Chapter 30: I'll Train Him Myself
Seeing that everyone understood, Shawn nodded in satisfaction.
He held up one finger. "One week!"
"For one week, everyone who has not personally killed a walker must participate in the training."
"Whether you are old, a child, or a woman, you need to have the ability to protect yourself."
"The women will be trained by Daryl, Glenn, Maggie, and Rick and Shane. You all should know how to handle it."
"As for Carl," a smile appeared on Shawn's face, "I'll train him myself!"
As for why he didn't include Merle, Shawn had his own reasons. He didn't want to end up with a bunch of little bastards who had learned to talk about shoving people's heads up their asses. And the others probably wouldn't be happy to be taught by Merle either.
Putting Merle in charge of everyone's security was a good idea. It would also give everyone a week to get to know each other better and work out the kinks. This way, when they finally reached the Prison, they could cooperate more safely and effectively.
Suppressing Shane, correcting the fixed mindsets of Lori and the others, deepening the bond between everyone…
'This counts as killing several birds with one stone, right?'
Shawn grinned at little Carl, who, in addition to being happy, was also a little nervous. The reason was simple: the sense of pressure Shawn had just displayed was simply too intense. Even the adults could barely handle it. If their elders hadn't been nearby, the children would have probably been scared to tears.
After the relatively successful morning meeting was dismissed and everyone went back to prepare, Rick and Hershel came over to Shawn.
"You should have discussed this with us beforehand!" Hershel was a little angry; he had been genuinely frightened just now. Not knowing Shawn's past, he thought he was really going to attack someone. After all, although he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Hershel could guess the fate of the survivors from the small town to the east. When Shawn was dragging his hammer earlier, he nearly had a heart attack.
"Hershel, I think Shawn is right. We really don't have that much time to wait around," Rick said with a frown, several lines creasing his forehead. He looked at the dazzling morning sun rising in the east, choosing to stand with Shawn.
"What do you mean?" Hershel was a little confused.
Rick glanced at Shawn. Shawn nodded slightly and took the initiative to speak.
"Hershel, just like I told you before, the walkers are starting to move."
"Millions, tens of millions of walkers in the cities are moving out in all directions."
"You know what Rick and the others went through before they came to the farm. They just ran into a huge walker horde. That horde alone would be enough to destroy the entire Farm."
"We need the Prison, and it's urgent."
"So we need to help the others grow up in a short amount of time, to prepare for the fight against the walkers in the Prison."
"But…" Hershel was still a bit reluctant. The crops on the Farm weren't ready for harvest, and there were still so many walkers in the barn for whom he hadn't found a cure…
If Shawn knew what Hershel was thinking, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from laughing out loud.
"Don't worry. Shane will help you take care of it over the week."
On this point, at least, Shawn trusted Shane's abilities. And this could also be considered the 'graduation ceremony' he had prepared for the team members. Only by letting them kill walkers with their own hands, by letting them face the walkers personally, could they truly graduate. Of course, if it didn't achieve the desired effect, Shawn would still catch some walkers and let them deal with them personally. After all, facing the walkers in the Prison was no joke.
Hershel turned and walked away, full of worry.
Watching his back, Shawn smiled. "What, you don't trust me with your son?"
Rick, who had stayed behind, was silent for a moment, then nodded. "No father would feel at ease placing his child in someone else's hands."
He said that, but the subtext was clear—he didn't trust Shawn. Not to mention they hadn't known each other for long, just looking at the way Shawn killed walkers made Rick's skin crawl. He was worried that in the heat of the moment, Shawn might accidentally smash little Carl's head. Or train Carl into a 'barbarian' who was just as crazy about killing walkers.
Patting Rick's shoulder, Shawn comforted him. "Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to Carl. If there's danger, I'll take the hit for him."
"Besides, children can't stay with their parents forever. They have to leave them sooner or later, right?"
Shawn looked at Rick. There was no deception in his words; they were completely sincere. When training Carl, his eyes would be on him at all times. Even if they were ambushed by walkers, Shawn would not hesitate to use his own body to block the walkers' teeth. After all, Shawn had 'antibiotics'. As long as he stopped the virus from spreading in time, he wouldn't actually be infected. Strictly speaking, Shawn was the only person in the current apocalypse who didn't have the virus dormant in his body, because it had long been completely eliminated by antibiotics.
But when he mentioned 'leave them sooner or later', Rick's eyelashes suddenly trembled. He looked at Shawn, his eyes seeming to say: "You son of a #@￥@￥%@#%..."
But in the end, Rick relented. "A young eagle must learn to fly on its own sooner or later."
Rick adjusted his shirt, twisting the second-to-last button with his thumb, and suddenly changed the subject. "This button, Carl sewed it on for me the first time he did handicrafts. Just like my hat, it's always been with me."
Rick looked up and met Shawn's gaze again. He had grown some stubble, and his deep, bottomless eyes seemed to be able to see through people's hearts. Although Rick said no more, Shawn knew exactly what he was thinking.
Shawn shouldered his Stone Sledgehammer and stood opposite him, a brilliant smile on his face, his words filled with a powerful confidence.
"Nothing will happen to Carl. I won't let anything happen to him."
Rick looked at him for a long time, then waved to the distance. Carl came running over. The young Carl had fair skin and short, dark brown hair with a hint of burgundy… he looked like a cool little girl.
When Carl arrived, Rick knelt to his level, looked his son straight in the eye, and instructed him patiently. "Follow Shawn. Talk less, watch more, and think more."
"Shawn's skills are more than enough to teach you. Whatever he says, you take it as if I said it, and you execute it without hesitation."
Rick admonished Carl without reservation. Since Shawn was confident, he would give Shawn his absolute trust. Conversely, if Shawn had hesitated for even a second just now, Rick would never have agreed to his proposal, even at the risk of falling out with him.
******
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