Terror had broken loose. Screams echoed as students scattered in panic. Some slipped through the gate, but many turned back, instinctively heading for their classrooms seeking familiarity, safety. But in this new world, safety was a fragile illusion.
Julian stumbled along with the others. His breath came in short gasps. His eyes darted around wildly. The world outside had become a nightmare.
A friend grabbed his sleeve, pulling him toward the building.
"THE CLASSROOM! BACK INSIDE! HURRY!" someone yelled.
They rushed back through the hallways, heading for their old classroom. Some students limped, bleeding and terrified. In the chaos, Mr. Rauf stood in the doorway, his face slick with sweat and blood that might not have been his.
"DON'T GO BACK TO THE CLASSROOM! GO TO THE EVACUATION ROOM! EVERYONE TO THE EVA—!"
He didn't finish.
A monstrous howl cut through the air. In seconds, decayed figures lunged from the far end of the corridor fast, feral, rabid.
Mr. Rauf turned too late.
They pounced. Dragged him down. Tore him apart right before the students' eyes. Blood sprayed, his screams cut short.
Julian backed away slowly, his face blank but his left hand trembling violently. He'd seen gore in games and movies but seeing it up close, smelling it, hearing bones snap and flesh tear… that was horror beyond imagination.
Without a word, Julian turned and ran back into the classroom. The evacuation route was swarming. His instincts screamed for a smaller space, a locked door. Survival for now.
Inside the classroom, others had already returned. Their breaths ragged, eyes wild with fear.
"Shut the door!" someone cried.
Julian pushed the door closed. A large boy his uniform torn, arm bleeding shouted, "Pile desks against the door! The lock's busted!"
Students moved fast. Desks and chairs slammed into place, blocking the entrance.
Then they heard it voices outside.
"WAIT! DON'T CLOSE IT! PLEASE!"
Julian peeked through the crack. Two students stumbled toward them, faces stricken with fear. But the barricade grew heavier.
"WAIT FOR THEM!" a boy shouted from the corner.
Faris. The class president. A bespectacled boy with black hair, always calm and principled. His face was pale, but his voice still held strength.
"WE CAN'T LEAVE THEM OUT THERE!"
But the boy standing at the front clearly the one in charge now turned to him slowly. His short blonde hair was streaked with blood. His face, carved with a faint scar across the chin, was cold and unflinching.
Erwin. That's what the others called him.
"If we let them in," he said, voice calm and sharp, "we'll all die."
Faris stepped forward. "But we can still—"
"Shut up," Erwin snapped.
He raised his hand.
Two of his followers grabbed Faris from behind. He struggled, but they forced him into a chair, gagging him with a piece of cloth.
"No hero crap," Erwin said flatly. "You should thank me. I just saved your lives."
The door was sealed.
Outside, the screaming grew louder.
"PLEASE! I WANT TO LIVE!"
Then agonized shrieks. The kind that sear into memory. Everyone inside knew exactly what was happening.
Bones breaking. Flesh tearing. Sobbing turned to vomiting. Some cried. Some stared blankly at the floor, lost in shock.
Julian stood by the window, his back pressed to the wall. His eyes stared down, unfocused. He hadn't shouted, hadn't fought, hadn't defended anyone.
But inside, his heart boiled.
A coward in a human's uniform. That's what he saw in Erwin. Not a leader but someone who used cold logic to justify sacrifice.
Some might call him a savior now, praise him for keeping them alive.
But not Julian.
He stared at Erwin's back, then lowered his gaze again, burying his thoughts in silence like always.
Outside the classroom, the world had turned into a silent graveyard.
The sound of frantic footsteps, screams, and chaos had faded into an eerie hum a chilling symphony made by creatures that had long lost their humanity. The snarls and groans of the undead echoed through the school's empty hallways, like a grudge that refused to die.
Inside the classroom, Erwin stood tall at the center of the room, his sharp gaze scanning the weary, terrified faces of his classmates.
"I'll be leading this group," he declared firmly, his voice carrying a commanding certainty that left little room for objection. "And I'll save anyone who's willing to follow me."
He leaned forward slightly, revealing a cold smile that sent a chill down a few spines.
"If anyone disagrees… raise your hand now."
Every eye in the room turned to him, but not a single hand moved. Silence.
Understandable, Julian thought. Erwin really was the most suited to lead. His cool-headed charisma and calculated confidence were enough to keep them together in the middle of this nightmare.
"There's not enough food in here to last us long," Erwin continued. "We'll have to leave the classroom."
A tall young man with wavy brown hair and a serious expression stepped forward. He was Erwin's close friend, Kael.
"And how exactly do we do that? It's crawling with zombies out there," Kael asked, his voice trembling despite his best efforts to stay composed.
Erwin nodded, eyes gleaming. "We split into two groups. One will distract the zombies. The other will escape and search for a safe place."
What he didn't say was that the distraction team was likely walking to their deaths but such things were better left unsaid if you wanted morale to stay intact.
From the corner of the room, a sharp voice cut through the air.
"You're lying, Erwin. You're going to use those people as bait, aren't you?"
