Chapter 15…
[???]
[James Calberin?]
[Is that JC??]
[Whoa, Ji-han, reaction! Reaction!]
[Does he even look like he can react right now? Ji-han’s in a super serious situation;]
As the viewers predicted, Lee Ji-han was focused on his standoff with Marcus.
“Do you think this is funny?”
“A soft-hearted man who’s never even killed someone, claiming he’ll do whatever it takes… yeah, that’s kind of funny to me.”
But Marcus’s eyes weren’t laughing.
They were swirling with many emotions—perhaps reflections of his own past self.
“Hey, Ji-han. Don’t be like that.”
Marcus, still lying on the ground, stared straight into Ji-han’s eyes.
“I’ll dirty my hands instead. Why not hire me?”
“…And why should I trust you?”
“I’m ex-military. Special forces. I know how to fight—surviving this long should prove that much.”
“But…”
“Sure, I lost to you. But I’m not asking you to give the gun back. You keep it. I just need a bit of food. I’ll guard you and your people.”
Ji-han turned to look at the little kid.
The child only looked back and forth between Marcus and Ji-han with a conflicted expression.
“Where are you headed, Ji-han?”
“The port.”
“Then I’ll give you another reason to hire me. I know the route to the port well. I can drive, I can shoot, and I’ll keep anything scary for the kid to a minimum. Can’t promise never—but I can promise I’ll fight.”
Ji-han stared at Marcus for a long moment… then lowered his gun.
“Alright, Marcus. Don’t move. I’ll untie the ropes.”
[Whoa, Ji-han, don’t untie him!]
The chat, which had been buzzing over JC’s donation, now erupted with concern.
[But with Ji-han’s reaction time, even if Marcus tries again, he’ll just stop him, right?]
[LOL true]
[Yeah, nothing to fear then]
Ji-han walked over and untied the ropes.
Contrary to most expectations, Marcus simply sat quietly once freed.
“Good. Ji-han, what should I call you?”
“Call me whatever you like.”
“Alright then, Boss. From now on, you’re my boss.”
[Good call, Marcus. Become his comrade!]
[LOL this is like some adventure to become the survival king]
[Dammit, Marcus! I like you now!]
[A raider? And ex-military too? That’s reliable.]
“Alright, Marcus. I’ll be counting on you. But unfortunately, we don’t have any food right now.”
“Then the first priority is obvious.”
—We need to find food.
Marcus stood up, stretching his shoulders.
“Food?”
“Food. Grocery stores and drugstores are probably already stripped bare. We’ll need to check other shelters.”
[LOOOOOOL]
[Now that’s reliable! Raider Marcus!]
[Survival tip: low on food? Raid a shelter]
[Wait, wasn’t this game about building a shelter?]
[Nope, now it’s about raiding them instead]
[LOL raider loot run]
[This is genius; isn’t this only a multiplayer thing usually?]
[Exactly LOL]
Marcus’s joining gave everyone a fresh dopamine hit.
Viewers were cheering for his decision, while Ji-han only looked at him with some hesitation.
“Uh, Marcus.”
“Yes, Boss? You have a better idea?”
“Bringing a kid along while raiding shelters doesn’t feel right. Is there anywhere else we could find food?”
“Hmm, good point. We’ve got a kid. Then there’s only one option.”
[Oh come on!]
[Raid them anyway!]
[Take it all—food’s ours, survivors go in the pot!]
[Whoa whoa don’t force cannibalism]
[LMAO cannibals too??]
[Bro chill out LOL]
“There’s a huge department store downtown. That’s where we should head.”
“Would food there still be intact?”
“Of course it would.”
Marcus sounded certain.
And his reasoning was—
“The department store has—”
Beep-beep-beep-beep!
[Alarm: Capsule session time has exceeded 4 hours.]
A sudden message interrupted Ji-han’s vision.
His view turned red as the warning blared in his ears.
This was the alarm Ji-han himself had set before starting, to keep him from losing track of time.
Ji-han was the type to get so hyper-focused he couldn’t pull himself out of the game.
So the alarm was essential.
[?????]
[Ji-han?]
[What’s in the department store??]
[Hey hey, why’d the game stop?]
“Ah, actually—I only planned to stream for four hours at a time.”
The viewers, eager for Marcus’s next line, groaned in frustration.
[Nooooo]
[Why??]
[Please keep playing, please, PLEASE don’t stop now]
[We need to know what happens next!!]
[I just came from the Zombre community, hurry and bring us more of the story]
[Dude, hurry! This is a brand new route!]
[JC even donated earlier, and you’re stopping now??]
“…Uh, well.”
Overwhelmed by their clamor, Ji-han felt flustered.
It had been less than a day since he’d chosen Scenario Mode and joked with Su-ho about maybe ant-farming.
But now, viewer count was… strangely high.
A staggering 12,000 people.
Clips spreading through communities, mid-tier streamers like Kim Ppong-tta drawing people in, word spreading about “the hot new streamer,” and JC’s donation.
Plus, this was a never-before-seen route in Zombre.
So the massive numbers made sense.
But Ji-han didn’t understand streamer culture.
He just stared blankly at chat, confused why so many people were watching.
[What the hell!]
[Explain yourself!]
[Ex]
[plain]
[now]
[Why stop the game?!]
“I told you, once I focus, I can’t see anything else. Sometimes I even skip meals. It gets excessive—so it’s also for health reasons…”
Catching himself, Ji-han began explaining properly.
