When Azusa’s vision returned, she found herself still seated in her high throne at the head of the round table within «Castello Michele». Confused, she groggily tried to stand up but when she put strength into her legs, she found that she couldn’t even push herself out of her seat. “Nngh…” she groaned as she wiped her eyes and waited for the feeling to return to her lower half. After three minutes had elapsed, Azusa got up.
“This… This is «La Sala Grande» of our guild headquarters, right…?” Azu muttered to herself as she looked around. Indeed, the layout of this room was exactly as she remembered it: this is the room in which she and the other six officers of «Pleiades» gathered to discuss important matters. The seat Azusa had just gotten out of was a decorative chair, adorned with just about every precious jewel in existence, which only allowed Azusa to sit in it. “I… I remember that IWO’s servers were going to be shut down…” Azusa mumbled, sorting through her memories. “We shared one last toast and then the time ticked 2130… Then my vision went dark…” She proceeded to rub her temples, hoping that doing so would further jog her recollections. “… No good, I can’t remember anything else after that.”
She then finally got a clear look at her body.
Wait.
Her body?
Azusa stared at her feet… or at least, she tried to. There were simply just two sacks of meat attached to her chest that shouldn’t be there that were blocking her view. Azusa grabbed her chest…
“Ahn?!”
… and inelegantly moaned. She then hastily reached underneath her skirt and between her legs, trying to feel for something that should be there. “It’s gone!?”
Yes, the crowning jewel that was Azusa’s masculinity was gone.
Azusa may have been her in-game avatar but in real life, Azusa was Shinsuke Kasuga, a true man who was popular with the ladies. Shinsuke, however, rebuffed their advances even if he was exceedingly glad to receive them. His heart was already taken by another and that person was someone of the same gender.
Shinsuke was gay.
What one would call a “homosexual”.
He was in love with his best friend, Atsumu Oikawa, who, in the game, was Mondklinge, the vice-leader of «Pleiades». The reason why Shinsuke chose to crossplay (a term used to describe players who played the opposite gender in games) is so that he could experience the joy of being a girl even if it is in a game within virtual reality.
When Shinsuke, as Azusa, married Mondklinge, he was positively overjoyed; Shinsuke truly considered that moment to be the happiest moment of his life, however, he never showed it on his face as he worried that if he did, he would be cast out of society.
And now, here he was.
In the body of the avatar that he had so painstakingly created to reflect what Shinsuke thought was the ideal female version of himself.
Th-Then… In this body… I can… Azusa once more tentatively reached beneath her skirt, past where she would normally feel her masculinity to touch the femininity hiding behind her underwear. Her other hand lay on her chest as she massaged it. “Ngh… I… no, I am in a woman’s body now.” (Before this sentence, Azusa had always used a predominantly male personal pronoun to refer to herself, however, she has changed her speech to now use a predominantly female personal pronoun to reflect her new self.) Azusa took several deep breaths to calm herself down, her hand over her chest to feel her pounding heartbeat slowing down with every breath. “Okay… First, I need to figure out what exactly is going on.”
Azusa waved her hand in front of her and invoked the menu as she always did. “Huh, so the menu still works.” She scrolled through it and eventually found herself at the bottom to discover that the selection option for «Log Out» was nonexistent. The tile was just simply blank. “… So I suppose this means I can’t log out anymore? I hope the others got out okay… I’m fine with being the only one remaining… Although, heh, I suppose Micchi wouldn’t be too pleased…”
She continued to peruse the menu and found that she could open up her inventory just fine. She found all of her items still present as well as the ludicrous amounts of currency she possessed. She scratched her left ear, only to find that it was pointy. “…” Azusa opened her inventory and pulled out a mirror to get a good look at her face.
“… Yeah, so I guess I’m an actual high elf now as well?” Azusa inquired to no one in particular. “This certainly isn’t just a game anymore.” She sighed and went back to her menu inspection after returning the mirror to her inventory. “Wait… Friends list?” Azusa quickly opened it and scrolled through the list, noting that most of her friends were “black”, as in they were «offline», however, she then came across the names of her guildmates…
… and they were all “green”.
All of them were «online».