The voice was unmistakably Faris the class president. The gag that had silenced him earlier was now gone, and he stood with defiance written across his face.
Erwin turned toward him, the same icy smile still on his lips. "Got a better idea?"
Faris exhaled heavily. "We should wait for help. Someone from the outside will come. We can't take reckless risks."
Erwin's eyes narrowed. "And how long do you think that'll take? You've seen what it's like out there. If this outbreak has already spread this far, outside forces are overwhelmed. They won't have time to save us."
Faris stood firm. "It's about minimizing unnecessary casualties."
Erwin raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "And waiting here isn't risky? You sure help will arrive before we starve? Or before the doors give in and we're all eaten alive?"
The room erupted in low murmurs. Most of the students nodded in agreement, swayed by Erwin's steady logic. Even those who'd been hesitant began to see reason or perhaps they were simply desperate for someone to believe in.
Faris opened his mouth again, perhaps to push back. But another student interrupted, voice firm and final:
"Enough. Let the leader speak."
Julian, who had been silently watching from the corner of the room, studied the unfolding drama. He could see what Erwin was doing challenging Faris in front of everyone, making himself look like the better choice. A clever strategy. Ruthless, but effective.
Julian sighed quietly, his mind spinning with the weight of this growing mess.
"Maybe I should leave this group before things get worse," he thought.
But for now, he chose to remain silent and observe.
The hallway beyond remained quiet, broken only by the soft shuffle of feet and the low growls of the soulless creatures that roamed. Inside the classroom, Erwin stood at the blackboard, now covered in scribbles not lessons, but a crude sketch of the school layout and team divisions.
He pointed at the board with a faded whiteboard marker.
"Group A will be responsible for distracting the zombies," he said clearly. "Group B will exit through the back and head toward the gym, looking for an escape route."
His eyes swept across the room. "Simple. Effective."
Then a small smile tugged at his lips as he turned toward a student sitting with a skeptical expression.
"Faris…" he said calmly. "Didn't you say you wanted to save everyone?"
Faris looked up, cautious. "What are you getting at?"
Erwin crossed his arms. "If you truly care about everyone's safety, then how about this you lead Group A, the distraction team."
Faris blinked. "W-What?"
"Yes," Erwin said smoothly. "It'll be the perfect way to prove your sincerity. And I believe, with your integrity, you'll succeed in pulling the zombies away. After all… didn't you want to be a hero?"
Faris stood, uneasy. "I never said I wanted to be bait! This is insane!"
Erwin's smile only widened. "I believe in you, Faris. You can do it."
"All I said was that we should wait for help! That doesn't mean I'm ready to throw my life away!"
Just then, the click of heels echoed through the room. A girl stepped forward, chin high and eyes sharp with judgment. Her long golden hair shimmered despite the dim lighting, falling perfectly over her shoulders. Her clothes were pristine, her posture regal. Her voice calm but biting.
"Veronica Ainsley Ravencroft." Her name sounded like it belonged in a lineage of nobility.
"Oh Faris, how pathetic," she said coldly, with a mocking smile. "You talked the most about saving everyone. But when given the chance you run? Truly pathetic."
A few students chuckled behind her. Veronica turned and gave them a slight nod, as if granting them permission to laugh.
"If Erwin says you're the right person for the job, you should be honored. But it turns out... all your moral speeches are just empty words."
Faris burned with humiliation and rage. "I never said I was willing to die! Being a hero doesn't mean being the first to get slaughtered!"
Veronica rolled her eyes. "You said you'd save everyone. Prove it."
The air in the classroom shifted. Slowly, the eyes of the others turned toward Faris. Social pressure wrapped around him like a noose. Judging. Expecting.
He exhaled shakily and looked down.
"...Fine," he muttered.
Erwin immediately stepped forward, placing an overly friendly hand on Faris's shoulder.
"Excellent. This is true bravery. Because of your decision… we'll all be safe."
Then he turned back to the front of the class, his confidence gripping the room like a vice.
"Group A: Faris, Benny, Hana, Reza, and Citra. You'll head toward the music room and make as much noise as possible. Group B, follow me to the rear corridor."
But Benny, one of those assigned to Group A, protested immediately. "Wait! You didn't say I'd be going! Wasn't it just Faris?"
Erwin looked at him calmly, then shook his head.
"Benny… this isn't about whether one person is enough. If I send Faris alone, I'm sending him to die. A team increases the chance of survival. Everyone has a role."
Benny opened his mouth to argue, but Erwin's logic was airtight calculated and bulletproof. The others nodded, persuaded again by reason.
In the corner, Julian leaned against the wall, eyes distant as he stared at the floor. But his mind was racing.
"Erwin's smart… he knows how to eliminate people while looking like a savior. Even his enemies become pawns to boost his image."
Julian exhaled softly, barely audible.
If the world had truly fallen apart…
Then maybe the fastest monster to rise wasn't the dead—
but mankind itself.
"Maybe… if I join Faris's group, I can slip away. Once the zombies are distracted, I could escape alone. And if everyone thinks I'm dead…"
A cold, bitter thought finished the sentence in his mind.
"…that might actually work in my favor."