot, Thin Books and Twintails

I see two seas

The first was the grand sea sitting still in between land claiht before that one, a veritable sea of people

We chose a spot close to our destination that looked devoid of people and arrived there using the gate Within a few ht and found myself at a loss for words

”Wh-what's with thisup to 8 o'clock isn't it!?”

You can't even put this on the level of just a gathering How o father than that At the very least, I can tell that there's way etsu's o on and on and on There's probably evenit further

The weather was as clear as weather can be clear There wasn't a single cloud to be found in that blue sky The sun sya The twintail club was here for club activities since we predicted that there would be a raid co to throw that peace into disarray here at japan's premier summer doujinshi+ event site

”Twoearle Are ele to show up here?”

It's not that I can't believe it, it's that I'd rather not That's why I ask her

”Yes There's nothat they will!”

Twoearle nods affir with confidence in her assertion

I figured as o on for so long

Just as we get right next to the station, people steadily flooded out of the station entrance and they fed into the see human mountain All these people here, if they packed theht up in the fight We'll need to change locations when the eleht over there I wonder if this will lead to a fight over the sea

As I had that thought, Aika pokes in from Twoearle's side and presses her with a question

”why is today the only ti?”

”In my world, we also had doujinshi+ events comparable to this one and back then the elemarians showed up there too”

Aika continues on with her questioning

”Okay, so then why are you carrying that stuff?”

”We will be participating as a circle on the premises so we can stand by ready there This e'll be able to intercept the enemy on-site”

Twoearle lifted up the huge tote bag she had with her to eht out of her labcoat pocket earlier where no one else could see us

”Participating as a circle? So I'll be doingthere?”

”No no This is just our cae It's a shared space you see We just need two people to be representatives It's perfectly fine for you to sit right next torestless under the table but please pay that no mind”

Aika pulls out the collapsible carrier froe and unfolds it out Then she wraps Twoearle herself in the acohtly

”Souji I have soe”

”Gyaaaaah! Stop that! If anything counts as luggage it's Aika-san with her cardboard box bottom of a chest!!”

Erina stared intently at the bound up Twoearle For soaze over to me

I clear gage This massive doujinshi+ event is called Comic Market, or ComiKet for short it seee what it'll be like though I just know it fro all the Tail Red related ether at our closing ceremony

”but seriously what the heck is up with all this fanfare that Tail Red gets!?”

In ay does Tail Red have anything to do with all this for the sa we had to see it for myself

”Tail Red's an actual huns in here, aren't there”

While I'h several dozen pages and points out the extent of it

”from here to here! It's all Tail Red, isn't it!? There's nothing of Blue!”

”Yellow isn't there either”

Erina gets dejected as she takes a peek at the catalog too

”I'll buy every last Tail Red book they put out! This is my chance to research the libido that the people of the world yearn for Tail Red with!!”

Twoearle takes out a tablet and goes through the electronic version of the catalog with so when she suddenly slaps

”Souji! Look! Look! There is one! Blue's got art in here!!”

”Oh! She's right!”

It was so a allant eyes, in her gear and in her twintails It was undeniably Tail Blue She looked pretty cool in american comic style

”Not only that, they also wrote down ”I love Tail Blue” in there too!”

Positioned right where the bottos out Aika's most notable feature

”I knew that Tail Blue had to have fans out there too, right~ Yup Unlike the Tail Red fans who get swept up so easily in the flow, those who go for the society spurned Blue just can't be the kind who flip on every new fad that comes! That's the kind of fans they are, no doubt about it!”

Erina desperately pored through it for Yellohen she heard that but in the end it doesn't seeerated dejection spoke for her

”So, ill you do about it Aika-san? You were rather reluctant about participating only just a few moments before”

When we coly Aika however just shakes her head with an awfully refreshed look on her face

”Never o buy a copy from this person but it looks like there's so after all”

Seems like the very existence of that ”one lone fan” pleases her greatly

”Hohoo! Doesn't that airl? That sort ofin these events! Being able to find your ”very own book” is very important”

”That's a pretty good idea co forward to it”

The two of them are all so back to the circle cut with Tail Blue in it once more

”This just ht even be someone truly does love twintails too”

Lately it's gotten to the point that they're drawing Tail Blue in as the king of beasts in childrens' picture books instead of the lion But if they just looked past the part of her that sends her off into a rae and took off their prejudiced lenses then it'll come across perfectly clear that she's the owner of a wonderful pair of twintails In other words, Tail Blue's die-hard fan ery and came to love her for her twintails Doesn't that e that I let flourish inside of me

”Let's go meet him then I want to hear what he has to say I want to head on over to wherever this book's getting sold too”

”Yup Let's go meet them!”