“Does this mean… I’m not alone?”
Azusa opened the guild menu and scrolled to the guild chatbox to type a message:
«I’m here.»
----------------------------------------
Just outside an orphanage in the capital city of the Tourboisian Empire, Vignon.
"Aww, you've got to go already?"
"No fair! We're still in the middle of that fight scene!"
Gathering outside the orphanage’s entrance, a group of children began calling out to a traveling bard; his attention returning to the little ones, his audience just moments ago now begging for his stay.
"Sorry, everyone. I do have to leave now, though; if I'm late to be back tomorrow, I'll be in trouble, ahaha… goodness, I hope it wasn't too much trouble, Shanoa-san."
"Oh, no, it's alright~! The children are happy to have you visit once in a while, Oikawa-dono," came a friendly reply, as the children’s caretaker gave an amiable smile. A peal of soft laughter escaped the bard in red, as he tipped his hat in turn and gazed towards the skies. Dusk approaches, the man could tell in an instant; it was for the best Oikawa took leave now, or he risked having to camp outdoors for the night.
Not that it would be a problem... though it'll be annoying to report to them in the morning otherwise, the bard mused with a sigh.
The trip back was swift; the trek from the slums of Vignon into the bustling nightlife of its capital took merely ten minutes, leaving the bard plenty of time to enjoy himself. Yet, Mondklinge chose to close himself off and settle in for the night as he checked into a quiet inn by the edge of town, striking up light pleasantries with the innkeeper, polite greetings, amusing tidbits, and other simple speakings all too easy for Oikawa the bard to manage.
Or rather, for «Mondklinge» to manage.
Yes, it’d been two years ever since the supposed ‘closing’ of Innocent World Online. The members of «Pleiades», a guild he’d founded with six others and led as vice-commander, were having a final toast in the game’s last moments just then. Seating himself at the bed by the room’s corner, the young man pulled up an interface, bringing up the main menu and soon, various other windows. With a bit of tinkering, Mondklinge stripped himself from the troubadour’s garb, returning to the comfort of his holy garb, layered and stifling as it may have been. A gaze towards the friend list set on the other side of the main menu told the Paladin just enough.
“...Not even today, hm.”
Five bright icons marked with a green light by their names and standing tall amidst the sea of dull, lifeless grey. As far as Mondklinge knew, only five of his guildmates were «Online»—alive, so he concluded back then. Even if he knew not their location, even if he knew not the way to reach them—even if something as simple as the guild chat remained unusable, for whatever reason — that was…
…no. It wasn’t fine.
A solemn quiet filled the room that was only broken by the clasping of hands, a silent prayer for a wish, unfulfilled. Mond prayed for the return of a dear friend; a confidante within and beyond this virtual world, and an important presence not only to him but to the rest of «Pleiades».
Her name was «Azusa». The guildmaster. The «Leader». Perhaps most importantly, Mondklinge’s wife, even if the status was only within the boundaries of the game.
In those two years since Mondklinge’s awakening, he’d seen many things and done many more, from finding himself awakening within the Grand Cathedral of the Tourboisian Empire’s capital, to becoming a famed Paladin of the clergy. Yes, he had to make the best of the situation he’d been thrown into, and yet he’d made no progress on how to seek the rest of «Pleiades». He knew not why he didn’t wake up on the bed in the world he once knew, he still knew not why Azusa refused to return; he still knew not how to cope with all this change. Donning the guise of «Oikawa, the Bard» only gave the man light reprieve; even if entertaining the townsfolk and children of a certain orphanage brought peace to his heart, it wasn’t enough to cease the Paladin’s doubts.
Frankly, for all the level-headed composure and calculated intelligence Mondklinge was known for, at the end of the day he was still just a kid playing a game. To think that before all this he was still a student attending school, with the rest of his friends…
…If my guildmates were to see me now, they’d laugh; wouldn’t they?
A trickle of wry laughter escaped Mondklinge, now reaching to close the menus he’d brought out. Even if he was in private like this, he wouldn’t give in and break down. No; not until he’d reunited with everyone. Not until Azusa had returned until Mondklinge found his partner in the flesh—
Closing the interfaces, the Paladin left the bed and knelt onto the floor. A meaningless gesture, perhaps—but to Mond now, it was all he could do. The man opened the friend list again.
