Seeing that everyone understood, Shawn nodded with satisfaction.
He held up a finger: "One week!"
"For one week, everyone who hasn't personally killed a Walker must participate in training."
"Whether old, young, or women, you all need the ability to protect yourselves."
"The women will be personally led by Daryl, Glenn, Maggie, and Rick Sean. You should know your limits."
"As for Carl." A smile appeared on Shawn's face: "I'll lead him personally!"
As for why he didn't include Merle, Shawn had his own plans.
He didn't want to end up with a bunch of little rascals who would stuff people's heads into their butts every time they opened their mouths.
As for the others, they probably wouldn't be happy to be taught by Merle either.
Having Merle responsible for everyone's safety was a good idea, and it also allowed them to get to know each other better and integrate during this week.
This way, when they eventually reach the Prison, everyone will be able to cooperate more safely and effectively.
Suppressing Sean, correcting Lori's fixed mindset, deepening everyone's integration…
"This can be considered killing multiple birds with one Stone Hammer, right?"
Shawn grinned at little Carl, who, besides feeling happy, was also a bit nervous.
The reason was simple: the oppressive aura Shawn had just displayed was too intense.
Even the adults couldn't bear it; if their elders hadn't been nearby, the children would have probably cried from fright.
After the relatively smooth morning meeting disbanded and everyone went to prepare, Rick and Hershel came over to Shawn.
"You should have discussed it with us beforehand!" Hershel was a bit annoyed; he had been truly scared just now.
Not knowing Shawn's past, he had thought Shawn would actually make a move right then and there.
After all, Hershel hadn't seen the situation of the survivors in that small town to the east with his own eyes, but he could roughly guess their fate.
When Shawn was dragging his Stone Hammer just now, he nearly had a heart attack.
"Hershel, I think Shawn is right. We really don't have that much time to wait slowly."
Rick frowned, several lines creasing his forehead. He looked at the dazzling warm sun rising in the east and chose to stand with Shawn.
"What do you mean?"
Hershel was a bit confused.
Rick glanced at Shawn, who nodded slightly and spoke up.
"Hershel, just as I told you before, the Walkers are starting to move."
"Millions, tens of millions of Walkers in the cities are heading in all directions."
"You know the situation before Rick and his group came to the Farm; they just ran into a large horde of Walkers, and that horde alone would be enough to destroy the entire Farm."
"We need the Prison, and it's urgent."
"So we need to help others grow quickly in a short time, to be fully prepared to fight the Walkers in the Prison."
"This…" Hershel was still a bit reluctant.
The crops planted on the Farm hadn't grown yet, and there were still so many Walkers in the barn for whom they hadn't found a cure…
If Shawn knew Hershel's thoughts, he would surely burst out laughing.
"Don't worry, Sean will help you take care of it for a whole week."
At least on this point, Shawn still trusted Sean's abilities.
And this was also Shawn's 'graduation ceremony' for the team members.
Only by personally killing Walkers and facing them head-on could they truly graduate.
Of course, if the desired effect wasn't achieved, Shawn would still catch some Walkers and have them deal with them personally.
After all, facing the Walkers in the Prison in the future was no joke.
Hershel turned and left, full of worry.
Looking at his back, Shawn smiled: "What, you don't trust me with your son?"
Rick, who hadn't left, remained silent for a while, then nodded.
"No father would feel at ease with his child in someone else's hands."
Although he said that, Rick's unspoken implication was clear—he didn't trust Shawn.
Not to mention that he hadn't known Shawn for long, just looking at Shawn's methods of killing Walkers made Rick feel a bit unnerved.
He was afraid Shawn might get too carried away with killing and accidentally smash Carl's little head.
Or train Carl into a'savage' who was so crazy he killed Walkers like flies.
Shawn patted Rick's shoulder and comforted him.
"Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to Carl. If there's danger, I'll shield Carl."
"Besides, children can't stay with their parents forever. They will leave their parents eventually, won't they?"
Shawn looked at Rick, his words sincere and not at all deceptive.
When training Carl, his gaze would remain on Carl. Even if they encountered a Walker ambush, Shawn would not hesitate to use his own body to block the Walker's sharp teeth.
Anyway, Shawn had 'Antibiotics'; as long as the virus spread was stopped in time, he wouldn't be truly infected.
Strictly speaking, Shawn was the only person in this apocalypse whose body didn't have a dormant virus.
Because the virus had long been completely eliminated by Antibiotics.
And when he mentioned 'leaving eventually,' Rick's eyelashes suddenly trembled.
He looked at Shawn, his eyes seemingly saying: "You f***ing #@￥@￥%@#%…"
But in the end, Rick still relented.
"Fledgling eagles will learn to fly on their own eventually."
Rick smoothed his shirt, twisting the second-to-last button with his thumb, and suddenly changed the subject.
"This button was sewn on by Carl the first time he did handicrafts for me."
"Just like my hat, it has always been with me."
Rick looked up, gazing at Shawn again.
His face was already covered with some stubble, and his deep, unfathomable eyes seemed to pierce through people's hearts.
Although Rick said nothing more, Shawn knew exactly what he was thinking at that moment.
Shawn hoisted his Stone Hammer and met his gaze, revealing a brilliant smile, his words filled with strong confidence.
"Carl won't be in danger. I won't let anything happen to him."
Rick looked at him for a long time, then waved to the distance.
Carl scurried over.
Little Carl, with his fair skin and short, dark brown hair with a hint of burgundy… looked like a cool little girl.
When Carl arrived, Rick squatted down to his level, looking directly at his son and patiently instructing him.
"Follow Shawn, speak less, observe more, and think more."
"Shawn's strength is more than enough to teach you. Whatever he says, you must treat it as if I said it and execute it without hesitation."
Rick warned Carl without reservation.
Since Shawn had confidence, he would give Shawn absolute trust.
Conversely.
If Shawn had hesitated for even a second just now, Rick would never have agreed to Shawn's proposal, even if it meant risking a fallout with Shawn.
Rick, the Lion, possessed a magnanimity rarely seen in ordinary people!