Having given his instructions, Rick turned and left.
Watching Rick pull Lori away, with Lori looking back at him every few steps, Shawn couldn't help but reach out and gently pat Carl's little head, his gaze shifting in another direction.
An undisguised stare—Shane was standing under a nearby tree, hands on his hips, glaring at Shawn.
When he saw Shawn gently rubbing Carl's soft hair, he clenched his teeth even harder in anger, the muscles and veins on both sides of his jaw bulging, looking quite exasperated.
Seeing his objective achieved, Shawn smiled.
"Still can't deal with you, huh?"
Admittedly, Shane could be ruthless towards anyone, even himself.
But as long as Lori and Carl, mother and son, existed, Shane would always have his own fatal weakness.
It was precisely because of this personality that Shane could not become a leader; he could not lead everyone in the team to continue forward; he could only become an indispensable backbone of the team, the one who was arranged to act.
"Getting anxious, getting anxious, why the rush? This has only just begun, hasn't it?"
Shawn murmured softly, and Carl beside him lifted his head, asking curiously,
"Shou… Brother Shou, what's all this about getting anxious?"
Shawn's teasing expression immediately vanished upon hearing this, and his hand, which had been caressing, turned into a light pat on Carl's head.
The little guy let out an 'ouch' and quickly clutched his head.
"I said if we don't leave now, it'll be too late!"
"Come with me quickly, I'm taking you for training."
Shawn turned and walked towards the fire truck with Carl.
Sitting in the driver's seat, Shawn unlocked the passenger door for Carl, and Carl carefully climbed up the three steps of the fire truck.
It wasn't until he was seated in the passenger seat and the door closed with a 'click' that Carl let out a long sigh of relief.
Seeing Carl's reaction, Shawn secretly shook his head.
"Too big a difference."
"I'm a male lion, so his son shouldn't be too bad, right? Lori has limited Carl's growth."
"If the original Lori hadn't died early enough, Carl would probably have continued to be 'kept' by Lori."
"This is the offspring of a fierce beast; how could 'captivity' be the most suitable way for it to grow?"
Helping Carl fasten his seatbelt, Shawn turned the steering wheel and said, "Let's go!"
...
Watching the fire truck drive away in the distance, Shane paced back and forth angrily for a few steps, then kicked the tree trunk hard.
His hand, which was on his hip, unconsciously reached for his pistol, his pinky finger subtly clicking the hammer twice, rage surging in his heart.
"Shane, they're about to start training over there."
Lori walked up from behind, turning her face away, not daring to meet Shane's gaze, and after dropping that sentence, she turned and hurried towards the Camp.
Rick was still in the Camp.
Shane bit his lower lip slightly and nodded, watching the gradually receding fire truck, and ultimately retreated.
At this moment, Shane hadn't yet caused Otis's death because of Carl; the devil in his heart hadn't been completely unleashed.
The un-shaved, un-darkened Shane was still Rick's good brother, a core member who considered the entire Camp.
Of course, there was also a most important reason.
—Shane wasn't sure he could take down Shawn, even though he had a gun.
If he couldn't take down Shawn in one go, what would be the consequences?
Looking back at Lori's retreating figure, Shane thought a lot, and finally decided to suppress everything.
...
On the fire truck.
Carl's head swayed slightly with the rocking of the vehicle.
His eyes were full of curiosity and delight as he observed everything along the way; this was his first time leaving the Camp so far without Rick and Lori accompanying him.
"Where are we going?"
Carl's tone carried a hint of dependence and a subtly hidden rebellion.
Shawn glanced at him while controlling the steering wheel.
"You'll know when we get there. First, put on this armor."
Saying that, Shawn pulled out a set of wooden armor from his backpack and threw it to Carl.
This was equipment built in the system, a complete set from face mask to leg guards and shoes, perfectly sized for Carl.
"Why is it made of wood?" Carl asked, curious, as he stroked the patterns on the armor.
"Wood is tough, light, and the material is simple, easy to manufacture, very suitable for you."
Shawn explained without changing his expression.
But in reality, Shawn could only make wooden armor sets at the moment, though for Carl, it was more than enough.
Half an hour passed in a flash, and the fire truck stopped in the small town to the east that Shawn had visited before.
As the roar of the fire truck completely ceased, Carl, clad in wooden armor, looked at Shawn, awaiting his training plan.
At this moment, he still clearly remembered his father Rick's instructions before leaving the Camp.
Carl was at a rebellious age, but he had an unparalleled trust and dependence on Rick.
...Of course, now it had temporarily shifted from Rick to Shawn.
"Carl, do you know what's most important for someone who hasn't killed a Walker yet?"
Shawn thought for a moment, then asked Carl.
Shawn didn't directly use terms like 'kid,' because perhaps in Carl's eyes, that would be an insult to him.
"More accurate shooting?"
Carl tilted his head.
He seemed to have seen others preparing to practice shooting before he left.
Shawn shook his head; his expectations for Carl were far more than just that.
Others could just train their shooting, but Carl couldn't.
"It's evasion and perseverance, Carl."
"In this apocalypse overrun by Walkers, we won't always be in a safe place; there will always be times when we need to travel among the Walkers."
"So, you must dare to face the ugly faces of the Walkers, temporarily forget the consequences they might cause, and do your best to evade them."
"In front of Walkers who are eternally hungry and tireless, sufficient physical strength is indispensable."
"So, for those who haven't killed a Walker, the first thing to learn is how to avoid Walkers."
"Ah~~"
Carl's voice sounded a little disappointed.
Shawn chuckled, thinking that this kid was still not satisfied.
Pushing Carl's shoulder, Shawn urged, "Alright, now you get out of the car."
"From our current position, run all the way to the east side of the town, and after reaching the end, run back."
"I won't help you, and you need to safely return to our current location. That's the training content for the first day."
Shawn's voice came, and Carl's body couldn't help but stiffen, much like the wooden armor he was wearing.
He hesitated and turned his head, and upon seeing Shawn's serious expression, tears seemed to well up in his eyes as he spoke in disbelief.
"Brother Shou, are you saying you want me to cross this street, which is swarming with Walkers, all the way to the end, and then run back???"
Little Carl's face was full of question marks.
Looking at Carl's suddenly changed expression, if Shawn had a camera at that moment, he would definitely take a picture of him.
Then, when the young master grows up, he can personally see his wonderful expression from back then.