Nexus Awakened (An Isekai LitRPG Gender Bender Story)

602. A Bird Flies When All Wings Flap

Unfamiliar names were given to these Apostles. It began with Adam, and now a being named Evelyn made their grand debut. There were no clues as to who they were or who they represented.

“There are no records of the Apostles. What’s even stranger about you –!”

Frost clashed with the Apostle. Like Adam, it could not be moved by her immense power. Instead, it opted to use its wings gracefully like blades, piercing against Frost’s back as if trying to worm its way to snatch her heart.

“– Is that your name isn’t included in your Corrupted name!”

ImpulseWork’s records of the Icon of Judgement only mentioned its oppressive power. How even Moons kilometers away from Paradise were affected by its overwhelming presence. Even survivors would not have known they were Apostles.

Frost was only able to see this thanks to her Blessing of the Amalgam.

She did not know the entire story. Thankfully, she had a being on her side that could perfectly recite this for her as she fought with The Second Apostle on this cursed night.

Records/Reports of Paradise Lost [335 PA]

< 012-00 ‘Icon of Judgement’ appeared on the night of the King of Puritas’ birthday directly in the center of Puritas’ capital: Paradise. Subject’s presence devastated its immediate vicinity, wiping out approximately 200,000 individuals >

There were still people alive in the outer layer of Paradise and beyond the walls. Hands clambered through rubble as hordes of people rushed by them. Demi-humans that crawled beneath the highways were crushed as it collapsed into itself, revealing chasms of blood where Markers rose to pierce the heavens, like hands reaching to a higher being to ask “Why?”

The notion of suffering being the foundation of someone’s paradise nearly threw her straight into the Third State. But she kept calm and focused on her relentless, one-sided assault against the Apostles.

Her strength allowed her to achieve what Stars Moons could not. These things would require multiple Moons to fight, on top of having to manage their MP and the Pale Web.

“Everything is under the control of the Icon of Judgement. It oppresses everything from head to toe, leaving them no room to think but to accept it.”

Until now Frost still had not received the status of the Icon of Judgement.

<> [Everlasting Repent] <>

 

Everything surrounding Frost was reduced to a homogenous, flattened wasteland. Her emotions ran high and she weaponized it well, backing her attacks with [Armor Piercing]. Elemental damage such as fire was highly ineffective against their armor and the coat they adorned, even if it was derived directly from herself.

Slag formed from [Liquid Fire] were repulsed by the Apostle’s feathers. Fire did not do much damage to it either, despite it possessing a MAG DEF stat.

After bringing its HP down to 120,000 like the last, the System reported a new Corrupted Skill which caused this discrepancy.

< [Prove Thy Faith] >

< DETERMINED EFFECT: MAG DEF is a red herring to those who can see what others cannot. All Magic-based damage is ineffective. Only Physical-based damage may be inflicted >

 

< “Rely not on the tools giveth by elsewhere other than mine. Thy kin will stand on their own. Listen well. Break free from the shell and emerge anew. True faith comes from within.” >

The Second Apostle made distance between itself and Frost, raising its hand to the sky where it summoned yet another deadly, double-helix spear into its palm.

< The Second Apostle’s heart beats in agreement >

 

< Sin has plagued humanity for so long. People yearn to become anew but are stuck with predefined vices >

 

< A hand reaches to the skies, longing to reach straight into their hearts >

 

< “I also want to save them.” The Second Apostle promises >

< [Trumpet’s Call] >

 

<> [Promise of Paradise] <>

The spear pierced into the air. By the time it was pointed at Frost, she had already arrived inches away from its face. A fist connected with its head as [Thermal Propagation] hid her body once again, allowing her to move freely around the entity to strike it in its blind spots.

The spear was the closest thing that could kill her. Even with its lackluster ATT, simply having that cleave her head off would likely result in death. As she kicked, bit, and punched the entity, she had to wonder if she could heal her head back. Or better yet, her permanently active [Prolonged Stasis] would certainly keep her alive.

Just as Frost was about to land another strike on its head, she immediately backed off upon watching blindly swing its spear in her direction. She was certain she was outside of its field of view. It was then when she realized that the Icon of Judgement served as its eyes, like her one thousand Judge’s Aids.

The final punch left a gaping wound in the chest of the Apostle.

The Second Apostle | HP : 0

 

< “How many will wait until a hand reaches into their hearts?” The Second Apostle wondered >

 

< It recalled days spent as an outcast within the walls >

 

< Dreaming of a world where glimmers of light shone in the dark of their night >

< [Pale Reverence] >

 

< [Pallid Regrets] >

 

< “A partner to the first. My chosen Apostle. Your kindness will be taught, and through it, thee shall help build my Kingdom.” >

 

The Pale Web returned, whitening the extremities of Frost’s body. The look in the eyes of the Second Apostle was almost apologetic in its final moments.

< [Salvation] >

 

When the wingbeat passed, and as it was consumed by a black hole, the fruit of the Second Apostle emerged again, signifying its defeat.

