I Won't Let You Die
"Kill me, please. This trauma's too much."
It was a phrase I'd heard often. Every time, I'd swear to myself I'd never hear it again.
"...Because of me?"
"If you wanna split hairs, yeah... but it's not your fault. I was the idiot. What's the point of nitpicking now?"
Just days ago, she'd been perfectly fine. How had she ended up like this, begging for death?
But I had no intention of letting her die.
This was a world with a Status Window. A world where mysterious powers were at play. If I could just get her back to my place, maybe I could find a way.
"Look, I get you're squeamish... cough, sorry to even ask this shit... it hurts so bad. Living like this, I'm just a fucking cripple..."
"Gonna rip it off. Sorry. This'll hurt."
"What the— arghhh!"
I roughly tore off the duct tape binding her arms and legs. It looked like half her skin came off with it.
'Should've brought a knife.'
I'd been unprepared. If I'd grabbed even a box cutter from home, I wouldn't have needed this brutal method.
But there was no time for regrets. The sun was setting. I didn't even know how long she had left.
"Here, drink first."
"Fuck... thanks..."
I let her take a few sips from the water bottle.
"We'll live, okay? I'll give you more when we get back. Please..."
"Damn it, threatening a girl who hasn't had a drop in three days with water..."
A single tear rolled from Han Seohee's eye.
"I'm fucking useless. Arms are fucked, legs are fucked... wouldn't it be cleaner to just croak here?"
"I don't want that."
"What the hell are you gonna do with me like this? Get dragged around, dumped somewhere... end up zombie chow anyway."
"I'll save you."
I didn't want to watch her die. Supplies were plentiful. The mart near my place had enough for three people, and this convenience store would restock eventually. I'd find a way to fix her arms and legs someday.
"Gonna be a huge pain in the ass. You ever cared for a cripple?"
"I have. I know."
I shook my head firmly.
Before returning to this world, I'd been a hero. I wasn't some kid who'd never seen death. I knew how tedious and grueling it was to nurse someone on the brink.
"I'll save you anyway. Sorry."
Being alive was painful. Saving her wasn't for her sake.
It was for me—a guy who didn't want the memory of the one woman I'd held to end like this. A man still alive.
"Hey, monsters are closing in from behind. Time to bail—"
"Where?"
I quickly scanned around. I'd left my branch at the entrance since I hadn't planned to fight. Needed a new weapon.
Luckily, I spotted a mop handle thick with dust.
"Hah!"
I stomped the head off and charged the zombies, pole in hand.
"Hoo..."
No time. No holding back. I moved cleanly, dropping all six zombies, then turned back to Han Seohee.
"Hngh, ugh, uuu..."
I could feel it. She wasn't just in need of a cure—she was fighting for survival.
"It's night. Just... leave me."
"Why?"
"Fuck, you call that a question? Elites crawling everywhere here, and you wanna wander the streets with no shelter?"
Han Seohee gave a bitter smile.
"Thanks. Fuck... you've done enough. I didn't live saintly enough to meet a guy like you before dying."
"...No."
I felt bad for Han Seohee, but I'd never planned to respect her wishes. My call first. I wanted to save her. Even if she suffered, my selfishness would keep her alive.
"Gonna piggyback you."
"No..."
It wasn't easy. 'Even like this, if I just focus on moving, it's not impossible...'
Carrying a normal person, their arms would wrap around me naturally, securing them. But she couldn't move her arms or legs.
I could hug her from the front safely, but then I couldn't fight.
"Sorry. This'll hurt."
"What do you— ughhh!"
I took off my cardigan and wrapped her naked body. Seeing her lower half bare, only her upper body covered, felt a bit erotic.
"Tying you now."
"...Huh?"
Thankfully, duct tape was scattered around—probably used by the ones who'd bound her.
The vibe here was off. Just like she said, zombies were swarming toward us.
"I'll definitely save you."
I wrapped the tape around and around, securing her to my back. Through the cardigan, I felt the soft press of her ample breasts against me.
"It hurts..."
"Sorry, hang in there. Please."
Gripping the pole, I faced the zombies now crowding in front. The fight resumed.
/////
Han Seohee couldn't believe she was still alive.
If she had to describe it, it felt like her head had been severed, rolling on the ground, yet her consciousness lingered.
There was no reason to save her. No reason for him to.
Even if he was too soft-hearted to kill her, freeing and abandoning her would've been enough to call it duty done.
But he'd freed her. Even as night fell, when he should've bolted to a relatively safe shelter to survive, he hadn't ditched her.
'...'
She felt the tight bindings holding her.
The duct tape those killers had used to ensure her death—tape that had made her suffer miserably, alone—was now wrapped around her. Not to kill, but to save.
'No way... this can't be.'
No group took in the useless. Not kids, not elders—that rule held.
Prove your worth or get booted. Take on dangerous jobs or contribute vital non-combat skills. Only then did you earn the right to live.
'I've got... jack shit?'
All her skills were combat-oriented. And what good were they with crushed limbs?
A perfect invalid. Useless, unworthy of rescue. She should've died. Been left to die.
Like the streets teeming with zombies now, she should've met a "night zombie," gotten torn apart, and died like a normal body.
Yet here she was, alive.
'Why... go this far...'
She was truly grateful. Insanely so.
But at the same time, it felt like needless meddling.
It hurt. After the water cleared her head a bit, her muscles screamed relentlessly. Every twitch stabbed with shattered bone begging for death. Her skin stung with every brush of air.
Still, she had to endure. No screams—just bear it.
Because he was fighting.
'Damn it, what the hell's going on...'
She couldn't see ahead. His back was broad, and she lacked the strength to twist or crane her neck.
But she could hear. Zombie roars, monster shrieks piercing her ears nonstop.
Not pushovers. Some were the type where you'd grab your whole group and flee far away.
Yet he fought. With her on his back.
'Why... why go this far for me!'
She couldn't chalk it up to simple "goodwill." She'd never learned that word.
Her conclusion was simple.
'Fuck, my pussy. Must've felt fucking amazing...'
But she didn't hate it. That's why she clenched her teeth harder, enduring the pain.
He wasn't someone who feared her strength. He liked her. Loved her.
She didn't want to endanger him. Didn't want to distract him.
No matter the agony, she wanted him to achieve his goal.
The slaughter continued. The man carrying Han Seohee moved without pause, felling zombies.
Han Seohee endured. Endured again. Bit back the pain, kept silent.
Not for her worthless life. For him. To protect that man.