…Nothing, still.
It was fine.
He’ll just have to wait again, as long as he needs to.
With resignation, Mondklinge moved his finger to retract the friend list interface; yet a spark of green caught his attention before he could.
The man paused and eyed the list once more.
«Azusa» ——— Online.
There she was.
A minute passed in silence.
Then, another.
Mondklinge was stunned; caught between disbelief and shock, the man found himself collapsing by the tavern bed, having lost his balance for a moment too long. The Paladin couldn’t tell for certain the feeling welling up in his chest, nowー.
Was it joy?
Anxiety?
Relief?
Hope?
…No. Perhaps this was freedom.
He knew not how or why Azusa would choose now to return. After two years trapped in darkness, perhaps this spark of deliverance was just what the Paladin had needed; one made certain upon a glance to the window blinking into existence before his eyes…
«I’m here.»
…Goddamnit. Of course he’d return with something that casual.
Mond wanted to laugh. As if instinctually, the man reached for the guild-wide chat box in the window. Of all times for it to have been active…
No.
No, it wouldn’t matter.
He just needed to inform Azusa that he was fine. He just needed to make sure the rest of «Pleiades» knew he was fine. Alive. Whatever the case.
…the chewing out of the crew can be saved for later.
«Kept us waiting, didn’t you?»
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In the Adventurer’s Guild’s teaching division of Amphicea in the Kingdom of Histhusme.
Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
In an archery range were several young students. They all were of more or less the same age and each had a different expression.
Some were concentrating, some were struggling, and still others were simply standing there.
Above them, the colorful blue sky riddled with white clouds stared down from above to illuminate the stern visage of a young man, Noir. It had been a solid three years since his first appearance inside IWO. Things have taken a drastic turn, for better or for worse. Nothing changed for Noir with his friendly persona remaining more or less the same despite having lived a different life than before for four years, however, this does not necessarily mean that he was the same Noir.
Seated silently on a bench, Noir watched the youngsters drawing their bowstrings and repeatedly letting them loose in multiple, sometimes fruitless, attempts to nail the practice targets. Through his three years of lonesome hardship, he had hardened his heart; he wasn’t just a young man trapped inside a virtual world but was now a teacher in guiding the future of the people.
Absentmindedly, Noir opened the menu and looked at the friend list. He noted how everyone else he knew was «online» aside from one. Sighing, he waved his hand to close the menu before suddenly stopping, his eyes widening.
The Leader had finally come «online» and no sooner after that, an air window opened up in front of him with only two words written across its face.
«I’m here.»
Noir gasped and chuckled. He hid his face behind his hands as he didn’t want his students to see that he had now shed small droplets of tears. He mumbled to himself, “I didn’t think it would be now, but finally, you’re here, too….”
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Within Tensei Castle inside the territory of the Adachi clan.
Seated in seiza facing the altar was a true exemplary warrior.
He was silently doing his daily prayers to the gods for blessings in the current war. At his side sat his wife, Chiyono, of the Kiichi clan, who now carried the name of the Adachi clan as Adachi Chiyono. She too attended to her husband and followed him in his daily prayer ritual.
“Thank you, Chiyono,” the warlord said. “You may leave my side and begin organizing the troops. I shall come after you.”
“As you command, dear husband.”
Chiyono left her husband’s side and the warlord let out a sigh of relief. “Ugh, I still can’t get used to the fact that I had to marry her…” he complained. “Once again, I’m sorry, Tsucchi, but I’ve betrayed you.” He apologized to his girlfriend and lover whom he had loved since both his past life and his life within the game.
However, he was currently a warlord.
For now, out of necessity, he had had to discard the name of “Fate” and instead adopted the name of Adachi Yoshinobu. Fortunately, even the warlord has his fleeting moments of peace and this time after morning prayers is one of them.
He opened the menu and brought up the friends list, perusing through it as he always did during this time. However, there was something different today.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the name Azusa and saw that she had come «online». As he blinked his eyes, wondering if he was seeing things, an air window appeared in front of him, confirming that he had not gone insane.