[Health??]
[Come on, isn’t streaming more important than health?]
[Newbies, didn’t you see Ji-han’s nosebleed earlier?]
[Besides, the capsule’s secondhand anyway. Obviously the cooling doesn’t work great—look, he’s sweating so much his shirt’s soaked.]
Sweat?
Ji-han touched his hair.
It was damp, sticking to his hand.
But he didn’t feel hot.
The cooling was fine—viewers were wrong about that.
Maybe it was just intense focus. Either way, he was drenched.
[You’re really okay, right?]
[Shouldn’t you replace the capsule?]
[Your environment looks way too rough;]
[Remember what Tman said earlier before you started—think about it;]
[Yeah, he told you to reach out, remember?]
The concern was touching.
But Ji-han felt his capsule was still usable—he’d spent his own money on it, after all.
“Thanks, but that’s something I’ll discuss with my manager, Su-ho. And JC, right? James Calberin? Thanks for the $100 donation.”
So he brushed off the topic and started wrapping up the stream.
[Don’t go!]
[Ji-han, if you want me to bark like a dog, I’ll do it, just don’t leave!]
[No one wants to hear you bark]
[Woof woof, please don’t go—at least get to the department store first, then stop, okay?]
[Just show us Marcus’s next line, pleaseeee;;]
But it was nearly time for his parents to come home.
If they saw him still inside the capsule, they’d worry.
Ji-han pressed his lips shut, deliberating… then finally said:
“Sorry, everyone. But let’s meet again tomorrow, same time. Make sure you all eat dinner, and have a pleasant evening.”
With a faint smile, he ended the stream.
Of course, the abrupt ending caused ripples everywhere.
“Phew.”
Fresh from the shower, Ji-han checked his phone.
There was a message from Kim Su-ho.
[Good job ending the stream. You left enough curiosity, and the hype is already rolling.]
Below it were screenshots of community reactions.
Most were similar:
-Why’d you end, Ji-han?! Come back! Come back now! Please!
-Is Zombre always this fun? I need to try Scenario Mode myself;
-This is all thanks to Ji-han. I’ve only ever played Scenario Mode, and people laughed at me for it. Thank you for showing its true potential today.
-But this was a brand new route, right?
-The kid ruins it, though;
-Nope, I’m handsome. I’ll prove it;
-LOL “handsome”??
-LOL let’s start a Handsome Challenge
-Everyone post proof, get judged by the kid character
[Crazy, right? Because of you, some weird challenge started. All the streamers are going live to get their faces rated by the kid LOL]
A faint smile spread on Ji-han’s face.
It felt like he’d revealed a new side of Zombre to the world.
‘Now that I think of it… that JC guy?’
Among Su-ho’s screenshots, JC’s SNS reaction stood out:
-Today, I saw new possibilities in Korea. For the first time in a long while, my heart raced. I felt like I’d regained a lost passion.
-I was working on my next project, but now I want to create new DLC for Zombre.
-This DLC will be a sequel branching from the “Port Route.” Our team had no choice but to make a big decision.
-The “Girl” character’s affinity requirements will be eased. You’ll be able to grow closer to her more easily. Everyone, put your sincerity into it!
[That’s huge. Guess it really was JC. Affinity requirements are being relaxed.]
[But what about the challenge then?]
[Dude, streamers are going nuts. What are you doing? Why aren’t you replying?]
[Quick, get on Pretzel and watch any Zombre stream!]
Ji-han replied that he’d just finished washing up, then sat at his PC linked to the capsule.
On Pretzel’s main page—
Zombre streams were everywhere.
“Guys, before the nerf, I’m going to earn the kid’s approval with my true sincerity!”
“Come on, I’m obviously handsome!”
“Look at me, kid—don’t I look pretty?”
“After the nerf, it won’t count! Real men earn approval the hard way!”
They were all attempting the “Pretty Boy/Pretty Girl Challenge.”
Trying desperately to win the kid’s approval before the affinity nerf hit.
[You watching this, Ji-han? LOL]
[Yeah, Su-ho, I’m watching.]
[How does it feel?]
[Hm?]
“That kid… in Zombre, they were treated like a nuisance. Lots of people hated her, some even went out of their way to kill her off.”
Ji-han frowned slightly.
It had only been a brief encounter.
But to him, the kid had felt like a living, breathing person in Zombre’s world—no different than himself.
So Su-ho’s words annoyed him.
[But look now.]
“Huh?”
[Because of you, people want the kid’s approval. She’s no longer a nuisance. Not a burden anymore.]
Indeed, countless streamers were shoving their faces toward her.
Sometimes she spat at them, sometimes she ran away, sometimes she just said they were ugly.
-LOL you are ugly tho
“Uh, no! She’s just young! When she grows up, she’ll see my type is solid!”
-LOL you’re never getting approved
“Hey, I’m good-looking! Guess her standards are just high. Well, Ji-han’s looks are on another level, I suppose.”
-Yo, look! Her face is turning red!
-LOL time to play Zombre, huh?
“Wow, hahaha. Thank you, guys. Can’t believe I’m this happy over getting approved. Guess I’ll give Scenario Mode a shot after all.”
[See, Ji-han? You changed this.]
Su-ho’s single message made Ji-han smile.
Tap, tap, tap.
[Streaming really is fun.]
He sent the reply lightly—
then kept watching the many streamers struggling to survive in Zombre’s world.
