I Refuse the Tragic Ending

Some of the senior students began organizing the survivors, while others volunteered to inspect the sanctuary’s surroundings. A few students who possessed healing abilities gathered near the injured, checking their conditions and distributing whatever medical supplies remained.

Kael watched as Seraphina moved through the gathering, calmly directing the students and assigning responsibilities to each group.

She had divided the survivors according to their abilities, placing those with defensive skills along the outer perimeter while assigning ranged fighters to elevated positions. The healers were gathered near the center of the safe zone, where they could treat the injured without being caught in the middle of a fight. Meanwhile, the stronger students were instructed to reinforce the barricades and prepare to intercept anything that managed to break through.

Her instructions were clear and concise, leaving little room for confusion. Whenever someone raised a concern, she listened before offering a practical solution. Even when several students began talking over one another, she managed to restore order without raising her voice unnecessarily.

More importantly, she never allowed the growing anxiety to spread through the gathering. Her composed demeanor seemed to steady those around her, giving the students something to focus on beyond the danger lurking outside the sanctuary.

Kael observed her for a while.

‘So this is what it looks like when someone actually knows how to lead.’

He had expected Seraphina to be capable, but watching her coordinate such a large group under these circumstances gave him a better appreciation of her abilities.

‘No wonder she’s destined to become one of the greatest commanders in the Hero Legion.’

Kael remembered the reputation Seraphina held in the original story. Her achievements weren’t built on strength alone. She possessed the judgment to make difficult decisions, the composure to act under pressure, and the ability to inspire others to follow her even when the situation seemed hopeless.

Seeing those qualities emerge firsthand was rather different from reading about them in a game.

‘Honestly, if I had to choose someone to lead a group through a disaster like this, she’d be near the top of my list.’

As if sensing his gaze, Seraphina turned toward him.

“Kael Grayford, could you help the students reinforce the southern barricade? I want to make sure that entrance can withstand a sudden charge.”

“Sure. I’ll check it out.”

He pushed himself away from the tree and headed toward the southern path.

Behind him, Seraphina had already moved on to her next task, coordinating the scouts and checking whether the healers had enough supplies.

Kael glanced back once before returning his attention to the barricade.

For the first time since the chaos appeared, there was a semblance of order among the students.

It was far from reassuring.

They were still trapped inside a forest filled with undead, with no way to contact the outside world. The safe zone offered protection, but nobody knew how long that protection would last.

After finishing his task, Kael looked toward the safe zone’s outer perimeter.

The place was considerably larger than the clearing where Team 37 had initially taken shelter. Tall trees surrounded the area, their thick branches forming a natural canopy overhead. Several narrow paths connected the clearing to the surrounding forest, while a rocky slope along one side offered a degree of elevation.

It was a reasonably defensible location.

Unfortunately, reasonably defensible wasn’t the same as impregnable.

Kael had seen enough fantasy settings to know that a seemingly secure location could become a death trap if its occupants grew complacent.

And this particular situation was worse than most.

The safe zone’s properties were useful during this kind of event, but no one actually knew how much the comfort it offered could last.

As he was depth in thoughts, someone approached from behind.

“Kael?”

He turned.

Seraphina was looking at him.

“Do you think the sanctuary can withstand an attack?”

Kael followed her gaze.

“That depends on what’s attacking us.”

Seraphina’s brows drew together.

“You really don’t make things sound reassuring.”

“I could tell you everything will be fine, but that wouldn’t make it true.” He shrugged. “Besides, I’d rather spend an hour preparing for an attack that never comes than spend five minutes wishing we’d prepared after one does.”

Seraphina regarded him silently before a faint smile appeared on her face.

“That’s a rather practical way of looking at things.”

Kael was briefly stunned to see her smile. Even in the game, she rarely did it.

“It’s a practical situation,” Kael said.

She seemed about to respond when a familiar voice interrupted them.

“You two looked familiar with each other.”

They glanced at the same time and saw Lilith approached with her usual composed expression, her dark clothing contrasting sharply with the lighter uniforms of the Hero Department students.

Despite the circumstances, she didn’t appear particularly distressed. If anything, she looked as though the crisis had finally given her something interesting to investigate.

Seraphina turned toward her. Both her and Kael did not give any meaning to Lilith’s words.

“Did you find something?” Seraphina asked.

“I did.”

Lilith glanced at Kael before continuing.