“Ten more to go. Hey. Voice, if it’s ok to call you that.”

Frost plucked the apple.

The spear which had no name soared through the skies, joining the weapon of the First Apostle which hovered five meters above her head.

“… I’ll take the silence as a good sign. Who are these things I’m fighting against?”

< Corrupted entities, born from the Icon of Judgement. More accurately, they are the representatives that were chosen. Hence their names as Apostles >

 

“Chosen by whom?”

< Who do you think? >

The mention of transformation pointed to only one person.

“Elysia…”

The Voice didn’t respond. Again, she took the silence as confirmation as she devoured the apple and returned to harvesting more slices of apple until the next Apostle arrived.

So far only six out of ten Corrupted Skills have shown themselves. One of the last four was [Penance], which was reserved for the One Marked by Judgement. It was eerily straight forward for something that was insurmountable.

Frost took a moment to observe the Icon of Judgement’s body, which consumed the entirety of the sky. It was like looking at the Nexus. The sheer size expanded well past her peripheries as she circled around the inner layer, cleaning as many Markers as possible.

“One wing is black.”

It was the only stain found on its otherwise pristine form. The wing appeared diseased, like a rot had overtaken it. She figured that even something as benevolent as that was not spared from flaws.

“Everything about it is a flaw. How can you punish people for something they never committed?”

Frost was no stranger to this flaw. She had also blamed Impuritas solely for the sake of them being Impuritas. The fact that they were Impuritas was their one, unforgivable sin.

“Do you hate humanity that much? Why is it always humanity, like they’re the only species in this world? If it’s only humanity… then how about the Demi-humans?”

It angered Frost, but not in a wrathful way. Rather, she could feel something begin to rise from within her body as she devoured her 200th slice of apple.

< The Second State Has Manifested As Judgement >

 

The Judge’s Aids hatched all at once with a deafening shatter. Golden shards rained across Paradise as tiny Frosts flooded the streets. They carried precisely one tenth of her total stats but were still tremendously powerful.

Just not in combat. They served as an extension of her arms and eyes, helping those in need even though this was just a memory. She was different from the Icon of Judgement. She was a ruler of the Nexus who did not rely on punishing people indiscriminately.

“… Even Repenters have a chance to claw their way back to freedom. The Blood Moons want to make things right for the sins they committed. Even the Beholders were given a chance of redemption!”

Frost attacked the Icon of Judgement with a bullet. The crystal bullet disappeared into the white nothingness. Suddenly, she was flung backwards by an invisible force. After crashing through various homes and landing in the center of the highway, she felt a crater in her stomach.

< [Return To Sender] >

< DETERMINED EFFECT: All damage inflicted onto the Icon of Judgement will be returned at 100x times the amount >

Steam rose from her wound as she quickly healed it, leaving a gaping hole in her apparel.

Frost | HP: 13,550,000

She had just taken over a million HP of damage. Like the Apostles, damage dealt to it would be returned. But here, it was amplified to an absurd degree. It represented absolute authority and utterly disproportionate punishment for the crime.

It was the pure manifestation of a corrupted form of justice; where one figure was the amalgamation of the judge, jury, and executioner. The Icon of Judgement arbitrated everything solely according to itself and considered its teachings to be most sacred.

< The Icon of Judgement wonders why humanity continues to behave this way >

 

< Why was humanity was born with sin? >

 

< Feathers begin to rustle. It’s clear that it believes that it can help them repent >

 

< But it cannot do it alone >

 

< [Serve Me, O’ Apostle!] >

Another portal tore through space. A feminine being with black hair and deep, purple eyes descended.

< “Advocator of indulgence. Thee hath taken hold of thou destiny, guided by my light out from the dark. I have heard thee call from the weakness of the flesh. O’ Lilith, my mission to thee shall be the same as the Second.” >

 

The stats were identical with the previous two. However, it did not arrive alone.

< “And with thee who seek salvation shall be given a guide to harrow the earthly hell. O’ my Vergillia, guide thy kin towards the warm sunshine of my Kingdom Come.” >

 

It descended behind Frost. One Apostle was easy enough. Two would not be a problem either. However, the thing she feared were their weapons which thankfully were not wielded straight away.

And as the two charged for her from two different directions, Frost quickly strategized a plan.

“Neither of you can harm me in that form. So I can just ignore one of you and take the other out!”

She planned to take them out one after the other. Fighting them both at once would lead to both of them wielding the deadly spears. And so, she smashed her fists together, creating a great fireball using [Thermal Propagation] and [Inferno] to hide her body.

And even though she was blinded by the flames, she had eyes outside to guide her.

A small band of little Frosts observed the battle from several rooftops. Their hands were held like binoculars or telescopes. Some sat on top of each other to gain extra height as they relayed everything to Frost with perfect accuracy.

Needless to say, these Apostles were still no match for Frost.

But she could not help but to feel like she was still missing something from this fight.