Chapter 30…
A hulking figure holding a chainsaw.
A ragged face with the texture of a leather mask.
The thing charged forward, swinging the chainsaw viciously.
Vroooom!
“Kyahhh!? Ji-han!?”
Despite Luna’s scream, Ji-han didn’t answer.
At some point, Lee Ji-han had entered a world of hyper-focus.
Vrrrmmm!
The chainsaw seemed to move in slow motion, as did his own body.
Perfectly controlling his slowed body, Ji-han grabbed Luna and rolled across the floor once more.
[It’s like watching a horror movie!?]
[Crazy, crazy, crazy!!!]
[Even the regulars admit this part is insane]
[Save Luna! Ji-han, save Luna!!]
The chat window scrolled frantically.
But Ji-han had no time to look at it.
Whish!
He shoved Luna toward a nearby vending stall, letting her hide there.
[???]
[Is he trying to dribble with her??]
[Damn, can Ji-han actually pull this off?]
[Never seen a creature like that in Zombress before.]
[True;; I’ve seen plenty of mutants, but that thing looks more… human than zombie.]
Even veteran Zombress players felt uneasy.
Its movements were too precise, its actions showing more intelligence than a zombie’s.
The way it swung the chainsaw looked brutish and reckless—yet sharp and deliberate at the same time.
Whish! Slash!
[Protect Ji-han’s face!!!!]
[What’s with that scratch!!!]
[Message hidden by moderation.]
[That bastard needs to die!!!]
[Message hidden by moderation.]
[But can he kill it tho? What’ll get killed is probably me lmaooo]
The chat grew more agitated.
The reason was simple:
The chainsaw had grazed Ji-han’s face, leaving a shallow wound.
Though he dodged with all his strength, he failed to avoid a few strikes.
And Ji-han wasn’t the type to “stage” close calls—his reflexes and focus were monstrous.
The chat went wild with tension, while Ji-han kept retreating, narrowly evading each attack.
[Ji-han!!! Be careful!!!]
[Oh god Ji-han, what now!!!]
[Protect the face! Your face must be protected!!]
The chat burned brighter.
[But why isn’t Ji-han making big moves?]
[Huh?]
[Yeah??]
[Shouldn’t he be using his gymnastic moves to create distance? But he’s just backstepping calmly… isn’t that weird?]
The question sparked new suspicion.
[So he’s… deliberately letting some attacks through?]
It was strange indeed.
Ji-han’s eyes weren’t those of a victim—they were a predator’s.
Waiting for the right moment.
The usually gentle face now carried a sharp, piercing gaze.
[Whoa, look, Ji-han’s luring it.]
[Huh? Luring it where?]
VROOAAANG!
Instead of an answer, the chainsaw swung again.
Ji-han ducked low, sliding between the creature’s legs.
CLANG!
PSHHHHHH!
SSSHHHHH!
The chainsaw struck a pipe, rupturing it.
Freezing gas burst out, spraying everywhere.
[Oh.]
[Damn.]
[LOOOL did he bait that!?]
[So he was luring it! Holy—]
[Luring’s nice and all BUT protect his face dammit!!!]
The chat exploded.
As Ji-han slid out from under, he kicked the creature’s back hard, shoving it into the freezing mist.
His legs—seven times stronger than his arms, honed by gymnastics—launched the beast straight into the gas.
Crack, crackkk!
[Wait, what? Zombies are weak to cold, sure…]
[But that thing’s literally freezing solid??]
[Where are all those “Zombress is realistic” fanboys now?]
[LMAO realistic my ass??]
Realism didn’t matter.
Science didn’t matter.
What mattered was the dopamine rush.
A never-before-seen boss monster.
A clever lure, an exploited weakness, the staged tension of near defeat—
It was pure hype fuel.
“Ji-han!”
Luna shouted, charging with a fire axe.
Ji-han instinctively turned aside, letting her pass.
THUNK!
The massive axe buried itself into the creature’s frozen skull.
[Whoa.]
[Sick move but…]
[That’s disgusting as hell.]
[Ughhh I was eating just now!!]
[Wtf is that?? What’s inside it??]
The torn leather-mask face revealed not flesh, but a mass of giant worms.
No—leeches, perhaps?
Something no one had ever seen.
[Wait, isn’t this worldbuilding lore??]
[Huh??]
[I thought the lore was just “zombie virus spreads, Earth falls.” That’s it.]
[But we never knew how it spread, or where it came from.]
[…So it’s not a virus?]
[It’s a parasite??]
[Wtf;;;]
Disgust filled the chat, but so did fascination.
Clips of the moment spread across Pretzel, a global streaming platform.
“…What? Parasites? Hold on.”
