The Protagonist's Party is Too Diligent

To be honest, there wasn’t much I wanted to buy.

The series I usually sell merchandise for don’t have much of a fanbase for derivative works in this country. While I did spot a few things that caught my eye as I wandered around in the crowd, they were all from series that had managed to survive for more than ten years. I paused for a moment at some of them, but nothing made me want to actually make a purchase.

In the end, I walked out empty-handed. It seemed Charlotte didn’t find anything worth buying either.

Mia bought a can badge with the face of a magical girl printed on it. She looked absolutely thrilled that she could get the entire lineup of characters from the latest series.

Claire bought an alarm clock with a flamboyantly drawn character from a manga I didn’t recognize.

“Is it from something you know?”

“Hm? No? I just bought it because it was pretty.”

Fair enough. The artwork was nice. The flowers were vibrant and colorful, and the unknown pretty girl was cute too.

Even if I had no idea who she was.

Well, that’s usually the case with these fancy goods. People often buy them without knowing the characters. Who knows? Maybe the illustrator just made up the character.

Alice was similar.

She had picked up an eco bag. Instead of flashy artwork, it featured a delicately drawn pretty girl. The character, drawn in simple sky-blue lines without much coloring... still looked like the kind of anime girl otakus would be into, but since Alice was the one carrying it, it somehow looked a bit more refined.

Back when I was really into it, I used to buy up a ton of doujinshi. But I guess I don’t have the same level of passion anymore.

“Whew...”

After making a full round through all the booths, we came outside. We were lucky enough to find an empty bench, so the five of us sat down in a row. It was a tight fit, but we all managed to squeeze in.

“It’s more tiring than I expected,” said Mia, who was the least physically strong among us.

“I agree,” said Alice.

If even Alice said that, it was clear that it had taken a toll on everyone. Then again, it wasn’t just from walking around for so long—it was exhausting to constantly push through the crowds.

“But it was still pretty fun. I mean, it’s kind of cool, right? Making stuff just because you love it and then bringing it here to sell. That kind of passion is nice.”

Claire said something that sounded familiar. As expected, she really does have a positive mindset.

“Absolutely. I had a lot of fun today,” said Charlotte, smiling warmly.

Hearing that from her made me feel unexpectedly proud.

“Still, I can’t imagine actually getting on stage.”

“That’s true,” I said.

At Charlotte’s comment, the four of us nodded seriously.

Cosplaying like this together made it feel like a festival—it didn’t feel weird at all. Since we were moving around as a close-knit group, we ended up taking a closer look at things we might have skipped if we were alone. It was way more fun than when I used to come by myself, without any friends.

That said, I didn’t have the courage to go up on the event stage and perform or anything. I was content leaving that to the people on livestreams.

“...Shall we get going?” I asked.

Everyone nodded.

*

Back in the day—before I ended up in the body of a beautiful girl—I used to leave events like this with plenty of time to spare. I never had the stamina to stay until the end, and as time went on, most of the merchandise at the booths would sell out, so there wasn’t much left to browse or buy.

After circling the booths a few times and buying whatever merch I wanted from the anime I watched, I’d have nothing else to do.

Since we’d come early in the morning, we had a lot of time left in the afternoon. If I’d been alone, I probably would’ve headed straight home. But now, I was with friends.

It felt like a waste to just go home.

“Let’s grab something to eat.”

I suggested it while we were on the subway.

We decided on pork cutlet for lunch.

Since we were already on the train, we agreed to get off and switch lines midway, then head to a well-reviewed spot nearby for a meal.

Even if we found it through an online search, there was no way of knowing if it would actually be good until we tried it.

Still, ever since I started living here with these people, my luck had been surprisingly good.

“It’s delicious!”

Judging by how Mia’s eyes sparkled as she said that, we had hit the jackpot again.

She must’ve been hungrier than she realized from all the walking. Everything that went into my mouth tasted amazing.

As we enjoyed our meal, Claire suddenly spoke up.

“By the way, Charlotte. That outfit looked really good on you.”

