Mangaket

Mangaket was the largest doujinshi convention in Japan, drawing hundreds of thousands of attendees, and this event was no different. The convention center was absolutely packed. You could barely walk.

It was a sight to behold, however. The energy at the event was unlike anything Naoki had ever experienced. The display, the books, the cosplayers, it was almost like he had been transported to another world.

For better or worse, however, Naoki wasn’t here to peruse. He was there on a mission.

His head was on a swivel as he weaved through the convention. He was looking, but hadn’t seen any suspicious characters.

Yoji had said around ten Ghosts would be present. A part of him wished that they had all chickened out and stayed home, but he knew that even if that was the case, they had spent too many resources on this operation for that to be a satisfying conclusion. Arrests had to be made, hopefully without escalation.

Although that didn’t seem too likely.

Especially since they were involved.

Naoki had only found out the day before that the 7th Squadron would be participating in this operation.

Opinions on the 7th Squadron were divisive both within the SSU and amongst the populace.

There wasn’t any doubt that they were the most efficient members of the SSU. Any Ghost they set their sights on was neutralized without fail, but that came with a price. They were loose cannons. Collateral damage was almost an expectation for them at this point, and the SSU’s PR department was practically dedicated to cleaning up their messes.

But their efficacy could not be denied, so they had become an integral part of the SSU.

Not to mention, their members had friends in high places who would always give their grace.

However, Naoki had a particular issue with them, or more accurately an issue with one of them…

“Naoki!” He recognized that voice all too well, and as he turned around, he was immediately pulled into a headlock.

This was Yukari Akayama, the captain of the 7th Squadron and a childhood friend of Naoki’s. She was tall, aggressive, eccentric, and nothing but trouble for as long as he’d known her.

“Get off, we’re supposed to be undercover!” Naoki protested.

“Don’t worry about it!” She released Naoki, pushing him against a nearby table much to the ire of the vendor.

After apologizing, Naoki turned his attention back over to Yukari, scowling. With a low voice, he asked, “Why’d you even join this mission?”

“I can’t believe it.” She pouted. “I thought you’d be happy to see me again.”

The 7th Squadron did indeed hold considerable sway. They joined this mission at the behest of Yukari, although there was another important reason…

“Whatever, just go away…” Naoki was about to try and shake her off when he saw yet another person he recognized.

It was Akemi who was looking through an event guide. Naoki tried to shrink away, but the crowd had become too thick. Only a second later, Akemi noticed Naoki out of the corner of his eye.

“Naoki?” He called out before walking over. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Yeah, neither did I…”

“Well, if you need a recommendation, there’s an Asuna doujin over there that I’m sure is right up your alley.”

“Uh, I’m good.”

“Hey, Naoki, who’s your friend?” Yukari had appeared behind her childhood friend, eyeballing Akemi.

“Akemi Kashima.” He gave a slight bow. “We’re in the same class.”

“Ah, nice to meet you. I’m Yukari Akayama, I–” She was about to blab out everything else until Naoki shot her a venomous look. “I…work in the same field as Naoki.”

Naoki groaned in frustration. Discretion was an unknown concept to Yukari.

“I’m also Naoki’s childhood friend!” She poked his cheek.

“Naoki, you’re friends with Yukari Akayama? The captain of the 7th Squadron AND the deputy prime minister’s daughter? I didn’t know your family were such hotshots.”

“It’s no big deal…” Naoki sighed. Akemi had put the pieces together himself.

“Whatever you say.” Akemi put his hand on his chin. “But what are you guys even doing here?”

“Well, I’m here looking for someone special…” A hopeful but wistful crossed Yukari’s face.

“Oh, really?” Akemi looked intrigued. “Who is this special someone?”

“My one true love, of course! You see,” Yukari began, “I never joined the Special Security Unit for justice… I joined for love…”

“How romantic.” Akemi smirked. “It must’ve taken quite the man to steal your heart.”

“Indeed…” She looked down and smiled. Leaning in, almost whispering, she said to Akemi, “Have you ever heard of the Ghost?”

Naoki sighed in defeat, utterly exhausted. He had completely given up on trying to hold Yukari back.

Akemi crossed his arms. “You mean the terrorists?”

“No, of course not. I mean the original Ghost. The one who wrote the poem and released the open-source version of Helel.” She clasped her hands together as she looked up, almost like she was praying. “I’ve found myself truly infatuated with this man.”

“How is that even possible? Isn’t his identity unknown? Have you met him?”

“Of course I’ve never met him. But…” She closed her eyes and put her hand on her heart. “The kind of man who inspired the people in such a way, gave the power to summon demons to anyone.” She smiled. “He must be very interesting. I just know it.”

Akemi’s lip twitched. “Then does that mean you think he’s at this very convention?”

She smirked. “I guess the cat’s out of the bag… That’s right, we have intel that suggests he may be here at this very convention.”

This part caught Naoki’s interest. He certainly hadn’t heard that from Yoji. But as for the rest, Naoki couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He had heard this ridiculousness from Yukari more than once, and it was especially bad this time since she was blowing their cover.

Akemi on the other hand had been almost amused by Yukari, although his smile had faded slightly…

***

Yoji was still monitoring the dark web chatroom that had been used to organize this Ghost meetup. So far the operation was going according to plan. However, a message popped up from a username he didn’t recognize that suddenly threw a wrench into everything.

EVERYBODY! THE SSU IS AT MANGAKET! CANCEL THE MEETUP AND LEAVE AS SOON AND AS DISCREETLY AS POSSIBLE!

After cursing to himself, Yoji quickly informed the 7th Squadron and the rest of the 9th Squadron. He knew that things were about to get very messy.