I Ended Up in a Zombie Apocalypse Novel
Fucking hell.
The curse flew out of my mouth the second I looked down at my stomach.
There wasn’t a single patch of skin under the sports bra that wasn’t bruised. The whole thing was painted red and purple. I touched it without thinking and a wave of agony slammed into me, forcing me to yank my hand back.
Those sons of bitches really do love hammering the stomach and sides. The hole in my gut hadn’t even finished healing yet, and now it looked like a goddamn abstract painting.
“Fucking hell!”
The Poisoner’s arrow had snapped clean in half inside my jeans. The broken tip was buried in my thigh. No wonder I hadn’t felt any pain while getting the shit kicked out of me—the paralytic poison must have been doing its job. I briefly wondered if paralysis and anesthesia were the same thing, then ripped the arrowhead out and tossed it on the floor.
Limping, I made my way over to the Boxer. Hoo… fuck. There wasn’t a single spot on my body that didn’t hurt. I wanted to pass out right then and there. Still, the sight of the brass knuckles in the Boxer’s hand made me feel like the victory wasn’t completely empty.
Those knuckles were seriously solid. The moment I picked them up I could tell—they were heavy, perfectly balanced, and built as a single piece. I could probably swing a baseball bat while wearing them. Nice.
If I hadn’t realized something sharp was stuck in my thigh and that blood was pouring out, I probably wouldn’t have noticed if my bones were broken either.
I spent a while letting out weird, breathy groans while carefully pressing on the bruised areas. Luckily nothing seemed fractured. The bruises were nasty, but I could deal with those. There was plenty of ointment in the pharmacy for exactly this kind of thing.
“Lighter… lighter…”
The lighter I’d shoved in my back pocket was miraculously intact. I smiled, relieved I wouldn’t have to make a trip to the convenience store just yet.
What I had to do now was simple: burn the vines and the zombies.
There was a sprinkler system overhead, but I ignored it. I didn’t have the energy to worry about that shit. I flicked the lighter open, but the sprinklers never activated. Come to think of it, those sensors ran on electricity, and the power was still out.
“You absolute fucking morons!”
If the building’s sprinklers weren’t going to work, there was no need to drag the corpses outside. I could just open all the windows for ventilation and burn everything right here. Ow, fuck. Yelling made my stomach hurt again.
I went around setting fire to every vine and zombie corpse I could see. At least they burned cleanly. Later on there would be plants and zombies that exploded on contact with fire, but for now I was lucky.
When I tried to take a step, the pain forced another groan out of me.
“……Hngh, haaaaa……”
Was this adrenaline? Endorphins? Something else? I vaguely remembered learning about it in science class once, but I’d forgotten all the details. Either way, now that the fight was over, the pain was rolling in like a slow tide.
If the baseball bat were still usable I could’ve used it as a cane, but it was too wrecked to even consider. I felt genuinely sad. I’d only just named it “Conversation” before having to say goodbye. I hoped my next companion would last a little longer as I headed for the pharmacy.
The whole way there I kept groaning, so I walked with my eyes glued to the ceiling. The last thing I needed was a zombie dropping down on me. Only after I reached the pharmacy did I remember there weren’t any zombies on the fourth floor. What an idiot.
Still, treating my wounds came before self-scolding. At least I didn’t have to bite down on anything this time. The erotic-sounding moans that kept slipping out while I disinfected everything felt weird, but at least I could endure the pain now.
After spending dozens of minutes patching myself up, I headed to the convenience store.
“Ah. I should probably loot everything on the second floor too.”
I scratched my head roughly and decided to do it later. Once I cleared all the way up to the seventh floor I could just grab everything in one go. For now, eating and lying down took priority.
I wolfed down all the food I’d taken from the convenience store. Come to think of it, the big stationery shop on the first floor sold snacks too. I made a mental note to grab some before I forgot, then cracked open a tuna can and used a biscuit as a spoon. I even poured the oil into a cup of ramen and heated up some instant rice.
I ate like a starving ghost, cleaned up, and collapsed into bed.
When I came to, someone was shaking me. Startled, I grabbed the bat I’d left by the pillow, but it was just Lee Yeji. I wondered briefly why she was here, but the sight of her crying made me sit up and try to soothe her.
“Waaaaah… Big sis… Daddy……”
“Yeah, Yeji. What’s wrong? Tell me.”
“They… hic… they said they don’t want me and Mommy anymore……”
“What?”
“The soldier uncles came… sniff. They said only me and Mommy could go……”
“………Why?”