The circle cut had their website address included with it too I wonder just what sort of book theyon sale today then it's possible that they already put their art out on their website too right? Guess I'll go look their site up myself with my Twoearlephone

”Uwah, it's really hot in here Do all these people really get in this early as participating circles just to pass out books and stuff? I really can't picture that at all”

”me neither”

I give her a tiny sigh-like nod Unlike Aika's light airy sweeps of her legs, ot lead shoes on theht on them

”In any case, as long as I get to buy that Tail Blue book then that's probably good enough for me!”

If there are any e get there

I looked up the website belonging to the circle that Aika's looking so forward toI really shouldn't have Why is it that I' up on the little inconvenient details that dig me in deeper for a self-destruct? If I just hadn't donethere then I'd be pumped full of anticipation for my first event up too, at least until my feet carry me to this circle's spot

”It's a joint circle so they get two spaces worththat up to six members can join in Make sure everyone hands over these tickets over e get to the entrance”

Twoearle takes out the tickets fro the perforated lines and passes them to everyone

”Yours is over here Souji-sama”

”Right”

I retrieve the ticket froe and hand it over

”So-Souji-sama's reaction eak!? He's become desensitized to my boobs!!”

”Eh!?”

She's right I just pulled it out frohtest bit of resistance

”A in other areas besides twintails too!?”

So this is a case of an organis to its environment then?

”Isn't just hi tired of those boobs you're so proud of? You kno they say there can be too e boobs too you know”

Aika nags on Twoearle and scowls at her Their positionsout as always She's giving off the feeling that she's got nothing to be afraid of anything anymore Must be because she nos that she has fans out there

”A-Aika-san isthat should ever happen! The universe would blow up before such a thing could ever happen!!”

”Then a new universe has just been created in this moment! Give it up, you worn out pair of boobs!!”

”That sure is so from the mouth of a pair that never drew eyes to therow them”

While I fear for the Big Bang that these two girls going to war may just spark off with boobs, I turn to look over the catalog's guide of the preawa-sensei

”East So that puts it over here then”

The one leading the way at tiawa-sensei We follow behind her and h the venue We avoid the coo down the escalator and reach the floor at the stairwell Huge halls stood on our left and right This seemed to be the space that Twoearle applied for

”This is quite the sight”

What was there were lines of several long tables linked end to end with another such arrangeths of one of these tables and there was space between thely fit in a short distance racetrack and noas all evenly divided between these tightly packed blocks The people that have already arrived at their seats are unhurriedly laying out their ite for what's to come

”Twoearle, you said that we're here as a participating circle so does that ?”

Exactly as Aika said, we didn't bring anything with us

”I didn't send them off to the press people so they're ho for cheering the Twintails on That's what I plan to be putting out there in circulation”

”A cheering song!? So you !? Please allow us to listen to it!!”

Erina's eyes were all sparkles

”Fufufu I'll pass theive it a listen”

What is this? Why is that even though I should be happy about having a song to cheer us on, I can't shake the feeling that so bad will come out of it

Once we reach the space, we set up the displays the table as per Twoearle's instructions and get things ready

I can't seeh she was the one who led the way As soon as I think that though,I spot a woer at her over by a space in between pathways

”She's the one! She's been ether with the circle leaflets!!”

As I get there, I picked up a few of the leaflets arranged right in front h, there were istration forms to be found

”Please do not cause trouble with such pranks! It's forbidden to pass out any previously unregisteredto do with the event!!”

A wo an ar and warns Sakuragawa-sensei for her actions

”No! It's no prank! They all coet 99 off on your doujinshi+ coupon' stapled together with them don't they!!”

Sakuragawa-sensei's protest falls on deaf ears as she's seized by the toets taken away like an alien That educator can start up these minor scandals just about wherever and whenever she can

After we lay out the tablecloth and prop up the display stand, Twoearle stands up one of the aforementioned CDs a sample

”This is homemade!? It looks like it's had plenty of work put into it!!”

Each one was packaged in carah it you could see that the label was printed on in full colour while the data side had a prismatic sheen to it You'd be hard pressed to tell it apart fro that was made to be passed out so we could be stand by on-site, this sure had a lot of effort go into it I shouldn't expect anything less from Twoearle

After we place a price tag saying ”500 yen” written in cute rounded in front of it and put up a o There was still another hour to go before the event starts too

”Well then, Souji-sama and I will be fine remain here by ourselves Aika-san, Erina-san and Mikoto-san, please feel free to walk around the pres until we contact you after the event begins”

”There's no way I'erous than elemarians!!”

”I stand behind coht back at you miss Class A Barbarian!!”

