Nexus Awakened (An Isekai LitRPG Gender Bender Story)

“Who dis!?”

“Mini Jury!? Like the Mini Frost!?”

“Waaaaah! She looks so soft!”

“Hey, eh? I can’t see! Lemme see!”

“She can’t be a Mini Jury! She has Frost’s hair!”

“But she has Jury’s teeth!”

“Look closer! She has both their eyes!”

“Oooooh!”

“You’re right!”

“Wooooh!?”

“I thought she was a baby Black Wing!”

“Jury! Frost! Who is she!? She looks just like you!”

“Yeah! What’s her name!?”

Over a hundred White Doves flocked around Joy like birds to the only crumb in the park. Hundreds of sky-blue eyes stared at the girl who found herself hoisted up from underneath her arms. Her eyes were wide, and she held up the sleeves of her oversized coat to hide her face.

“G-Gam…!”

“Aaaawwww!”

“She speaks!”

“What was that squeak!?”

The Healers further crowded around Joy, hoping to get a closer look at the new girl.

“Hey, be nice to her.” Jury hummed as she gracefully set Joy down. “it’s ok~ These girls are Healers. Like mama.”

“Malgam…?”

As expected, the mention of ‘mama’ sparked a commotion among the Healers. Few suspected that this girl was related to Frost and Jury solely by her appearance. But there was not enough proof to confirm this.

However, Jury inadvertently confirmed it, causing countless mouths to form giant ‘O’s.

“OOOOOOOOOO!”

“MAMA!?”

“REALLY!?”

“CONGRATULATIONS!”

“JURY! FROST! WHO IS THE MOTHER!?”

“How silly.” Frost interjected, quelling their overly enthusiastic choir with the wave of a hand. “It’s both of us.”

This only sparked more confusion.

“How does that work?”

“But someone has to be the one to deliver, right?”

“It couldn’t have been Frost, could it? She didn’t have a big belly before…”

“Was it Jury!?”

“No way! Jury’s belly was big because she finished the leftover brownies that time, remember!?”

“Then who!?”

Frost gave Jury a look that said: “Don’t make unnecessary comments.” Despite this, Jury began fidgeting in place as her tail wiggled behind her. Though she didn’t say a word, this still caused the Healers’ eyes to sparkle as their imaginations ran wild.

Few even began to bleed from their noses.

“Jury, we’re going to have a long talk after this.” Frost murmured as maintained an innocent smile. “Ahem. Please don’t overwhelm Joy. She’s not used to being around people.”

“Joy!” A Healer cried before eight different hands slapped her mouth shut. “Mmmwowwwy (Sorry).”

“Aaww… Sorry, Joy.”

“Did we scare you?”

“G-gam…”

Joy’s eyes were trained to her legs. She didn’t know where else to put them. As a Corrupted that once murdered those who locked eyes with it, she was afraid to make eye contact with people. Her stomach churned as nervous hands withdrew to her chest, not knowing what to do.

“Joy finds it hard to look at people in the eye.” Frost’s voice alleviated her nervousness.

Suddenly, flower wreaths were held just outside of Joy’s vision. Between them were fingers that were either smaller or slightly larger than hers. Curiously, she drew her eyes upwards and noticed how similarly sized many of these Healers were in comparison to her.

“Malgam…”

“You’re not used to being with people your size either, huh.” A firm hand stroked her head. “They won’t hurt you. It’s ok. Everyone here just wants to welcome you. Hold out your hand.”

“Mal…”

Flower bracelets gently slipped onto her hand. They dangled loosely at her wrists, and they naturally drew her eyes further upwards until she finally made eye contact with one of the Healers. She reflexively darted her eyes away. The Healer did not pursue or pressure Joy. Rather, she simply held out her hand, hoping for Joy to take it.

“Is Frost really your mom?”

“Jury too?”

“That sort of makes us the same, doesn’t it?”

“Gam…?”

This caught Joy’s attention. While she knew that the Healers called Frost their ‘mother’, she didn’t believe it was literal. At least, the way people spoke about it made it seem like it was a formality more than anything. Then again, with how emotional Frost became for the twins, she should have figured it was more than mere formality.

Hearing this caused her to acknowledge their eyes again, only for her to glance back down at her legs.

“That makes us sisters! One of us! One of us!”

“Joy is a wonderful name~! Hurray for Joy!”

“Can we play with her, Frost!? Jury!? We’ll be careful!”

“Wanna go snacking on the crop fields!?”

