“You’re going to die then.”

I don’t know why I’m trying so hard to save this stupid girl. Maybe it’s because she reminds me of Sasha. Of how we all were when we first started hunting the dead. That naïve innocence, the thought that maybe our loved ones could still be saved. I thought I had forgotten the feeling. But right now, I’m starting to remember. Maybe it’s just how damp the Drowned Ghoul between my arms is, but my eyes are a little moist. I blink to clear them. My breath grows heavy. Without any stat increases holding a Lvl 5 is taking every bit out of me.

“I’m going to let go now.”

“You…you really would.” Yin walks closer, my cleaver held tightly in front of her. She stares at her friend with horror as I hold the thing back. Eventually, her expression turns to pity. My arms are burning, and finally, I have to let go. So be it.

*Shing*

Yin swings my cleaver. Her blow cuts into Crassia’s throat with a wet thump. But she’s inexperienced and the cleaver is hardly a perfect blade for the job. The shallow cut she inflicts only makes Crassia wail loudly.

“I-hate-you! You-hurt-me! DIE-DIE-DIE!” The Drowned Ghoul rages, her hands scrabbling on my forearms. Instantly, I let go. The zombie falls forward as I unexpectedly kick her in the back of the knee. Then I shove forwards with my own knee, bringing her down with me on top. “HUURRGH!”

“Finish her. Become a Hunter.” I say, keeping my knee in the middle of Crassia’s back so she can’t move. “Humans are weak in the back of the neck. Right here.” I touch the spot with a finger. It squishes inwards disgustingly. Yin looks like she’s going to puke. She leans in, my cleaver held high. The cute girl from before is unrecognizable, mud all over her hands and legs and undisguised fear on her face.

“I thought you weren’t going to help me anymore.” She whispers.

“I won’t kill her. But if you are willing to learn how to survive, I can teach you the basics.” I shrug. “Now kill it, I’m getting tired.”

“She’s a person.” Yin retorts, her face a mask of agony. I just lift my knee slightly. When Crassia is able to get her face out of the mud she immediately begins to howl once more.

“Give-me-your-warmth!” Her rage is enough to make Yin shiver in fear. I push myself off of the Drowned Soul entirely. The zombie begins to rise onto all fours, her hands scrabbling in the dirt. With a tortured grimace, Yin makes her choice. Metal shines in the moonlight. A swish comes. My cleaver swings down on the weakpoint at the back of the neck. This time it connects cleanly. Crassia’s howl is choked off. River water mixes with blood as her body tilts forward. First her head thuds to the ground and then the rest of her follows soon after. Silence is everywhere, broken only by Yin’s sobs.

“I’m so sorry…” She whispers to the corpse. However, in a moment, it is replaced by confusion. “W-What is this? Why can I see this writing in the air? Congratulations on becoming a Hunter? Is this what you meant?” She whirls, her fingers seemingly waving in the air. In time, she will learn to adjust her HUD with her mind. But for now, the most intuitive way is to reach for it with her hands.

“Do you see it now? You’ve just hit Lvl 1.” I look at her, remembering my first time seeing the HUD. She fidgets, her face scrunching up. “The higher your level becomes the stronger you will get. The only way to become safe in this world is to level up.”

“This…this is ridiculous! You can’t seriously expect me to believe that this is all some sort of game?” She whispers, but it doesn’t matter what I say because she has already begun to believe. “If this is real, and I’m not saying it is, how do you level up?”

I point at the dead Drowned Soul at her feet.

“There are two ways to level up. The most common way for most people is to kill zombies, the more you kill, the stronger you get.” My explanation is easy enough to follow. She looks at the dead zombie and then at me.

“What is the second way then?” She asks hesitantly when I don’t continue. Turning my gaze around the thicket, I shrug, pointing at her forehead.

“The second way is to kill other Hunters. For every Hunter you kill, half their accumulated experience will become yours. But I don’t recommend it.” Glancing her over, I smile coldly. “You’re too weak, and since you only gain half of their experience, it’s not worth the risk. Eventually, if you go down that path, the price will be more than you can handle.”

“I see.” Yin shivers, realizing that she’s still holding my cleaver in her hand. “What level are you then?”

“I’m a newbie, like you. Lvl 1.” I take back my cleaver and clean it in the grass. While I wipe away the blood of her friend, she looks grossed out.

