Nexus Awakened (An Isekai LitRPG Gender Bender Story)

Thirty minutes ago.

Frost arrived at the Larin Empire’s Capital: Grace: with her apparel intact. A part of her was still not used to its self-repairing capabilities even though it has been some time since Enoch installed it.

It also gave her peace of mind knowing that the Coat of Sanguine Prejudice could not be destroyed as long as she had more than 1% of her total blood. Earlier, she ran into a gauntlet of the Clot when she passed by a nearby city.

It should not have been a problem for her. However, with Frost being the experimental person she was: she ended up taking her newfound Atelier-based Abilities for a spin. Specifically, [Teleportation Wavelength].

“Hmmmmnnnnghhh… Pwaaaaah.”

A puff of vapor left her lips as she made an adorable sound, and then aptly patted her shoulder. Frost was the type of person to proclaim her failures, so she did not feel any shame when she lost an arm after misusing [Teleportation Wavelength] with one of her bullets.

What she did not realize with [Teleportation Wavelength] was that items she teleported could appear anywhere within a certain proximity of herself. This proximity was determined by the weight and velocity of the object.

For instance, the teleportation range of a sheathed weapon was anywhere from twenty to one hundred meters.

With a bullet, however, the margin of error was virtually nonexistent. Five meters at most with her own bullets.

So how did she end up lobbing off her own arm?

Because teleporting a bullet in three-dimensional space whilst altering its trajectory was a nightmare. [Foresight] made this appear easy but pulling it off was akin to aiming a laser though multiple mirrors.

Frankly speaking, it was a matter of energy expenditure. It required more energy out of Frost to redirect the bullet: as she foresaw: rather than to simply tank it and heal herself. It was a frightening prospect since as a human, it was natural to do everything in one’s power to avoid taking damage.

On one hand, she felt like she should be concerned. On the other, it was the privilege of a Healer. Besides, her wife wasn’t present to tell her otherwise.

“Is there a section in the Nexus Code of Conduct that has a verdict on snitching?”

Nope, but nothing is stopping the Nexus from punishing you retrospectively.

“Isn’t that a bit unfair for those of us with long lives? What is legal now may be a crime a hundred years later.”

Too bad Nav. You snitch to Jury, and you might find yourself short on cupcakes.

< -_- >

< I’ll send her a message saying that her wife might need a hand later >

Bantering with Nav was one of the few ways Frost passed the time when she was off adventuring on her own. She couldn’t ask for a better companion, even if it was somewhat difficult telling whether she was joking half the time.

Nav had a witty, dry sense of humor which Frost adored. Unfortunately, it also made her hard to read.

Frost ventured through the empty vineyards that led towards an unguarded gate as she dismissed the thought. She had arrived at one of the many entrances into Grace. Surprisingly, there didn’t seem to be any semblance of activity as far as she could tell.

Not only this, but the gate was left opened. Although, it would not have kept outsiders from reaching the city, since the city itself had an open design. The way bridges were layered on top of one another and integrated with pillars, buildings, hallways, and aqueducts reminded Frost of a bird’s nest from afar.

“It looked like a solid piece of stone a few minutes ago. I could see it being mistaken for a giant rock. Think that was the design philosophy behind Grace?”

“I sincerely doubt it.”

“Exactly. Mary’s the type of ruler to boast. And you know what, this city is one of the more impressive ones. Can’t even see the sky from down here.”

The sky was concealed by layers of interlocking bridges and empty laundry lines, plunging the city into a state of artificial dusk especially in the lower layers. No matter the world or tale, Vampires seemed to always be allergic to sunlight.

“Shall we deliver a clove of garlic to your location via the Star Cannon?”

“Don’t bother, please. Only some Vampires are weakened by sunlight. Nobels predominantly. The Redfiends were full of useless trivia.” Frost noticed a rack of exquisitely made parasols on one street.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

They would have been used by both the noble men and women to walk during daylight. Her face morphed into a solemn expression when she saw collars connected to chains lining the walls next to the parasols.

Light distorted around the parasols, the same way flames distorted an image with rippling heatwaves. It eventually stabilized into a perfect image. A border of gold separated the illusion from reality, making it appear like a cutout in space.

In that image were well-dressed Vampires shackled to the wall. They could neither stand nor speak. Their sole purpose was to purvey the parasols to passing nobles, who did not so much as spare an ounce of acknowledgement.

They were integrated into the walls like décor. Sleep was a luxury that came once every eight days, and food depended on the generosity of the nobles. What they were allowed to eat were the scraps that nobles happened to carry on them, be it crumbs, pocket lint, or the scabs of dried blood.

[Interrogating Clock] was an Ability of Frost, hence why she did not require the Interrogating Clock to survey the past. It took her aback, since the [Interrogating Clock] only revealed events that produced the strongest source of Nex.

For it to be this, despite the seemingly genuine smiles the Vampires wore, pained her.

How much turmoil brewed in their hearts prior to the plague?

Now, even in death, they serve the same Queen and her people.