“They have to play tag… but I’m too slow, so they said I can’t do it……”
“Wait, Yeji. Did you come here with someone?”
Lee Yeji nodded.
Good. At least I knew it was dangerous. Actually, it already was. The moment I stepped out of the room, I saw a man standing there.
He wore a military cap and uniform. The man immediately held out his hand.
“You don’t need to be so wary. I came with the child because I was worried about her.”
“……………………”
“I didn’t touch any of your supplies. I have no intention of forcing you to come with us.”
“……Thank you. Could you explain the situation in more detail?”
The man nodded.
He introduced himself as Captain Han Daewi. There was a commander—some general or other—who was gathering scattered soldiers on foot. They were planning to move out following his orders. Along the way, they had decided to take every civilian they could fit in their vehicles.
That’s when I understood.
“The roads are blocked, right? Fighting the zombies would be too much of a burden, so you’re picking one volunteer to act as bait.”
“Correct. I’d rather fight right away, but we have civilians to protect.”
“…………How many soldiers do you have?”
“Including myself, six. Barely over ten civilians.”
“There’s a ridiculous amount of food in this convenience store. Take as much as you can carry.”
“What about you?”
“I can just raid other stores when I have time. Oh, right. Don’t go above the fourth floor.”
“Understood. What will you do?”
“Ugh, this hurts like shit.”
Captain Han Daewi looked at me with a question in his eyes. Are you coming with us, or staying?
Obviously staying. A military-run shelter wasn’t necessarily safe. In fact, people were often more dangerous. I just wanted to live here.
Still, his name sounded familiar. I couldn’t quite place it.
“I understood that the child’s father was supposed to be the bait. Is that correct?”
“……Yes.”
“I’ll take the bait role. Ow.”
“……Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. I’ve gotten used to this kind of thing. Anyway……”
Lee Yeji was clinging to my leg and crying. I slowly knelt on one knee so our eyes were level and gently stroked her head.
“Big sis……”
“It’s okay. By the way, do you like the headset?”
“Yes.”
“You won’t be able to take the clothes, right?”
“Correct. Our goal is to get the people out safely. There’s no helping it.”
“I see.”
Makes sense. In a situation like this, they wouldn’t have the luxury of carrying supplies. They’d take essential food, but clothes were lower priority. That meant Lee Yeji would need something to wear. Winter was coming. She’d need proper clothes to survive.
Luckily I had one outfit I could spare. Something I could take off without it looking strange. It smelled a bit, but I ignored that and handed her the coat I’d kept in good condition.
“A present. Wear it for me instead of big sis.”
“But what about you, sis……”
“Big sis runs hot. I’ll be fine.”
“……………………”
Lee Yeji seemed to sense something sad and started sniffling. I stroked her head again and pulled her into a hug.
No matter how I thought about it, I was a much better choice for bait than her father. If I got bitten, I could heal as long as I had medicine and food. Since I’d volunteered for the role, I needed at least some basic protection.
I grabbed a waist bag and stuffed it with water and chocolate bars. In place of the broken “Conversation,” I gripped peace instead.
“……The operation begins in one hour. You can rest until then.”
“Got it.”
“By the way, what is your name?”
Captain Han Daewi asked with sad eyes. Come on, man. Stop planting death flags like that. Who the hell charges in thinking they’re going to die? I volunteered because I was confident I could survive.
But if I said that out loud, they probably wouldn’t believe me. They’d just think I was telling a comforting white lie.
Anyway. A name.
My original name was Park Jeong-heum. But I wanted to throw that name away. After thinking about what alias I should use while surviving, one perfect name came to mind.
“Yeji. I’m Lee Yeji.”
“Oh, sis is Yeji too?”
“Yeah. Same name, huh?”
“Wow…… Yeji sis! Yeji sis!”
“Lee Yeji, then……”
Captain Han Daewi nodded.
One hour later, I stood at the intersection staring at the opposite road. It was an eight-lane street. A swarm of zombies had gathered around a wrecked passenger car in the center divider. At least forty. Maybe sixty. Possibly more.
My job from here on was simple.
Scream at the top of my lungs to draw their attention and clear a path so the cars could get through.
The chance of dying was high.
The chance of getting hurt was even higher.
Even if I succeeded, only the sixteen people here would ever know. If I failed, that was the end.
But for some reason, I felt good.
I waved at Lee Yeji, who was sitting in the car wearing the headset and clutching the coat. She waved back.
It was time to survive.