«I’m here.»
“Ohoho…” Fate laughed as tears began forming in his eyes. “Leader, you’re late…”
----------------------------------------
An elaborate shrine built into the city center of Nipucolenia on the shores of Lalenha River in the Republic of Coimbra.
Within a shrine, slept a fox spirit.
She was considered to be a local deity due to her constitution; after all, she possessed a true fox tail as well as fluffy ears. Besides, she also never spoke and always had a scroll covering her mouth like she had sealed away her powers or something. Either way, she appreciated the attention and the calm she would get as she spent the rather uneventful days sleeping.
Occasionally, she would wake up to check the menu, noting whether or not there were any differences in her comrades’ status. Today was one of those days.
She sat up from her bed and waved her arm. Once again, she noted no changes as it had been for the past nine months. However, just when she was about to fall asleep, she noticed a blazing green light. At last, the last member had come «online». She then untied the scroll from her mouth and an air window opened in front of her.
«I’m here.»
“Leader…” Tsuchigumo mumbled as she began to cry. “It is time for you to pay your dues and make good on our last promise.”
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The throne room of Diavolo Rosso Castle located in the capital city of the Grand Duchy of Boisesonia, Borcatressa.
The throne room’s most prominent feature is of course the seat of honor.
The one in Diavolo Rosso Castle was no different as it was adorned with every precious stone known to man. Seated in its elaborate cushions was a young woman of high caliber, otherworldly powers and beauty, and uncanny benevolence. Kneeling at her feet was a gathering of demonic maidservants and male servants.
«Saint Calais»
At least, that was what she was supposed to be.
A «Saint» unopposed by any and all forces of evil.
Currently, however, she was surrounded by the very beings she was supposed to oppose.
How did she even become the ruler of Boisesonia, the country overrun and composed solely of demons? This was doubly concerning considering her status as a saint.
Yet here she was, somehow having the empty throne of the Demon Lord shoved upon her just because her strength made the demons think that she was the daughter of the Demon Lord. They somehow didn’t even question the fact that Calais’ abilities were of both the holy and demonic elements; they just simply accepted that Calais was the Demon Lord’s daughter.
… How exactly did I end up in this situation again?
Calais scratched her hair as she racked her brain. Either way, possessing a high status of honor would greatly help her in gathering information but at the same time, it also greatly irked her as she wasn’t much of the “leader-type”, something that the actual Leader had a great abundance of.
Nonetheless, she worked tirelessly to never let that irritation show on her face. She waved her hand in front of her and opened the menu, scrolling through it to find the friends list. Reviewing it for the first time that day, she noted how everyone else but the leader was «online». Sighing, Calais moved to shut the window, losing hope on Azusa’s return when suddenly, the icon next to Azusa’s name flashed green. Soon after, an air window opened.
«I’m here.»
“Leader…!” All of Calais’ efforts went down the drain as she finally broke down in tears. Her subjects quickly tried placating her but she raised her hand, forcing them to remain in place. She then stood up from her throne and threw her hand out after wiping her tears.
“Alright, you louts, you want war? I’ll give you war. Begin the preparations! I shall lead the vanguard myself as we topple the Tourboisian Empire!”
----------------------------------------
In the Great Colisseum of Pauranoas, the capital city of the Principality of Beitade.
Vitya was currently adjusting her knuckle guards.
Today was her title match to win the greatest honors as a wrestler in the Principality of Beitade. Slapping herself to psyche her up, she then waved her hand in front of her to open her menu. Extracting a pint of ale, she immediately downed it and slammed it on her table.
“Phew! I’m totally ready now!” Vitya yelled. “Oh wait, I still have to check…” She opened her menu again and looked in the friend list. “Aw, Leader’s still not here… Ah well.” Lamenting that the name still has yet to turn green, Vitya waved her hand to close the menu but not before noticing a green flash. “Eh?”
“Leader!”
Vitya rejoiced as the air window popped in front of her and announced Azusa’s arrival. “Woohoo!” Vitya cheered as she pumped her fist. “Alright, I definitely can’t lose today! Leader, I’ll win this and come find you so hang tight, a’ight!?”