* * *

But the Queen’s people were nowhere to be found.

Neither above ground nor under. Her ability to track the Light in people’s hearts had a range of approximately one hundred meters. It was more for those with higher Light quality. She searched far and wide, beginning from the top where she wandered through bridges that crossed artificial rivers containing trace amounts of Mary’s blood.

Her perspective of Grace being a nest gradually shifted to a three-dimensional spider’s web. The bridges layered over each other like a messy box of pencils, making it impossible to tell where she was. Signs did little to help with directions, since they were given names rather than numbers to account for what level the lane was.

To make matters worse, the concrete landmasses were not leveled with one another. Frost had to wonder whether the architect was sane when they designed Grace. Then again, the city was built on the foundations of the past which… no. Even Frost at her most deluded could not defend this.

She wasn’t an architect or a city planner, and she knew there were certainly better ways to build a city. Listing them would only tire her. Her legs moved automatically, leading her through hallways that led to gardens, housing districts, and an elevated area dedicated to pets.

Still, there was not a single speck of life. Clumps of fur rolled along this place like tumbleweed. It was evident that tragedy had struck these poor animals. No matter where she went the air remained stagnant, with the bitter undertone of stale blood.

This was despite Grace being built like an open labyrinth. However, it was also because of this that the air could rarely cycle with the outside, causing it to loop through the city itself. Hallways became claustrophobic, especially in the middle layers where one could not tell how deep they were in the city.

The only exception Frost found were the buildings in the north that belonged to families of powerful nobles. Gothic-inspired manors were built on empty plots of land with access to the sky. But Frost could barely call it an upgrade.

She leaned out of a balcony and stared out into the city. The same, red-tinted notes of the city loomed in the background. How could they not feel trapped? It was suffocating. Perhaps they saw the city as a safety net.

Frost deeply exhaled and left the manor. Its riches, the beautiful paintings and elaborate chandeliers did little to catch her attention. She had been exploring for several minutes now and had not found any clues to Mary’s whereabouts.

So, she resorted to using other methods of tracking.

“Of the twelve animals of the zodiac, there is one with the keenest senses.”

A pair of wolf ears grew from her skull. Traces of golden fur tipped those ears. If she were to stand side by side with Cer, then she would not be able to beat the mother and daughter allegations.

[Zodiac Sign] allowed her to manifest the characteristics and features of one of twelve creatures. Her sense of smell heightened, and she gained a slight boost in her AGI. Furthermore, she grew fangs and a beautifully fluffy wolf tail.

Although, the tail was derived from another Ability: [Misunderstood Tale], from the Vestment of Goodwill.

Wrath and the desire to hunt down Mary caused a bushy tail to sprout from her tailbone. It wasn’t connected physically, since there was about a few centimeters of space that separated them. Streaks of golden fur ran along its length, and it curled into itself before drooping behind her.

Her ears twitched, and it stretched alongside her as she used a nearby railing to crack her back. One, three, seven distinct pops rang. Once done, she began walking from the manor with renewed vigor, and she exuded an air of ferocity not normally associated with herself.

Her tail swayed behind her with each step, lightly tapping her hips.

“Ain’t that a sight. Look at that. Looks the road leading up to the Golden Guild, huh?”

The characteristics of a wolf poisoned her personality. She walked with exaggerated swagger as though untouchable. And she wouldn’t be wrong to believe this. Frost knew that she was nigh invincible, but as a human, she liked to act reserved.

She entered an enormous plaza where statues of nobles were erected to celebrate their contributions to the Larin Empire. Red bricks pathed every inch of the plaza, and there were countless fountains littered across.

Her lips curved smugly as she investigated a statue.

“Random thought, but hasn’t Lailah been silent for a while? Makes you wonder if she’s hiding something.”

“Do you hate machines that much?”

“Hey, a little trust goes a long way. Maybe she’s bottling something in and doesn’t want to talk about it. You know, like with me. I bet she’ll feel better if she starts talking about what’s on her mind.”

“Why are you singling out Lailah specifically?”

“Dunno. Her name happened to come into mind.”

There was no pretense for the thought.

She happened upon it as she pinched tiny chunks of granite and began munching on it like rock candy. Since most of the materials in the Capital were infused with trace amounts of blood, it did well to satisfy her hunger, which had been massively exacerbated as a wolf.

Speaking of which–

The Tail of the Big Bad Wolf

< Born into the role of a villain and forced to play the cards of a murderer. Come the time when the wolf avenges its loved ones, and the hunters deem it a beast. Violence breeds violence. The sins of their fathers passed down through bloodshed. What is deemed just in the eyes of the wolf is a crime to the girl. The cycle of hatred shall continue ever more >

ORIGIN : Folklore< EFFECT: Increase reflexes and instinctual drives. May clash with your personality. Greatly enhances sensory organs and increases the chance of a Realization Criteria for Wrath-Attribute Corrupted. Slightly increases the chance of Realization for Attachment-Attribute Corrupted >

HP : 2,500,000