The room lights were dimmed, with only a desk lamp casting a pale blue glow. A Twitter DM screen was open on the monitor, showing Guest's icon. Ryota stared at the screen for a while, deleting and rewriting the message he had started many times.

His circle name was "Noir Briar," meaning black thorns. He drew original short manga with dark fantasy themes, including some adult elements. He usually operated under the name "Briar" and rarely used his real name. He was well-built and tall, with short black hair and eyes that looked somewhat intimidating. He knew that at Comiket, his appearance worked against him, making it difficult for customers to approach the booth.

Only the sound of fingers tapping on the keyboard echoed in the quiet room.

It took over five minutes before he finally hit the send button. The moment the notification sound rang, Ryota let out a long breath. He could hear his own heartbeat, loud and clear. He didn't even know if this message, sent from an account with no profile picture to a popular cosplayer, would even be read.

Stacked beside the desk were freshly printed sample copies. The cover featured the silhouette of a woman draped in thorns against a dark forest background. Ryota traced it with his finger and looked at the screen again. Time passed, and the message remained unread.