Upstairs, ScienceBox—who had been scavenging gear after clearing zombies—gasped.
His fans had clipped the reveal and sent it to him.
“Whoa, insane. I’m a Zombress specialist streamer, but I’ve never seen anything like this. Ew, ew, ugh, so gross.”
Twisting his body in exaggerated disgust, he still couldn’t tear his eyes from the video.
“If this really is lore, it’s huge. Never-before-seen creatures, never-before-seen monsters. Zombies don’t spill out parasites when you smash them.”
After watching, ScienceBox grinned in satisfaction.
“In the end, it all depends on how Ji-han pushes the story. The threads will change depending on his choices. Other streamers are gonna rush the story now too.”
[LOOOL follow Ji-han!]
[He’s the pioneer!!]
[We’re literally on the frontline of the story!]
The chat burned with pride.
A game they thought had no story—yet here was lore unfolding, with their streamer at the frontlines.
“Then why don’t we head back and finish the quest?”
At this, Whale tilted his head.
“Quest? This game has quests?”
ScienceBox nodded.
“Anything tied to NPCs counts as a quest. We should be able to get those keepsakes I mentioned.”
“Ohhh, then we can finally test it out, huh?”
Applying keepsakes from other servers.
How would the NPCs react?
It was the biggest question viewers had, and Whale voiced it aloud.
[LOL yesss I’ve been curious about that too]
[This server’s basically a parallel world, right?]
[But Ji-han’s server is probably the “main canon.”]
[Still, persuading the kid and teaming with Marcus is already a crazy divergence.]
[Yeah, Marcus is a raider after all.]
[Which makes it even more fun though.]
Just then, Marcus and the kid approached.
“Heard a huge noise. Boss, you good?”
Ji-han nodded.
ScienceBox and Whale set down weapons, while Ji-han and Luna laid out food.
Marcus’s face brightened.
“With this much, we can eat on the move. No need to turn this place into a shelter, right boss?”
Exactly.
Ji-han had chosen the “road movie” storyline.
Settling down would’ve made him just another ordinary Zombress streamer.
“Th-thank you.”
The child shyly pressed four-leaf clovers into everyone’s hands.
“Huh?”
“Whoa, what’s this?”
“Thanks~ I’ll treasure it.”
Blushing, the kid hid behind Ji-han again.
“So these must be the keepsakes,” ScienceBox noted.
Everyone nodded.
“But… there’s one problem,” Ji-han said, hesitating.
“How do we carry all this? We’re constantly moving.”
At that, Whale grinned.
“That’s why ScienceBox and I talked it over.”
ScienceBox nodded.
“We’ll build you an awesome ride before we leave. Our collab boosted recognition, and we got to join the story. Thanks for the experience.”
“Huh? What? Why’d you leave me out!?” Luna puffed her cheeks.
“You and Ji-han already killed the boss together,” Whale teased.
[LOL Luna’s so cute]
[Why is she so adorable!?]
[I think I’m falling for her fr]
[But the car idea is dope.]
[If ScienceBox builds it, at least it won’t be one of those cursed Ji-han x KimPpong cars.]
The chat filled with car talk.
“How long will it take?” Luna asked.
“Not long,” ScienceBox replied.
Whale quickly began scavenging for a suitable SUV.
Metal plates were bolted on, storage space expanded, armor reinforced.
[Whoa, it comes together like that??]
[ScienceBox is sick, first time I’ve seen him build.]
[Damn, I gotta go follow him lol]
Just like the chat said, he was a pro at crafting a reinforced SUV.
“Here it is.”
[Time flew lolol]
[How did 20 minutes feel so short?]
[No after-party stream?]
[Who needs one, this car build was the after-party.]
The chat radiated positivity.
Even Luna and Whale stared in awe.
Dark paint for concealment.
Matte steel plates.
It practically oozed safety—a fortress SUV.
“Boss, your friends are amazing.”
“S-so cool…”
Marcus and the kid marveled.
Marcus even handed over some bullets from his necklace—keepsakes of his own.
Thus everyone received keepsakes.
But the time had come for the six—Ji-han, Luna, Marcus, the kid, Whale, and ScienceBox—to part ways.
“Thank you for the car. I’ve never received a gift like this before. Truly, thank you.”
Ji-han bowed with a gentle smile.
His overly polite manner made Whale and ScienceBox flail.
“No no, Ji-han! At times like this—” ScienceBox waved his hands.
“You just say, ‘Let’s collab again next time!’ and call it even,” Whale grinned.
At their words—
“Ah.”
Ji-han lifted his head, realizing something, and smiled.
“Then let’s do another collab sometime. I had a great time today.”
And so, Ji-han took another step closer—
to becoming a true streamer.
