Chapter 1

Seven seconds to midnight… six…

Here it is… the latest news from Web Dive’s midnight update is…

… ……

A… A PATIBATO COLLAB CAFEEE!?!?

(Shit, I yelled on impulse, is Muuchan—)

Zzz… zzz…

(—No, I didn’t wake him. Thank god he’s a deep sleeper…)

Sigh… so? When is it? Where? What new merch will there be? Why is that info always released later? No, maybe just a little bit at a time is better for my heart…?

… Well, all I can do now is spam my priv.

(Though, if I had any fellow otaku to talk about it with…)

(No, most people aren’t as into it as I am. And it’d be a pain for our relationship to sour from different interpretations.)

Phew… my throat’s all dry from excitement. I’ll go grab a drink.

(…? The lights are still on. Is someone here?)

Do this here, a little bit there, thread through like this, nfufufufu…

(K-Karigane-san…? It looks like he’s making costumes again, but his hands are moving so fast that the afterimages make him look like an Ashura¹… that’s so uncanny, I’ll just slide on by…)

Hm… I fear this fabric may be rather chilly when worn.

What do you think, Kurama-kun?

Nyah!? You noticed so quickly… also, the fact you knew it was me without even looking gives me the creeps…

It may not be exam season, but staying up without reason is poison for your body.

…I was doing something important to me. Also, midnight doesn’t count as “late”.

Excuse me then. Do forgive my needless concern.

Well, I don’t expect you to get it, so I’ll just drop by the kitchen and head back to my room.

Is that so? How about taking a breather here for a late-night change of pace? I was just thinking of having a small break myself.

Sigh…

(I can’t tell what this guy’s intentions are, so I’d rather keep my distance… but, the costume he’s making right now is…)

Um, is this… a character from that super famous TCG? “Malice of the Guardians²"… I think it was.

Oh my, are you familiar with it?

The popular rare cards go for so much that collectors started keeping them in safes… …or something like that, I think I might’ve seen it on SpiNet.

Indeed. This is a cosplay of the "Crying Red Demon” that appears in MotG… a red demon with striking tears of blood.

Huh… the resemblance is so good that even someone who doesn’t know it that well like me could recognise it.

Thank you. However, I fear I may have chosen fabric that’s too thin.

Though I suppose it can’t be helped, as I split the budget to accomodate the weapon.

Wha… you made this weapon yourself too? It’s a metal club, but this… isn’t real metal, is it…?

Oh! You can tell? Replicating the texture was my biggest fixation this time. Those who aren’t familiar with cosplay tend to look only at the costume, but you—

No… it just happened to catch my eye…

(Shit, I’ll out myself as an otaku if I say too much…! I’ve gotta change the subject…)

Anyway, why are you making a costume like this? Has the subject come up with Hama Tours or something…?

Not at all. This is something I’m creating for personal use.

!

(Making a cosplay of a TCG character for personal use…? No way…)

Um… Karigane-san—

Yes?

Are you… an otaku…?