“I bet she’d like to look at the valley first!”

“Awww! But she looks hungry!”

Joy became flustered. She wasn’t used to this kind of attention, and she could not help but look over to Frost and Jury for help. Frost giggled at her and wore an assuring look that caused her to relax.

“Girls! We have the Coronation Ceremony first!” Jury exclaimed with a deafening clap. “You can show her around afterwards.”

“Nooo! Ilya will take over if we wait!”

“At least let us say hello to Frost!”

Frost was already bending a knee for her Healers. Every time she returned to the Nexus she would be swarmed by hundreds of them. And then, as per usual, countless flower wreaths were put on her body until she resembled a walking Christmas tree.

“G-Gam…” Joy gasped.

It was a stifled laugh, and she quickly cupped her mouth apologetically. She thought it was rude of her to have found it funny.

However…

“Hahahaha.”

Frost’s heartly laugh said otherwise. She had seen how Frost interacted with the Beholders and her companions. While there was certainly a degree of aloofness, Frost had always maintained a professional air. But here, on the Floor of Amalgamation, she acted as if she had no title to bear, nor any responsibilities resting on her shoulders.

She was as free-spirited as she was whenever she had a heart to heart with Joy.

“Afterwards, then!”

“Mhm! After!”

“We’ll come and get you Joy!”

The Healers dispersed and began filling the seats of the amphitheater. In the meantime, several familiar faces came to greet Frost.

“It’s so nice to see you here again.”

This voice belonged to the blonde-haired Aster. Her starlit eyes glistened as they stared absently in Frost’s direction. Her eyesight was not perfect ever since she returned from Corruption, but it was still manageable thanks to the pair of glasses she now wore.

“It’s Frost! And Jury! And… Was her name Joy? Hello Joy!”

A tiny voice spoke as a hand reached out towards Joy. Except that her hand didn’t go anywhere near Joy. A nearby Nav paused to comment: “To your right.”

“Oh! Right here!? Hello!”

“Gam?”

“Yup! Sorry! You have a new cadence so I can’t tell where you are exactly, haha! I can tell for Frost and Jury because of their scent!”

“What are you, a dog?” Nav wittily commented, causing the girl to laugh.

“Nope! Very human! As human as can be! Ruff!” She reciprocated with unfathomably childish energy. “Let’s get along, Joy! I may not be able to see, but you can always rely on me and big sis Aster!”

“Mhm. We’ll show you around afterwards. Ilya will definitely want to see you too.”

“Ily…a?”

“My daughter.” Michaela, who had been hovering nearby for some time now, decided it was time to make her presence known.

Joy made a face that screamed: “You have a daughter!?!?!?!?”, which amused Michaela.

“She’s still busy helping the Fragment of the Captured Star fit in. We still have yet to arrive with a name for her. She’s been providing a substantial amount of Light for the Nexus. That said, do enjoy your time here, little Joy.”

“I’ll see that she gets the best of the best! You got a daughter! I’m so happy for you! And um, I don’t mean see for real, haha!” Stella awkwardly scratched the back of her head.

Now that Joy realized it, Stella walked with a long stick pointed in front of her feet. Not only that, but she didn’t seem to know where to look when she was speaking. At first, she believed Stella had the same problem as her, but upon further inspection, she understood that the girl was blind.

“Mn. I wouldn’t count on that for much longer.”

A stern voice cut through the commotion. It was young voice that carried the authority of a higher being. Joy expected to be greeted by a tall, overbearing figure but was surprised to be met with a red-haired girl who was followed by an ensemble of colorful slimes.

“Ignis~!” Frost hummed, instantly moving to pat her head, as did Jury.

“How are you~?”

“Mn. Never been better. Today is a good day.”

“Because of the ceremony, right~?” Jury praised.

Ignis softly smiled.

“That too. But you’re both here. Mn. Don’t like it when you’re both away on missions.”

“Ignis, you’re going to kill us with your cuteness~”

“If you want, then I can just send my Alter Frosts to do the hard work for me.”

“Mn… I didn’t say I wasn’t happy.” Ignis’ tail happily curled as she nuzzled into their head pats.

Ignis’ appearance was much different than usual. Gone was the Ignis who wore nothing but a red two-piece suit. Ignis now wore a red, tucked buttoned shirt and black baggy pants that ended just at her ankles. The pants were secured halfway up her torso, making her lower half look much longer than it was.

