"I should go meet the others now," Kalsie said as he stood up, leaving the shed behind. Stepping outside, he surveyed his surroundings.
As anticipated, the ground and trees were damp. The light around wasn't as bright as before when the trees were on fire. Some trees still under fires but had reduced in size, offering only a modest amount of light and warmth, nothing dangerous.
"Kalsie!" Upon entering the open area, he spotted everyone sitting in a circle around a bonfire, their worried gazes fixed on him.
"Kalsie... You should be resting right now, not moving!" Fred expressed his concern.
"It's fine. After eating that fruit, I'm not feeling weak anymore," Kalsie replied as he settled on a wooden log next to Fred.
"That strange fruit? But are you sure you're not feeling any weakness?" Fred inquired.
"Yeah, I'm fine now. Thanks for worrying about me," Kalsie assured him.
He then addressed the entire group, especially the newcomers whose names he didn't know.
"Since some of you may not be familiar with me, and I'm not acquainted with all of you either, let me introduce myself first. My name is Kalsie Crux, but you can call me Kalsie, like everyone else. If you're here, that means you're also first-year students at Saint's University, right?"
"Yes, you got that right. Since you've introduced yourself, I'll do the same," Wendy chimed in, addressing not only Kalsie but the entire group. "I'm Wendy Luther, a fellow student from Saint's University. Similarly, you can all call me Wendy."
"Nicole told me that you pulled me out of the water. Thank you all for rescuing me when I lost consciousness; otherwise, I might have lost my life back there," Kalsie expressed his gratitude.
"Don't thank me. I didn't do much," Wendy deflected the praise and pointed towards Nicole. "Thank her instead, for performing CPR on time."
"Eh? Seriously?" Kalsie turned his head towards the blushing Nicole, though her reddened face was barely visible due to the dim lighting.
"Why didn't you tell me, though?" Kalsie asked with his gentle tone.
"I-I didn't think it was necessary…" Nicole mumbled, averting her gaze from the group's eyes.
"Yeah, right… we've already gone past the point of being thankful for everything. But still, thanks!" Kalsie, attributing her behavior to her shy nature, didn't dwell on it and chuckled inwardly.
However, his words only succeeded in making her more embarrassed.
Setting Nicole's discomfort aside, Kalsie shifted his attention to the remaining two individuals.
"Hi, Kalsie. I'm Noah Newton, and this is my fiancée, Bella Eagan," Noah introduced himself and his fiancée. He continued, "From the bottom of my heart, I thank you for saving us back then."
'Fiancée?!' The group was collectively taken aback, having not expected a formal engagement announcement this early, especially at the outset of their college journey.
"Surprising, isn't it?" Noah grinned, seemingly anticipating their reaction.
"Hello, Kalsie. Thank you for saving us…" Bella paused, her voice wavering, and continued with guilt, "And I'm also sorry if I made things difficult for you earlier… I wasn't in my right mind at that time."
Bella was referring to the time when she had doubted Kalsie and questioned his intentions.
Kalsie understood her meaning and replied, "It's fine since we're all safe. You don't need to apologize for that. I'd appreciate it if you could trust me more."
"Hmm, I still am sorry for that," Bella nodded, feeling relieved that Kalsie wasn't an unreasonable person.
After checking in with everyone regarding their well-being and receiving positive responses, Kalsie turned his attention to Job and asked, "So, what happened after I left? I thought you guys wouldn't venture into the forest."
Job sighed at the question and began to explain, "Even we didn't anticipate our situation worsening. It all started when we encountered Noah, Bella, and Ben on the beach. Initially, we were surprised, but we soon realized we weren't the only ones here."
Jack picked up the narrative, saying, "After conversing with each other, we formed a group. We waited for your return with news, but as time passed and the heat intensified, our thirst became unbearable. So, we collectively decided to search for water together, aware of the risks. After hours of travel, we stumbled upon the fruit trees that provided us with sustenance."
Kalsie raised an eyebrow and asked, "Wait a second, what about this person Ben? Where is he?"
Upon hearing Kalsie's question, the expressions of everyone in the group darkened, except for Wendy and Fred.
"Oh, don't worry about that guy. I highly doubt he's still alive after being surrounded and eaten by those monsters," Fred replied with indifference, as if discussing a mere animal rather than a fellow human being.
Kalsie's brows furrowed, and before he could inquire further about the situation, Job responded, "As Fred mentioned, you needn't concern yourself with that individual. He attempted to threaten Nick with his sword. If it weren't for Fred coincidentally coming across us, Nick might not have survived."
Job and the others proceeded to recount their encounter with Peter's group, detailing how their pursuit had escalated because of the fruit and the unhinged nature of Peter himself. Wendy and Fred's intervention had been critical in preventing a potential catastrophe.
Throughout their narrative, Kalsie listened attentively, his expression growing increasingly somber as he learned of the dangers his companions had faced.
The group's faces contorted with a mixture of anger and disgust as they discussed Peter, revealing the extent of their animosity towards him.
Upon the conclusion of their recollection, Kalsie addressed them sincerely, "It seems that my presence indirectly placed you all in danger... I'm truly sorry for what you've had to endure because of me."
"No, no!! Don't apologize. It's not your fault. The one who should be apologizing is that scum!!" Jack's voice resonated with anger at the thought of Peter.
"Yeah, he's right. You shouldn't blame yourself," the others chimed in, offering their support.
Kalsie was inwardly surprised by their understanding and expected them to hold him partially responsible.
"Believe me, as much as I hate him, I know that lunatic very well. Despite his grudge against you, he did all this because they refused to give him what he demanded," Wendy assured him.