”Please don't go wild, you'll cause trouble for the people around us! And how are the two of you have the energy for your bantering with ho it is in here”

The two of theht down at my behest for restraint With the spaces set up back to back plus all the us all in, there really wasn't any rooo berserk here the potential number of casualties to be had all around us would be massive

”There's no helping it then In that case, let's all do roughly one hour long shi+fts so we can walk around the venue”

Twoearle quickly thinks up a schedule for us and our tiawa-sensei Next up will be me and Aika After that, me and Twoearle We'll walk around in various one hour shi+fts while the reby for elemarians is our number one priority here so we'll have to carry out our communications in secret

”Still though I'iving s”

Illustrations of Tail Red, everywhere all around me and as far as the eyes can see Posters of all sizes and sorts stood propped up behind the chairs and tables for the express purpose of standing out Actually, rather than standing out as storefronts they sees raised by military commanders meant to show off their family crests The air was thick with the tension found on the eve of battle as the world lay before the to be conquered

I'lad to have all these twintails around but, barring so them, they're all still me

”Have you decided on a place you want to go to Erina?”

”I would very much like to see the ”Tokusatsu” related circles here in these ”Miscellaneous” spaces”

”Ok then Lets swing by there then”

With Tail Red it's prettyup illustrations of a live h the catalogue to be sure and as I do so I can't help but notice that quite a nuirls' comic-ish feel to them with their feathered over in the opposite hall sandwiched in between the es

So as to et swept away in the crowd, awa-sensei ith Erina in between us to shi+eld her froht next to me as alk, Erina turns to me and smiles

”Er-erm, Mitsuka-kun, this is the first tiether isn't it”

”I a mistress”

Sakuragawa-sensei points to herselfan appeal for her existence Either way, it is rare for the three of us to go shopping

That's when it hitsa powerful twintail presence all of a sudden and cast aze forwards Erina is drawn to what lies ahead and squeaks in surprise at what she sees

”Oh my!?”

Advancing forwards in brisksteps, Erina quickly heads over to that space as awa rush after her

”Could you be!?”

Overcoether over her chest

”Here, please have a look through”

So calls out the circle head's voice as if it were a conditioned reflex as she raise her head up to see

”GOOOOOOOOOEEEEHHHHHHH!!shi+NDOUSAAANNNNN!!”

As soon as her eyes meet Erina's, her chair falls backwards with her in surprise She's got a pair of perirl from the looks of it

”So it was you! Mokusu-senpai!”

It looks like Erina is acquainted with the circle's head

”Erina, who is she?”

”She is Mokusu Toetsu Acadehschool branch's student council president last year”

Perhaps it was because she resigned herself to it at Erina's very prompt answer to my inquiry but that senior puts on an odd face and a strained smile as she lets her shoulders droop down At any rate, with the sense of presence those twintails of hers have there's no way she'd be able to coet out of this

”Th-this is just so it on the backburner since I'm off for university Umm, I don't think that you would be familiar with the work that this book is based on so”

”No I am quite familiar with it I watch it every week!”

”Eh”

Erina hasn't really been going out of her way to hide her love for Tokusatsu stuff but it see it out there or discussed it at length either I guess even her senior as on the student council with her didn't know

”I didn't know you liked Tokusatsu shows too Mokusu-senpai! I would have loved to have discussed the school”

”Well no, it's not really Tokusatsu shows that I'm into but rather the drama actors on them that hold my interest”

”This looks very well done! Please let me buy a copy!”

”I, err, that's!!”

Mokusu-ssenpai only now corips with the fact that Erina knows about theso very obviously flustered once again

”S-sorry but you're shi+ndou-san's boy her friend, right!? Read this and please coive up on it!”

”Uhh”

I'ether and her twintails danced airily about in the air whipping their tips into each other This was the pose for begging with one's twintails

Mnore someone who asks for a favor in such a way, no in flipping through it I quickly ca it out in full first

”Uwaah”

I happen to watch this hero show too It was the standard five color sentai show and while it was aimed at kids it had its share of couys, red and blue, co thele Even as they tussled with each other, watching the masks develop a hot, fiery friendshi+p for of the show

That's how it's supposed to go, however, this book took that aspect and pushed it over to an entirely different territory with the force of a gigantified enes off with fuck all respect for the story with thelory, ready to do battle of a kind that mustn't ever be shown to little kids

That wasn't all their manhoods were drawn in with an unbelievably explicit amount of detail For what little it hid, if it even had a point to it, there was a se only just so much Even blood vessels and the like were drawn in to realistic pro uwah, uwaaaah

I'd make sure Erina wouldn't see this even if I wasn't asked to do so I took a long hard look at its creator as sohts filled my head For someone with twintails like those to draw this

”Ahhoh no What's with these shi+vers I'er boy look down on ood!!”

crap! Erina's admirable senior is about to join her as a class that won't hurt Mokusu-san, and get Erina to accept things too on top of that!