On her shoulders was a white, unbuttoned doctor’s coat with loose, baggy sleeves that hid her hands. Along the sleeves and the length of her white coat were crimson eyes. A pendant was also worn around her waist, which also contained an eye.

“Matching with Aster.” Ignis said proudly in her usual, serious voice as she tapped her round glasses.

Then, she flicked her hair – which were now a pair of flowing twin tails held by two yellow ribbon – and folded her arms.

“And matching with baby Res.”

“Baby Res was still an adult, you know?” Frost laughed.

“Mn. Infant Res?”

“Tiny Res. She’ll get mad if she hears you calling her that.”

“Understood.”

Joy couldn’t read Ignis’ face for the life of her. Her face was so stoic that she had to wonder if her face was stuck in perpetual scorn. Suddenly, Ignis plucked one of the purple slimes behind her – one that had cat ears and a face that went >_< – and offered it to Joy.

“Mal…gam?”

“Nope. It’s not Frost.”

“Gam?”

“Not gum. Pat it. Slimes are friends. Slime Queen allows it. Mn.”

Joy gave it a cautious poke. Suddenly, her avian ears perked up, and she began squishing the slime. Its firm exterior contrasted with its gelatinous, soft interior which seemed to melt around her fingers. Not only that, but it was refreshingly cool, and she could not help but toy with the Slime as it made all kinds of strange faces.

“Do you like slimes?” Ignis asked innocently.

“G-Gam!”

A warm smile then stretched across her face. It was extremely effective. One can imagine how the sun would feel after days of being in the dark. Ignis’ smiles had the same effect, simply because it was so rare and out of the norm.

“I’m very happy you think so. Mn. When the couriers system starts to roll out… I hope people will make the same face as you, Joy. Slimes are very misunderstood. Do you want another?”

“Gam!” Joy shook her head, content with the purple one.

“Not greedy. I like her.”

“Malgam!”

“She likes you too.” Frost smiled.

Now that their introductions were out of the way, Frost used the silence as a segway to get into the reason why they were gathered here in the first place.

“Are you ready, Ignis? You can still pull out if you want to. There is no obligation or pressure on your part.”

“Mn. I’ve already decided to go ahead. I want to help the Nexus and the Nex Megalopolis to prosper. Don’t want it to stagnate. I have this power. Don’t want another Divas Pass.” Ignis said, stroking the head of a slime that sat on her shoulder. “You understand.”

“I do. Know that we’ll support you at every step of the way. The Beholders will too.”

“Not that they have a choice.” Cer stated as she and her sisters arrived just as the last few Healers finished being seated. “Here she is. Today’s main character. Heh. I remember when you were just a little smidge on Frost’s shoulder too~”

“Mn. I remember when you were just a stinky dog.”

“So, she’s learned how to bite back! Good attitude. Gonna need it, kid. Beholders don’t fu- mess around. Ahem. You got this. Not like you gotta put on airs or a speech. Frost has you covered.”

“Mn. That’s largely why I’m agreeing to this.”

“Good, good. Ber. Got anything to say? Res?”

“Good luck!” Ber clapped her hands together enthusiastically.

“Not much else to say if you’ve already decided to become a Beholder. The first Giftless Beholder. Both a courier a pharmaceutical Atelier.”

“Symbiotic.” Ignis corrected before giving each of them a small hug. “Thank you for your concern.”

Then, she gave Frost, Jury, Nav, Joy – everyone a small hug before departing with her army of slimes.

“… When the hell did she become so cute?” Cer grumbled.

“Always has been.” Ber cheered. “Doesn’t she remind you of a certain someone?”

“Huh? Piss off.” Res growled.

Frost gathered her thoughts and set them aside. Once her mind was cleared, she took her first few steps towards the amphitheater and was immediately greeted by the lowered heads of the Healers, her Moons, Stars, Beholders and the Archetypes.

The Coronation Ceremony could finally take place now that everything was in place. Behind her was Enoch and Kissaria who hauled a floating carriage containing her prized weapons.

“Let’s make this memorable.” Frost tightened her gloves and led her group – which consisted of some of the strongest beings in all of Elysia – into the stage.

And as Joy took her first steps behind Frost–

*Snap*

–A polaroid fell into her hands. She barely noticed the giant, golden spider waving at her amongst the trees. She scratched her eyes, wondering if she was seeing things, only to notice that there were other figures also waving at her.

“… Gam…”

A warm, cozy heat bubbled in her chest.

She had never felt so at home.