"But… but…"
Carl was extremely anxious, his mind racing.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he raised his head to look at Shawn, feigning pitifulness.
"But Brother Shou, didn't Sophia and the others start their training with firearms?"
"You are a boy, and there's a difference between boys and girls, so your training is different from theirs."
Shawn easily saw through Carl's little scheme and brushed him off with a casual remark.
Little Carl was stunned after hearing this, remaining silent in his seat.
Is that how 'there's a difference between boys and girls' is used?
Brother Shou, don't lie to me.
"Alright, alright." Shawn clapped his hands, drawing Carl's attention.
"You can't escape, Carl. Your parents entrusted you to me, which means I can control everything about you."
"If you don't want to go today, there's tomorrow, the day after, and even when we reach the Prison, I will try to make you face all of this. You can't avoid it."
After a pause, Shawn suddenly felt that scaring a child like this wasn't very good.
After all, deep down, Carl was almost the youngest child in the Camp at this time.
"Think about your mother. Don't you want to grow up quickly and protect her?"
"Think about your father again. Don't you want to make him proud of you after you can stand on your own?"
"Their blood flows in your body, and you still have extremely powerful potential that hasn't been fully unleashed. Trust me, Carl."
"If you train according to my arrangements, this will almost be the fastest way for you to grow right now."
Shawn played the emotional card.
Carl lowered his head after hearing this, his breathing quickening slightly.
"Weren't you just complaining? Are you scared so quickly?"
Shawn threw out another trump card, directly stirring up the youthful spirit and rebellion in Carl's heart.
"Alright, I'll go!" Carl took a deep breath, his tender face looking determined.
Clearly, Shawn's combination of moves was very effective on him.
"In that case, you can start your first battle now."
Shawn pointed to the Walker that was gradually wandering over outside the passenger door.
The fire truck was very tall, and at the Walker's height, only its head could almost reach the outside of the car door.
Hearing the Walker begin to 'bang, bang' against the car door, Carl gritted his teeth, unlocked the door, and kicked it open.
Thud--
Only a dull thud was heard, and the Walker staggered back two steps, then stumbled and fell to the ground.
At the same time.
Carl took the opportunity to open the car door, jump out, and under Shawn's gaze, he ran like the wind, quickly heading towards the easternmost part of the town.
Carl walked further and further away, and the Walker stumbled, trying to get up, but the next second it was suppressed by a boot, its head hitting the ground and completely caving in, becoming silent.
[Experience + 300]
Shawn held the Stone Hammer in his hand and casually closed the car door.
Looking at the Walkers gradually surrounding him, he dragged the great hammer and followed after him.
Shawn had promised Rick, so he naturally wouldn't put Carl in danger directly like this.
However, Shawn could make Carl think he was going alone, completely unaware that Shawn was following behind him.
"I cleared out a lot of the Walkers in the town last time I came, plus Carl is wearing full wooden armor, so there shouldn't be a problem."
Shawn calculated in his mind as he chased after him.
Not long after, Shawn saw Carl's back. Shawn carefully hid behind a discarded vehicle and looked over.
At this moment, Carl was no longer as energetic as when he first set off; he was panting.
Perhaps he was already regretting it at this point, Carl walked with his head down.
He carefully avoided car windows and undercarriages, his gaze constantly Searching for traces of Walkers nearby.
Perhaps having walked all the way here, Carl already understood in his heart.
The most terrifying thing about Walkers is not when they stand in the sun, in front of people.
Instead, it's when they should be in a certain place, but they are nowhere to be found.
Like a hunter, quietly waiting for prey to come to their door.
The Walker Sophia encountered back then was just like that.
Watching Carl's gradually slowing pace and receding figure, Shawn wasn't worried about Carl being lazy, just circling nearby.
In this apocalypse, there was simply no safe place outside; the entire town had long become a playground for Walkers.
So even if Carl just survived by circling around this area for a whole day, it would be enough to show that Carl's independent survival ability was up to par, and Shawn would still accept it.
The entire town spans about 3 kilometers from east to west, making the round trip roughly less than 6 kilometers, which is considered large for a town.
Given Carl's stamina and stride, walking leisurely like this, he might not even return to the starting point by nightfall.
Shawn wasn't stubborn; he didn't necessarily require Carl to complete the entire journey. This was just a goal he set for Carl.
So even if Carl couldn't run the whole distance, Shawn wouldn't criticize him.
On the contrary, having the courage to face all of this, Shawn would only feel that Carl had the potential to survive better in this apocalypse.
As for not reaching the finish line?
Shawn felt that this was also just a small trick for surviving in the apocalypse.
Yes, Shawn's task arrangement for Carl was a test.
Even if Carl showed a cunning side in response to Shawn's arrangement and chose to lie, Shawn would still only praise him for his resourcefulness.
This was also where Shawn differed slightly from Rick and Shane.
Shawn was truly training Carl to be a warrior.
Just like that, Shawn followed closely behind Carl, slowly walking out 800 meters.
By this time, it was already noon. The scorching sun made Carl sweat profusely, and the streets of the town echoed with the low growls of Walkers and the pungent smell of decay.
Carl suddenly ran to the shade of a tree by the roadside, raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead, and muttered to himself.
"No, Mom and Dad are both training at the Camp, I can't just go back like this."
He kicked a stone by the roadside, and the stone rolled down into a 'slit-style' storm drain.
"Hmm?" Carl looked at the storm drain, but the imagined sound of the stone hitting the bottom didn't come.
Carl frowned and looked, his body instinctively leaning closer and closer.
The storm drain was completely dark inside, seemingly empty.
Just as he was about to get close to the storm drain, Carl suddenly stopped, seemingly realizing the danger of his actions.
But just as he was about to retreat, a pale, rotting arm suddenly reached out, latching onto the armor on Carl's calf and dragging him towards the gap!
"No… no!"
Carl's face instantly turned pale with fright. His entire body was violently yanked by an inertia, and his calf frantically kicked at the arm.
Seeing this scene, Shawn's grip on the Stone Hammer tightened, ready to strike at any moment.
But only a second later.
Carl's other foot pressed firmly against the edge of the 'slit-style' storm drain, his entire body tensing up.
And the foot he was caught by the Walker with, using the raised parts of the asphalt, frantically stomped on the Walker's hand.
Until its palm was bloody and mangled, the grip suddenly loosened, and Carl fell backward, landing heavily on the ground.
Despite the protection of the wooden armor, his elbow was still inevitably scraped, and blood flowed from the abrasion, dripping down his forearm onto the ground.