”This book seeinal story had soht? It looks like she's drawn her take on 'being bachelors' in detail so I'ht be a bit too much for you Erina”

Erina sulks and puffs up her cheeks

”I am older one between the two of us Mitsuka-kun! I am perfectly fine with adult oriented materials!!”

Er older' nerve Erina's twintails were shaking in jitters out of anger

Sorry but I can't stop her, so I try to tell Mokusu-san through eye contact Mokusu-san's starts quaking in place again right after Just what am I supposed to do for this person?

I shi+ft aze to book's cover to avertso, discover an adults only sticker at its edge

”Erina, look! It says adults only! You're not 18 yet, right?”

She's been turned away for the sas before so she has to just accept it if I point this out Really noe could have just avoided all this if Mokusu-san had refused on this basis from the start

I did end up seeing the contents though

”Then I shall have Mikoto purchase it!”

The youngthe rules

Having exhausted all awa-sensei opened their business negotiations

”How much does this book cost Mokusu-senpai?”

”F-five hun”

As soon as Erina finished asking her the question Mokusu-senpai i that had 500 yen printed on it, leans her head back purposefully and laughs

”You're going to need 5,000,000 yen for this you see~”

That's just so cliche

Erina however continues on nonchalantly

”Do you accept cheques?”

Sakuragawa-sensei adds further to that

”Young mistress, we can accrue miles if we use the credit card”

””

””

Neither me nor Mokusu-san could find the words to respond to that

”I'm sorry That will be 500 yen”

Shean old lady would throw out playfully but Mokusu-san goes as far as to correct her h a bitter experience With a glooawa-sensei

”Thank you very much senpai! I shall definitely come to the next event to purchase another one of your books!!”

”HIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!”

Mokusu-san screeches At first, I thought the grimaces from the people of the circles around us were out of annoyance at her, however, I saw that their own bodies shook as if they had been inflicted by tragedy the she was going through

This must be the same sort of risk that we ourselves face on the prospect of our identities being co into an acquaintance at an event

We quickly finishedour rounds around the Tokusatsu spaces but the way back froh one In contrast to just before, there were lots of anime-related spaces here but there were also posters with illustrations of naked girls unapologeticly thrown up as posters The poses and styles they were done in were, rather than look cute, looked overly suggestive Obscene even

Sakuragawa-sensei walked in front of Erina to shi+eld her eyes from them but that only worked so well

”Hmmm, this is a bit too extre et back to our own space?”

To be sure, I was of the same mind as her on this

”But hoe do that?”

”The Madas to me She told that when the ti mistress”

What Sakuragawa-sensei handed over to me was an eyemask that felt silken to the touch When the time came? I see It seems like these were hts that she shouldn't be shown

”Erina Sorry, but could you put these on while alk?”

”Eeh? This? Isn't this an eye”

”I'll pull you along while you walk is that no good?”

”You'll what Mitsuka-kun!? Eh, eehh, then in that case”

HerI put the eyemask on Erina

”Also, I don't understand why myself, but it seems that the eye with these”

Sakuragawa-sensei hands me what appears to be, no matter how you looked at it, a pair of handcuffs I didn't see what the need for these could have come from either

”The inner surface appears to be lined with a sponge-like material as well They won't hurt but”

If the chairwoman says that they're to be used as set then that's e had to do I stuck Erina's wrists in the handcuffs

Let's hurry back to our space I grab Erina's delicate hand and pull her along with me

”Haa, haa M-Mitsuka-kun, please, hold hter”

”Alright Letyou”

She h a crowd blind and with both hands bound Her brathing was in disarray and her body heat was slowly rising where I held her The fear of running into anyone in a state like this must be unbearable At the very least I'll do my best to make sure that won't happen

Well, that was hts of these see forwards so intently, they all suddenly caive us way Did they sorateful to them for that

I didn't have the luxury to look at this situation from another perspective at this ti a blinded and bound girl behind him

We ether The ed shi+fts with Erina, she leapt over our table like she was in a hurdling race And paying no ht to the space that she set her sights on

She must really want that Tail Blue book

Slipping through the crowd andshort bursts of teleportation in her mad dash to her destination, I desperately chased after her, yelling for her to stop

”Aika! Wait! Please watch for others a little more an-”

My pleas for restraint went unheeded Aika swiftly reaches the space that belonged to the circle that was supposed to be releasing their new Tail Blue publication and stood before them

”A copy of your new publication please!!”

Holding out a 500 yen coin out for them, Aika speaks those words that one would not think could be fa her first time purchase

The one that was there towith ht fit A foreign man

It ination but it feels like I've seen hih?

He also had these huge sunglasses on hi air about him that may be the cause for the lack of customers at his table

”New one this”

The pile of books that he pointed to on the table with his broken japanese were ones with Tail Red on the cover Aika's s face stiffened up and she checked the circle's nuain And of course, they matched

”Excuse me Tail Blue's book Where?”