“Pfft.”

Charlotte, uncharacteristically for her, nearly spat out her food. Fortunately, she managed to keep her mouth closed and didn’t actually spray anything.

She hurriedly pulled out a tissue, dabbed around her mouth, quickly chewed and swallowed, and then rushed to speak.

“R-Really? That’s... good to hear.”

She was clearly trying her best to play it cool, but it wasn’t going too well.

“You must really like that character, huh?”

At Claire’s words, Charlotte’s shoulders gave a visible twitch.

I watched curiously, popping a piece of pork cutlet into my mouth with my fork. It had been a long time since I’d seen Charlotte so flustered.

“N-Not really? I don’t particularly like her.”

Hmm.

From what I could tell, she didn’t just like that character—she seemed to love all the princess characters from that company.

If I counted all the advice she gave me today about acting like a proper princess, I’d run out of fingers.

“Really? But your eyes were sparkling during the movie last time.”

Claire was more than capable of sinking Charlotte all by herself, so there was no need for me to step in.

Of course, Charlotte shot me a glance. She must’ve been worried that I might’ve spilled something to them.

I shook my head.

“Did something happen between you two?” Alice asked, noticing the exchange.

“No, not particularly,” I answered.

Alice tilted her head.

While she was talking to me, Claire kept teasing Charlotte.

“Why not? There’s nothing wrong with liking what you like.”

“T-That’s...”

“Is it because of your image?”

Claire had hit the nail on the head.

“Mia, try this one too. It’s really good.”

“Wow, thank you!”

“Hey, could you two maybe listen to the serious conversation going on over here?” Alice scolded us as I passed the curry sauce over to Mia.

“It’s nothing to be that worried about. Don’t worry,” I replied.

“So you do know something.”

“....”

I stayed silent.

“I liked that movie too. Especially the princess in the purple dress—”

“...It’s violet.”

Snip.

Huh.

I swear I just heard something snap.

Although there wasn’t anything visibly broken in front of me, it felt like something intangible had just torn.

Even if they didn’t hear the sound like I did, everyone seemed to notice the shift in Charlotte’s mood.

Oh no. This is bad.

I had felt it earlier too—Charlotte’s kind of an intense sort of maniac in weird ways.

Now that I think about it, she’s always been pretty stubborn.

“Violet?”

Claire, clearly caught off guard, cautiously repeated it.

“I believe the color of the dress you mentioned was violet.”

“Uh... Isn’t violet and purple basically the same thing?”

Claire had never been very precise about things like that. She wasn’t the type to distinguish between minor color variations.

In the game, she used to be pretty sharp about details like this, but I guess her personality had changed a bit with the different environment.

I personally preferred this version of Claire.

“...‘Basically the same’?”

Charlotte looked genuinely shocked.

Right. I had almost forgotten—she’s from Belvur.

And Belvur is inspired by France and Belgium, with France being famous for its design sensibilities.

“Did you just say ‘basically the same’?”

“Wha—uh...”

Claire was so flustered by Charlotte’s response that she couldn’t even form a proper reply.

“Mia, what kind of sauce is that?”

“Oh, this? It’s yuzu, I think. Want to try it?”

“Thank you.”

“Seriously, can the two of you please pay attention for once?” Alice said, her face tense, as I casually chatted with Mia.

*

“...Sorry, Claire. I got a bit carried away.”

“N-No, it’s okay. Thanks to you, I’ll make sure to learn my colors properly if I ever have to do makeup.”

Back at home, Charlotte spoke in a small, dejected voice, and Claire tried to cheer her up.

“And... if there’s anything from that company you want to watch, just let me know. I’ll always be happy to watch it with you.”

“Claire...”

Charlotte looked genuinely moved.

See?

At least in this house, no one judges you for what you like.

That’s what freedom is all about.

Watching that heartwarming moment unfold, I couldn’t help but smile—

—only to scream in horror a few days later, when a massive box [N O V E L I G H T] arrived at our front door filled with an endless stream of princess figurines.