Ch.212Episode 40. Cosplay at Home (3)

“Wow… I’m already tired.”

The enormous crowd was already draining my energy. I might be developing social anxiety that I never had before.

“There are so many people today too! When you see crowds bustling like this, it really shows how amazing subculture is. Don’t you think?”

“Yeah. Sure.”

“It feels like it’s been a while since we stood in a regular line!”

“Yeah, sure…”

Despite my emotionless responses, Yeonhwa didn’t seem to mind.

She was actually so excited that she was humming beside me. Just being here seemed to energize her, and her smile never faded. Looking at her beaming face, I could only manage a bitter smile.

While I was getting irritated by the distinctive unpleasant smell coming from all these people.

“Yeonhwa.”

“Yes?”

“Can I put my nose against your neck?”

My only salvation was the strawberry scent coming from Gu Yeonhwa’s body.

“W-what?!”

Her face, momentarily blank from my words, suddenly turned bright red. She quickly covered her neck defensively.

“I-I-I cannot allow such indecent behavior in a p-public place…!”

“Really?”

“Yes! You’re a hero after all… I expect you to behave like one…!”

I chuckled and nodded as she admonished me.

“…Alright. Then let’s quickly buy what we need and head back.”

Maybe it was because of summer, but the smell of sweat was making me dizzy. I was starting to think fighting villains would be less exhausting than this.

After standing there talking with Yeonhwa for a few hours, people near the entrance finally started going in one by one.

Finally, we’re going in.

Just like when I was standing in line last year, I couldn’t understand why these people would wait in line for so long just to get in here.

They’re really serious about their hobbies…

But seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces as they entered, I could at least understand that this was something that brought them happiness.

“Shall we go in?”

“Yes!”

Yeonhwa seemed to have specific items in mind, efficiently making purchases even while being swept up in the crowd. I followed behind her, taking the items she bought and neatly arranging them in the shopping bags.

“Ah~ This is so cute! I love it!”

Yeonhwa exclaimed while unfolding a scroll poster. I wish she would say those words to me.

“Oh yes, indeed. Making something like this must have taken a lot of effort.”

“You know about this? Making this really…”

It was amazing to see how she could walk around with such a bright face, chat with vendors, and instantly become friends with them.

After exchanging a few words, she even received some free items. What incredible social skills.

Yeonhwa approached me with small, excited steps like a child and showed me a plush doll made in an SD style with chubby cheeks.

It looked like a cute caricature of Nishimori Kana, whom Yeonhwa had cosplayed before.

“Oppa! Oppa! What do you think of this? Isn’t it cute?”

“Yeah. It’s cute.”

“Don’t look at my face when you say that. I’m asking if the doll is cute!”

She held the doll in front of her face as she spoke. Was it my imagination that her ears looked red?

“It’s cute.”

“Right~? Hehe! I got something good! It’ll make my dorm room so much livelier! Don’t you think?”

“I don’t know about livelier… but it’s not bad.”

“Hehe. You seem to know something. Then! Here’s a question!”

“…A question?”

“Do you know this character’s name?”

“…Isn’t it Nishimori Kana?”

“That’s correct.”

She held out the doll to me and said:

“If you didn’t know, I was going to sentence you to mandatory anime rewatching.”

What the heck is mandatory anime rewatching…

Was she planning to force me to watch anime until I at least memorized the character names?

“Now! Let’s move on!”

She hugged the doll and pointed to a distant spot. Seems like we still have more places to visit.

Somehow, I felt like a boyfriend accompanying his girlfriend on a shopping trip at a department store.

But since I agreed to accompany her, I should see it through to the end.

* * *

After whirlwind touring through the venue, I was sitting on a bench resting while Yeonhwa went to the bathroom.

By the way, why did she buy so many things? It’s not like she’s picking out 3,000 won clothes at a market.

From what I could tell, she must have spent hundreds of thousands of won. Considering she spent tens of thousands at almost every booth, her spending was quite substantial.

“Oppa, I’m back.”

As I was peeking inside the shopping bags, Yeonhwa approached and called out to me.

“Do you have more places to go?”

“Hmm. I’d like to see the event stage too…”

Just as Yeonhwa was mumbling while looking toward the stage area, I overheard some nearby women whispering.

“Hey, doesn’t that person look familiar?”

“Yeah? Where have we seen him before?”

Yeonhwa must have heard them too, as she turned her head in their direction. After making eye contact with the unfamiliar women, she whispered to me.

“W-what should we do? People are starting to recognize the #1 hero. You really are amazing.”

“Is this really the time to be impressed?”

“No, it’s not. Let’s get out of here. We’ll be discovered.”

Despite wearing a hat and mask in this hot weather, it seems I couldn’t completely disguise myself.