“How do you know so much then?” She asks. This time, I don’t respond. When my knife is clean, I stand. Suddenly, the bushes nearby shiver. I knew I heard something else in these woods. Yin startles, despite becoming a Hunter she still thinks like prey and immediately tries to hide behind me. However, when the bushes part, she gives a cry of relief.

“Donovan!” Yin leaves my shadow as the blonde-haired boy comes out of the shadows. He has a wary gaze as he sees my cleaver in hand. From the brush, the rest of Yin’s party appears. The girl with pink hair, Rui, who begged me to save Crassia rushes in and gasps as she sees Crassia’s body. Yin embraces her as the other boys come awkwardly into the clearing. Their clothing is still wet, obviously they did not manage to get a fire going. So, they’re the ones who have been making so much noise.

“We couldn’t let you go alone.” Donovan explains nervously. He’s afraid of me. In his hand is another tree branch, a thicker one this time. “Thank you for…trying. I’m sorry I was rude to you before.” The college aged boy lowers his branch and extends his hand. “What’s your name?” Standing there, I shake his hand, if nothing else, then for Yin’s sake. As she learns more about becoming a Hunter, she’ll need people she can trust to party with. Huh…why do I care so much about this girl? Is it just because she has a pretty face?

“I’m Hei.” I say simply. “Bring me some wood and I’ll make a fire so we can dry off.” The three males go to gather wood while Yin stares at Crassia for the longest time. The pink haired girl comes over to me while we wait.

“Hi, Hei. I’m Rui! It’s nice to meet you!” She says warmly. It’s a stark contrast to how she treated me last time. “You saved our lives. Even if you couldn’t help Crassia, I’m glad we met you!” The girl gets a little too close for my comfort. “How’d you become so strong? Do you want to protect me?”

“…” I shy away uncomfortably as she presses her body uncomfortably close to my elbow. Undeterred, she sidles closer again. Through my wet coat-sleeve, I can feel her cold body pushing against my arm. She intentionally brushes against me and the wet skin feels much like Crassia’s body did, too soft.

Get off of me hoe. I’m not your white knight.

I’m saved when the others return with wood. As I walk away to start the fire, I see a glint of annoyance in Rui’s eyes.

“Here.” I take out a piece of flint and strike it a few times with my cleaver. Sparks fly and catch on some of the tinder the boys have prepared. Bending down, I blow on the embers until they ignite. A roaring fire soon comes, spreading welcome warmth and chasing away the shadows. This deep in the forest, I’m not too worried about anything coming for us because the trees should block the light. “The sun will be coming up soon. I recommend sleeping in the morning while the undead are also asleep. That way, at night, you’ll be awake when they come out.”

“That’s smart.” The darker skinned boy with dreadlocks smiles as he comes by the fire to warm up.  “You know so much man. If we were as strong as you are, it’d be so much easier to survive.” To this, I can only sigh. I’m not strong anymore. You guys are just too weak. The fire burns and my clothes begin to dry. At some point, the others move away, clustering together to sleep. I don’t go towards them. Instead, I go and find a slanted tree trunk to put my back against. It’s still nighttime, and though I don’t think there’s any evil nearby, it doesn’t hurt to be careful. To my surprise, Yin walks over after a while. She stands shyly next to me before sitting.

“Do you need something?” I ask. However, she just shakes her head. Together we watch the fire burn down to empty cinders. When the last log crumbles to ash, she suddenly leans against me. Her long black hair tickles my forearm as her body comes to rest against my shoulder. I stiffen, but I sense no malice from her. She’s not trying to use me.

This is someone worth protecting.

“Thank you.” She whispers to me, her head snuggled onto my chest. I hear a sniff and a warm tear lands on my dry shirt. “You came from nowhere. You saved me. I’m just…without you…we all would have…” Sobs break out and I feel her hands searching for mine. Though I know I shouldn’t allow myself to get close to her, I can’t resist. In this world, without Sasha, or James, or the others, I’ve been all alone. I shouldn’t let myself hope, but in this moment, I really want to believe that the world will be a better place. I wrap her up in my arms, and rock her to sleep as the moon begins to set. Without realizing it, once she has begun to snore gently, like a purring cat, I begin to nod off myself.

Yin, your name might mean cold, but right now you’re the only warm thing I have!