“I was examining the sanctuary’s perimeter. There are several paths leading into the clearing, but the terrain narrows considerably toward the northern side. If we reinforce that section, we could reduce the number of approaches we need to guard.”

“That’s useful,” Kael said. “What about the other entrances?”

“The eastern path is relatively open. We can establish an observation point there. The western side is more difficult because of the uneven terrain, but a small group should be able to monitor it.”

She paused.

“The southern path is the most concerning. It leads deeper into the forest, and there are several places where someone could approach without being noticed.”

Kael nodded.

“Then we should prioritize the southern path. We can use fallen branches and logs to create obstacles without completely blocking the route. That way, we’ll have more time to react if anything approaches.”

Lilith tilted her head.

“You’ve already thought about this?”

“Not particularly. It’s just the obvious thing to do.”

“Is that so?”

Her eyes narrowed slightly with amusement.

“You’re becoming increasingly difficult to understand, Kael Grayford.”

“That’s unfortunate. I was hoping to become increasingly easy to understand.”

Lilith laughed softly.

Seraphina shook her head before turning toward the students responsible for the preparations.

“Let’s get started. We don’t have time to waste.”

As the three separated, Kael noticed someone approaching from the opposite side of the clearing.

Leon.

The academy’s top freshman stopped a few steps away, his gaze briefly shifting toward Seraphina before settling on Kael.

There was an obvious displeasure in the way he looked at Kael.

“I want to ask you something.”

Kael looked at him.

“Go ahead.”

“How did you know this place existed?”

Kael frowned.

“We already discussed that. My team found it while exploring the forest.”

“That doesn’t explain how you found it so quickly.”

Leon folded his arms.

“This region is dangerous. According to the senior students, even experienced teams failed to locate the sanctuary during previous examinations. Yet you managed to find it despite having a low-ranked Hero Core.”

Kael stared at him for a moment.

Then he sighed.

“Leon, I understand that you’re curious, but I don’t have a particularly interesting explanation for you.”

“You’re asking me to believe that it was a coincidence?”

“Yes.”

Leon’s expression darkened.

Kael continued before the other student could interrupt.

“We just happened to find the entrance. That’s all there is to it.”

Leon clearly wasn’t satisfied.

However, before he could continue questioning Kael, another voice interrupted them.

“Leon, we need you.”

A senior student approached hurriedly.

“Can your team help move some big logs and boulders? Some of the students can barely lift them.”

Leon’s team has the most members with high physical strength.

Leon glanced at Kael one final time.

“This conversation isn’t over.”

“Sure.”

Kael watched him leave.

‘That went well.’

He turned toward the center of the clearing and found his teammates working on their assignments.

…

Several minutes later, their defensive preparations were underway.

Students with physical enhancement abilities moved fallen logs toward the southern path. Others collected sturdy branches and positioned them along the narrower approaches. Those with ranged abilities were assigned elevated positions where they could observe the surrounding forest without exposing themselves unnecessarily.

The work proceeded more smoothly than Kael had anticipated.

Although the students came from different backgrounds and had varying levels of combat experience, the crisis had given them a common objective.

Survival.

Kael moved between the groups, giving small adjustments to their arrangements.

“Leave a gap there.”

One of the students paused while carrying a thick branch.

“Why? Wouldn’t it be better to block the entire path?”

“Not if we need to send someone through it in a hurry. Leave enough room for two people to pass, but make the surrounding obstacles difficult to move.”

The student nodded and adjusted the branch.

Kael continued toward the next group.

“Don’t put all the logs in one layer. Stack them at an angle so they won’t roll away easily. And make sure the people guarding this section can see beyond the obstacles.”

A senior student raised an eyebrow.

“You seem to know a lot about organizing defensive positions.”

Kael glanced at him.

“I’ve spent a lot of time reading books.”

The answer was vague enough to discourage further questions.

He wasn’t interested in explaining the details of his past life, and he certainly wasn’t going to tell a group of academy students that some of his practical knowledge came from training he had undergone on Earth.

Besides, the important thing was that the preparations were progressing.

Once the first defensive positions were completed, the sanctuary would be considerably easier to protect.

It wouldn’t stop a powerful enemy from entering.

But it might give them enough warning to react.

As Kael inspected the southern path, a small white figure suddenly crawled onto his shoulder.

“Qiu!”

Quinn chirped while waving its tiny legs.

Kael turned his head.

“What is it?”

The spider pointed toward the trees.