Chapter 64
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: A Substitute Arrangement
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I'd clearly heard that Miyoung and Sohee weren't blood-related, like a mother-daughter pair by circumstance.
But watching them, they seemed as tight-knit as if they were real flesh and blood.
Otherwise, there's no way they could ask me to spare their precious person instead of offering their own bodies.
Especially in Sohee's case—she seemed like a total virgin who hadn't even had sex once. Those aren't words you just toss out lightly.
For Yejin, sure, she had no choice if she didn't want to sell herself to me for survival. But Sohee? She could handle her own body just fine.
And yet, she declared she'd hand hers over to me for her mom, Miyoung.
What a beautiful scene.
"Alright, I'll grant your request."
"R-Really!?"
"Of course. I am a man who keeps his promises."
Sohee's face lit up at my answer. She'd clearly been worried I might brush her off.
Now that we're heading home, I should tell Miyoung about the situation.
Thanks to Sohee's plea, I can't lay a hand on her directly.
Directly, that is.
But if Miyoung comes onto me and tempts me herself? Well, that's unavoidable, right?
I figure that's a fair allowance.
And honestly, the same goes for Sohee.
"In exchange, whenever I get horny looking at your mom, you take care of it."
"...Got it."
Sohee mumbled her reply without meeting my eyes, head bowed.
Her body was the total opposite of Yejin's or Miyoung's. No big tits, petite frame and all.
But it wasn't some kid's body either. Sure, flat-chested, but her hips had that womanly secondary development—nice and firm relative to her size, pelvis nicely flared. Not a little girl by any means.
Imagining doing it with her gave off a fresh, exotic vibe. Damn, kinda turning me on.
Wanna do it right now.
"Hey, just mentioning your mom got me in the mood all of a sudden."
"Wh-What? What'd you say?"
"You know exactly what I mean. Let's do it right here."
"N-No way, here!?"
Sohee looked utterly shocked, like she'd never dreamed I'd suggest it on the spot. Her face flushed in total panic as she stared at me. She even dropped the greatsword she was holding.
Outdoor sex didn't sound half bad, so I started yanking down my pants to shove my dick in her face. That's when I noticed her trembling faintly.
Even for Sohee, doing it right here seemed too much.
Come to think of it, forcing a first-time outdoor fuck on a girl who looked like she'd never even done it before was pushing it, even for me.
I pulled my hands away from my pants and stepped toward her. She jolted in surprise and backed away.
"H-Hey, no need to run. I changed my mind—no doing it here."
"Y-You're not? That's a relief, but..."
"Yeah. Seeing you shake like that kinda kills the vibe for me. Forcing it isn't my thing."
Her trembling eased up a bit as she heard me out. Looked like she was relieved I wasn't pushing right then.
"But we're not skipping it altogether. For your first time, I'll give you special time to mentally prepare. Sound good?"
"...How long?"
"Right up until the end of Day 7 of the Zombie Wave. When that day's over, come find me on your own. Then I'll honor your request."
Kang Sohee stared straight at Kim Jaehwan's face.
His tone was playful, but it didn't seem like a lie.
No, this guy's never lied, period.
Thinking back on everything she'd seen of Kim Jaehwan so far, he didn't act like a normal person—but he sure as hell didn't lie.
"O-Okay..."
Kang Sohee picked up her dropped greatsword as she replied.
"Good. Then let's head home. Just stick with me."
Kang Sohee walked alongside Kim Jaehwan, who took the lead like he knew a shortcut. She glanced at his face—he was smiling, looking oddly pleased as they went. No clue what was on his mind, but whatever.
To Kang Sohee, Kim Jaehwan was an existence that defied simple description. Every encounter shifted her impression of him.
Their first meeting was when he'd saved her mom, Miyoung, from zombies. She'd heard he'd gone nuts searching for her mom, who'd wandered off alone, and rescued her from danger. Sohee had thanked him, but hadn't thought much of it.
Miyoung claimed he'd wiped out a massive zombie horde single-handedly—with his bare hands, no less. Sohee figured her mom had to be exaggerating. No way could anyone sweep a pack like that without a weapon.
The next day, word spread about the shop opening. When she got there, some weird thugs were blocking entry. She'd given them hell, only to nearly get taken out by their boss— that's when she ran into him again.
Seeing him burst in and casually block the leader's attack? Her heart had skipped a beat.
Sure, looks factored into her ideal type. But there was something she hadn't fully realized about herself: she was drawn to strong men.