----------------------------------------
Azusa watched as one after another, her friends confirmed that they were here and they had waited for her for so long. She cried as she sent back a message, apologizing for being late and sending her best wishes. Wiping her tears, she fixed an expression of determination. “Okay, first, I need to find answers.”
Azusa walked out of «La Sala Grande» and into the corridors of the building. As Azusa walked, she marveled once more at how the decorations were now real and not just mere rendered pixels of cyberspace. Eventually, after around half an hour of walking (as she spent some time exploring the place despite having seen it so many times before), she reached the massive front door and after throwing them open, she noticed the two massive statues stationed on either side of the door. “Hey, wait a minute… Aren’t these…?”
Her question was immediately answered when the two statues uncrossed their spears (which were crossed over the door, preventing anyone from entering from the outside) and hopped off of their pedestals. The giant thirty-meter tall statues then began to shrink and human coloration returned to their once-gold visages. Soon, they diminished in size to appear the same as normal humans and as their armor clinked, they knelt at Azusa’s feet with their spears pointed skyward. The one with silver hair said, “Your Majesty, it has been far too long.”
Azusa blinked several times as she tried to make sense of what just happened.
Back when this was still a game, these two statues plus two more were “in-game purchases” Azusa and the rest of her friends decided to make to guard their headquarters. After all, they were extremely powerful and were often the targets of griefers who would aim to harass them as much as they can. They bought a total of four so they could maximize security: one was located in the garden outside (and its mere presence kept the garden alive with no need for anyone to tend to it; Azusa figured that was just something the developers tacked on), the two she was currently speaking to guarded the main entrance, and the final fourth one guarded the inside of the building with the main purpose of defending the guild’s treasury. The statues themselves were good enough for the job but Calais had other ideas; she experimented with Reanimation Magic and tried to give “life” to the statues, however, it didn’t exactly work outside of giving them the ability to move.
Yet, here they are, somehow having both the ability to move and converse as well as shrinking down into human-sized valkyries.
“Umm… You are…”
“I am Hildr, Your Majesty,” the blonde girl supplied.
“I was given the name of Thrúd,” the girl with pink hair added.
“O-Oh, okay…” Azusa stammered. “Andー”
“Our sister, Ortlinde, is still guarding the garden and our captain is guarding the treasury as you’ve commanded,” Hildr said.
Yeesh, these girls know exactly what and what not to report… Azusa thought. I must say, I suppose we were wrong when we thought Calais’ Reanimation Magic was a failure. It must have been stunted due to it still being a game. “Alright, thank you,” Azusa said. “You may return to your posts.”
“Your Majesty, I have a question,” Thrúd inquired.
“Hmm?”
“Where is His Highness and the other Lady’s and Sir’s?”
“Ah…” Azusa’s expression fell slightly.
“Oh… Your Majesty, I sincerely apologize!” Thrúd panicked. “I shan't ask again!”
“No, no, it’s alright,” Azusa stuttered. “Please, return to your posts. I shall returnー” As she took a step forward, Azusa wobbled on her foot and collapsed forward. “Eh?”
“Your Majesty!?” the two valkyries exclaimed.
“A-Ah, it’s nothing…” Azusa reassured them as she, having fallen to her knees to stare at the ground. … Since when did my MP gauge drop to zero? Just then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the last vestiges of a magic circle disappearing from the pedestal of the two statues. Ah, I see. Calais’ spell must’ve been put on stasis until someone with high enough levels of mana came by to fuel the spell. Damn you, Cal. Azusa reached into her inventory, pulled out a mana crystal, and broke it; her gauge instantly refilled. The valkyries saluted before leaping onto their pedestals with a jump impressive enough to make Olympic gymnastics champions lay down their medals. Azusa wolf-whistled in appreciation as she entered the garden.
Ortlinde saw her and she stopped watering the plants to kneel. “It is my greatest pleasure to have the honor of finally meeting you, Your Majesty.”
“Ah, so it was you that continued to tend to the gardens.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Ortlinde replied, bobbing her silvery head lower. “While I wasn’t exactly able to ‘water’ the plants four hundred years ago, I now have the great luxury of watering them myー”
Azusa cut her off, “Wait, hold on. Four hundred years ago?”