Still, since we were already here, I wanted to fulfill all of Yeonhwa’s wishes.

“Didn’t you say you wanted to see the event stage?”

“W-we can see that another time. Let’s leave before things get noisy. We won’t be able to have a proper date at this rate.”

“Oh? So you wanted to have a proper date?”

“I-is that really important right now?!”

As Yeonhwa raised her voice in embarrassment, we attracted even more attention.

“Fine, let’s just get out of here quickly.”

She grabbed my wrist and led the way. I quickly gathered our bags before being pulled along.

Her hurried, large strides only stopped when we reached the parking lot.

Does she realize how much attention she drew while pulling me along?

Probably not. She just walked straight ahead with determination.

Yeonhwa released my wrist and naturally linked her arm with mine while snorting indignantly.

“Seriously, we can’t enjoy things properly! I can’t really blame those people since they didn’t mean any harm, but I’m still a bit upset!”

Considering how long we waited in line, we left quite early, but I actually thought it worked out well. I didn’t want to stay there too long anyway.

“Are you angry?”

“I’m not angry. Just disappointed.”

This is how it will always be when we date from now on.

Being the #1 hero means attracting everyone’s attention and interest just by standing there.

That’s why I tried my best not to stand out, but it seems it was inevitable if I wanted to bring down Akcheon.

It seems like retiring as a hero would be the right choice if I want to spend peaceful everyday moments with them.

I’ve been constantly wondering whether I should continue being a hero or not, and today, the answer finally seemed clear.

Of course, even if I retire as a hero, the attention won’t stop immediately. But after a few years, when someone new takes the top hero position, I’ll gradually be forgotten.

“But you bought everything you wanted, right?”

“Well… yes, but… my still-plump wallet is burping with regret!”

I chuckled as I watched her repeatedly opening and closing her wallet.

“Alright, alright. Then let’s go have a normal date to make up for your disappointment.”

“…Okay. Let’s… date.”

Yeonhwa’s shy response was refreshingly innocent. I gently patted her head before opening the car door.

“I’ll put the bags in the back seat. Are there any fragile items?”

I asked while opening the rear door and loading the bags.

“No, there aren’t.”

“Get in the car. It’s hot.”

“Ugh! The car is super hot too…!”

She quickly pulled her hand away after touching the seat.

The car had been parked under the sun for a long time, making the interior air as hot as a sauna.

“…You’re right.”

I got in the car and turned the air conditioning to maximum. Yeonhwa, unable to bear the sun’s heat outside, also got in.

“Gah! I can’t breathe. This temperature is stronger than even my dark transformation…!”

When you observe her, Yeonhwa seems like someone who would entertain herself well even when left alone. And she actually does.

“So where are we planning to go?”

Yeonhwa asked while fastening her seatbelt.

I took out my phone while keeping my foot on the brake. As I searched for the address of a cold noodle restaurant I had researched earlier, I said:

“Let’s have lunch, play outside for a bit, and then head home.”

“Hmm. Sounds good. Feels like we’ll be able to make the most of the day.”

“By the way, what time should we get home if you want to do cosplay?”

“Well, if I need to prepare and take photos, we should probably get home before dinner.”

“Then let’s just order delivery for dinner at home.”

“Sounds good. Let’s do that.”

She readily agreed and took out her phone, seemingly about to text Michelle.

“Then I should let mom know I’ll be home after dinner.”

Currently, Michelle was living in a temporary house provided by the Association since her home had been badly damaged during a villain attack.

Yeonhwa often visited her on weekends out of concern.

“Huh? Weren’t you going to stay overnight?”

“…What?”

Yeonhwa reacted as if hearing this for the first time. She blinked blankly, processing my words, and then seemed to malfunction.

“Ah, um… Ah! W-well…!”

Her face flushed bright red and her eyes darted around. I watched her obvious agitation with a straight face.

In situations like this, it’s best not to show any reaction.

The more nonchalant you appear, the better.

“Um… that…”

“My house has plenty of rooms. You can stay over.”

The priority was to reassure her.

Even if she wasn’t thinking about spending the night with me, a subtle hint would be enough.

If Yeonhwa felt she couldn’t do it today, I could wait and observe like I did with Bin-yoon.

“B-but still… that… t-that means what I think it means, right?”

“…What do you think it means?”

I deliberately teased her with my question.

For someone as inexperienced and shy as her, it was important to maintain an attitude that this was no big deal.

“…Pervert.”

That was what Yeonhwa finally said after keeping her mouth shut for a while.

She turned off her phone screen. The fact that she didn’t send the text meant that she wasn’t opposed to such a situation.

I smiled with satisfaction as I shifted gears.

“That’s all I needed to hear. Shall we go?”

Yeonhwa didn’t answer verbally, but she was nodding her head.