Maybe it was her dad's DNA as a pro fighter, but Sohee had always crushed on tough guys from a young age. Peers? Zero interest.
None of them could match her strength.
The studious good boys were a given. Even the delinquent who bragged about fighting confessed once—she challenged him to a scrap and beat him senseless with her fists.
Just testing if he was stronger. If not? Total pass—even if he was drop-dead gorgeous.
Eventually, she'd realized most guys were weaker and lost interest entirely.
Then the zombie apocalypse hit. She was running ragged for her mom when Kim Jaehwan saved her in a pinch.
Watching him effortlessly crush an enemy she couldn't handle? Plenty to make her heart race.
If he'd acted like a normal guy after that, she might've fallen hard.
Problem was, next up he declared the shop his turf and started charging admission.
Any fluttering feelings? Ice cold. She chalked it up to the bridge effect and moved on. But later, cornered fighting a Smasher, he'd shown up again to bail her out.
After that, whenever she was in a bind, Kim Jaehwan appeared like a fixer, solving everything.
The price was steep, but compared to losing her precious mom? Nothing.
So to Kang Sohee now, Kim Jaehwan was a complex, nuanced figure.
Overwhelmingly stronger than her, with some special power that pulled her in—but his actions screamed bad guy, not good samaritan.
That's what he was to her.
Staring at his face as they walked, their eyes met. Not wanting to get caught gawking, she blurted out a random question.
"Hey, one thing I'm curious about—what's your Strength stat, anyway?"
She remembered how he'd snuck up silently earlier. She'd swung her greatsword with all her might in shock, and he'd blocked it one-handed like it was nothing.
Her base Strength was 5, boosted +2 by Body Enhancement for a total of 7.
And he'd blocked it effortlessly. Insane.
That means his Strength is at least 8... no, one-handed? 9 or 10 easy.
But that made no sense. From what she'd pieced together, Kim Jaehwan's trait was Technician.
He'd never shown his status to anyone, but he used the Base Manager trait like it was his—and only Technicians could access that, per the shop info she'd seen.
So she'd concluded he was a Technician. Which meant a Strength higher than hers? Impossible.
Unless he had a second trait—but that required Level 20+, and even a zombie-sweeper like him couldn't be there yet. No answers.
Only one way to know: ask him.
"My Strength? You don't need to know."
He wouldn't spill.
"I don't share my info with anyone, so quit prying."
"Not with anyone? Not even Yejin unnie?"
"Nah. Never shown her my status either."
She'd assumed he'd at least tell his lover. Surprise.
"Wh-Why? You two are together..."
"Hey, told you last time—we're not. Sex buddies, maybe. Win-win body thing. Hmm, you're decent in a fight, so maybe I'll share a little."
Kang Sohee's heart raced at the thought of learning something even Yejin didn't know.
"You asked about Strength? Mine's 10."
"What? I guessed, but really 10? Not from a skill boost...?"
"Pure base 10, obviously."
Everything he'd shown so far? Yeah, 10 Strength tracked.
But it didn't explain everything.
Since she'd started asking, might as well unload all her questions now.
"Then what was that thing you showed before? Zombies and Smashers getting sucked into thin air and vanishing. Strength 10 lets you do that? Or some skill only you have?"
Kim Jaehwan shook his head at her words.
"All wrong. Can't tell you this one, though. It's my personal secret."
His grinning, teasing face ticked her off.
"Tch, fine! Whatever! Don't tell me then."
"Ultra top-secret. Probably taking it to the grave."
The day everyone, Sohee included, learned his power stemmed from black magic? Never coming.
They chatted as they walked, and before they knew it, they were home.
After washing up clean, all four gathered for dinner.
Kim Jaehwan couldn't stop raving over Miyoung's cooking skills.
"Damn! This is what human food's supposed to be. What the hell have I been eating till now?"
"Hing... I'll learn from you, Miyoung unnie, and make yummy dinners too!"
"Pfft! You? Give it your best shot~"
Watching from the side, their playful banter looked straight-up couple-y. But he insisted otherwise, which irked Sohee for some reason. She held it in and finished eating.
After dinner, Sohee headed to her room for some rest before crashing early. Tomorrow was Day 5 of the Zombie Wave—zombies respawning, so busy from dawn.
Lying in bed with her mom, she dozed off as Miyoung quietly slipped out and started changing clothes.
"Mmm... Mom? Where you going?"
"Oh, uh? Can't sleep, so... gonna take a walk outside."
"Okay... Be careful..."
Sohee, exhausted, passed out quick.
Never dreaming where her mom was headed in the dead of night.