While still kneeling, Ortlinde looked up to stare at Azusa’s face. “Yes. It was exactly four hundred years ago when both of Your Majesties and the Lords and Ladies vanished. We do not know where the others are but you are the first we’ve seen, Your Majesty.”
“I see…” So that means that the others appeared in the other countries or even the other continents. If memory serves, there were three in the latest updates of IWO. Assuming this world is the same, the continents would be the same as well. I’m currently in the Divine Empire of Obelden as that’s where we chose to place the «Castello Michele»… Wait, speaking of whichー Azusa motioned in front of her, bringing up the menu and opening the map.
“… Huh, the map still works.” But wait, why is the map scratched out in certain areas? Azusa studied the map which did show her current location and about two hundred kilometers around her. However, beyond that was a blackness that said «No Data». Confused, Azusa tried one of her original spells but instantly wobbled on her feet. “Ow.” Her head suddenly underwent a massive throbbing. “Yeesh, so I can’t just «Teleport» to the areas labeled as «No Data» despite knowing the coordinates already… Anyway, guess I’ll go find the Tourboisian Empire anotheーwait.” Azusa’s train of thought came to an abrupt halt as she realized that she can now somehow innately use the magic when previously, she had to manually select to use. “Well, that’s a discovery… So I suppose this means ‘game mechanics’-wise, anything in the magic system that I had to ‘select’ to use can now just be used by either thinking or speaking it…”
To test her theory, Azusa left the garden and out into the main road that led to «Castello Michele». Pointing her hand at a tree, Azusa spoke the words that somehow appeared in her head when she thought about casting the spell: “Come forth, Fire! Blaze Sphere «Fireball»!” A ten-centimeter sphere of fire appeared at Azusa’s fingertip before blasting itself into the tree, burning a perfectly circular hole through the trunk. “… The words really did just appear in my head. So does this mean all of the magic I use will have to be used this way? Hmm, wait, but earlier, I was able to incant «Teleport» without saying anything… Hmm…” Lost in thought, Azusa walked down the road that she remembered would take her to Koberheim, the capital of Obelden, when her sharp ears picked up the sounds of screaming.
Twitching, she muttered, “What?” Upon focusing her hearing, she picked up even more information: a rather large force of some kind with the screams of wounded, possibly dying, soldiers and the yelling of a commanding officer. However, what shook her more was the roar. “Damn, the first monster I encounter is an elder dragon? Must be the karma from all the good luck I got… Anyhow, got no time. I have to save them! «Accel Boost»!” Using two of her original spells at once, Azusa exponentially increased both her physical and mental abilities as she dashed as quickly as she could to the scene of the crime.
Azusa arrived at the scene but a ways away as she didn’t want to just randomly appear out of nowhere. “Hoo, boy, that’s gotta be level 300…” Azusa peered at the current situation where an army of around forty soldiers (who she assumed were all high level) tried to face off against the elder dragon. “Well, they seem to be doing alright but… sorry, I’m gonna steal your kill~.”
Emerging from her hiding spot in the trees, Azusa leaped into the air. Thanks to the effects of «Accel Boost», she managed an incredibly high jump that would be biologically impossible to achieve with raw human strength. Azusa then hugged her legs close and spun in midair, building momentum before delivering a single ax kick straight into the dragon’s head. The collision sent the dragon spiraling straight toward the ground, its impact reverberating throughout the soils not dissimilar to an earthquake. “Oh, phew, is it just me or am I stronger now?” Azusa muttered as she fell out of the sky and stood on top of the dragon’s head. “Or is this just the effect of having a truly material body?” Azusa crossed her arms as she sank into thought.
“Umm…”
From her perch, Azusa looked at the person who addressed her. He was, to put it lightly, a rather seedy-looking priest. Azusa had already decided that he was likely as sleazy as his clothes would suggest. “Sorry but you seemed to be struggling so I decided to lend a hand,” Azusa stated flatly.
“N-No, it’s not that…” the priest stammered. “Wou-Would you happen to be Her Esteemed Eminence, Saint Azusa Trismegistus?”
“… Eh?”