After Letting Go of Helping Others, I Focused on Myself

After sacrificing his own leg to rescue a neighbor from a burning vehicle, the protagonist of this modern fantasy was met with betrayal. To avoid paying compensation, the ungrateful survivor vilified him as a reckless meddler. Ruined by rumors and deep depression, he died alone in a hospital bed. But fate grants him a second chance. Waking up to the sight of thick smoke rising from that very same car, he decides to abandon his self-sacrificing ways and prioritize his own life.

Chapters

Chapter 1

In my previous life, I tried to save a neighbor trapped in a car fire, but my own leg got stuck in the process.

By the time I reached the hospital, it was too late and half of my leg had to be amputated. Afraid of compensating me, the neighbor spread rumors, saying I was playing the hero and that even if I hadn’t intervened, firefighters would have saved them.

I became seen as a meddler by everyone. Eventually, I grew depressed in my hospital bed and passed away within a year.

When I opened my eyes again, thick smoke was billowing from the neighbor’s car.

——

"Help! Somebody, help!" A familiar cry for help echoed.

I opened my eyes to see the familiar sight of the area below my apartment. I stood there in a daze for a long time. When I came to my senses, the elderly lady from my neighbor's house was pulling me forward.

Looking down at my fully functional legs, I nearly burst into tears, now certain that I had been reborn. And it was before I had tried to save the neighbor.

This time, I decided I would no longer "meddle."

In my previous life, I risked everything to save them, only to be met with ridicule. Not only did they never visit me in the hospital, but they also openly blamed me, saying I was just loud and impulsive, always playing the hero. They claimed that even without me, the firefighters would have saved them.

They said my involvement only added to the firefighters' workload and caused more trouble. Yet, at the time, no one had even called the fire department. The elderly lady from the neighbor's house was too busy taking things out of the car and it was only after people saw me trying to save someone that someone finally suggested calling for help.

By the time the firefighters arrived, I had already pulled the woman out of the car, but I got stuck between the seats and couldn't free myself. Without me, that young woman wouldn’t have escaped so quickly.

Yet, they insisted I had meddled unnecessarily.

I glanced at the elderly lady, who had pulled me toward the burning car and a faint smile crossed my face.

Fine, in this life, I wouldn’t meddle anymore.

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