A familiar Marine Corps vest and a short, round haircut.
He was the Governor's former enforcer, the second-in-command of the Woodbury soldiers—Martinez.
At this moment, he lay on the bed, exhaling more than he inhaled.
"His right shoulder was pierced by a bullet, and we found him in the deep pit behind us."
"When we found him, his side was also impaled by a wooden barricade in the deep pit. Fortunately, his internal organs weren't injured, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to save him."
"But I've already done enough. Now, Hershel can take over his treatment, otherwise he still won't survive."
Seeing Shawn stop at the doorway, Old Dale proactively approached him to explain.
Shawn, looking at Martinez lying on the bed, couldn't help but let out a light chuckle.
'This guy sincerely worked for the Governor, but was betrayed by him.'
'After all that, he ended up in a Prison infirmary bed.'
'And if I hadn't taught Dale the ability to heal with the magazine back then, he would probably be dead by now.'
'Aside from Dale, others might not have chosen to save him. Not kicking him while he's down would already be an act of great mercy.'
'So, is this karma?'
Seeing Shawn remain silent, Old Dale quietly asked again.
"Do we save him?"
"I went to find Hershel, but he said that unless you personally tell him, he absolutely won't save this person."
Old Dale's tone was mostly inquisitive; he seemed to have changed a lot compared to before.
Shawn thought for a moment, then spoke.
"Don't let him die. I'll have Hershel treat him."
"But just like those people from the Mine, this person is not allowed to step out of the cell."
"Since you brought him back, you're responsible for keeping an eye on him and for his actions, understand?"
"Understood, understood."
Old Dale nodded repeatedly.
"Later, I'll have Oscar give you the cell key."
After Shawn finished speaking, he turned and left with Daryl, never stepping into the cell during the entire process.
The two walked all the way to the outside of the guard room before Daryl finally spoke, puzzled.
"Why save him?"
"He came with the Governor to attack us."
Shawn glanced at him and frankly said.
"Just to see if there could be another possibility."
"He was betrayed by the Governor and saved by us. Now the Governor is dead, but he still has value."
"Our 'combat unit' needs further expansion."
"Give him some time, and he'll become a strong asset, not weaker than Shane."
Capable people shine wherever they go. People like Martinez can assemble a team anywhere.
If he and Shane were in the same team, would they create different sparks?
Shawn was very much looking forward to it.
And with Martinez's addition, the Prison's combat strength would undoubtedly improve even further.
As for whether Martinez's usual methods were too despicable?
Please, is Shawn himself a good person?
Is Shane, who leads the 'army' at the Prison, a good person?
This isn't playing house. Martinez's harsh methods might not be a bad thing.
At least, once he genuinely accepts and aligns with the Prison, those he protects will feel more secure.
However, Shawn never considered having Martinez replace Shane; Shane is stronger than him.
Martinez, as a person, can only be used as a blade, not the one who wields it.
His efficiency and his unreasoning mode of action are what Shawn values.
Martinez
…
Evening, dining hall.
Shawn sat at a table, with Beth beside him, tightly holding his arm, not letting go. Everyone was subtly looking their way.
Shawn tried to struggle a bit… couldn't break free.
If he used more force, Beth's arm would probably be dislocated by Shawn.
He helplessly looked at the beauty beside him.
"I can't eat like this, Beth."
Beth couldn't help but chuckle at his words, like a gleeful skylark.
She tilted her head back, her light-colored pupils filled only with Shawn's image.
"Then I'll feed you."
Saying that, Beth spooned rice into Shawn's mouth bite by bite, and carefully wiped the corners of his mouth.
Looking at Beth, Shawn felt a bit helpless.
Beth had her good qualities, but some of those good qualities weren't necessarily good for Shawn.
For example, in the original plot, after the little sassy girl was born, every time Beth appeared in the Prison, she was by the little sassy girl's side.
Although, in terms of age, Beth had only recently become an adult, she exuded a maternal glow that only a mother would have.
Indeed, Beth was treating the 1.9-meter, inverted-triangle, large-bodied Shawn like a little baby.
But looking at Beth's focused expression… that delicate little face, those lively eyes…
Shawn couldn't bring himself to reprimand her.
"Cough, hmm."
Seeing Shawn squirming uncomfortably in his chair, Rick suppressed a smile and lightly tapped his plate, drawing everyone's attention.
"Shawn, we don't have much ammunition left. This time, to deal with Woodbury, our reserves are almost depleted."
"If we don't find a way to get some weapons and ammunition, next time we'll have to fight survivors hand-to-hand."
Shawn secretly breathed a sigh of relief, quickly pushed away Beth's outstretched spoon, and said with a serious expression.
"Aren't the leftover weapons and ammunition from Woodbury enough to replenish our stock?"
"The situation is not optimistic." Rick licked his lips.
"Most of the ammunition was used up by them, and many firearms were disassembled into broken parts during their clash with the horde, completely unusable."
"Perhaps with the guidance of a professional, we could re-polish and assemble some guns from scattered parts."
"But for now, what we need more are finished products, not parts."
Shawn subtly took the spoon back from Beth, pretended to ponder while eating a few bites, then spoke.
"Lily's Mine Camp, the Governor's Woodbury, they should still have some reserves."
"I'll also go to the town soon to pick up some things I left there, and I'll look for weapons as well."
"If nothing unexpected happens, I'll also return to Atlanta."
Atlanta?
Mentioning the name of this city made many people present feel a bit dazed.
They had only been at the Prison for no more than a month, but it felt as if Atlanta was a long-ago, ancient memory.
"Why return to Atlanta? I remember it took us a week of driving to get to the Prison."
Andrea frowned and asked. She was sitting next to Shane.
Her meaning was simple—returning to Atlanta was thankless and time-consuming. Since they were already at the Prison, they might as well focus on developing the Prison.
What Andrea asked was what everyone else present wanted to ask, and they all looked at Shawn.
Shawn shrugged. He had no choice.
Before dinner, he took the opportunity to sneak out the treasure map on the third floor and glanced at it.
Originally, he thought this time would only be near the Prison, but this time it was beyond his expectations.
Opening the 'map', the location marked by the unknown treasure map was clearly in the center of the already explored map above.
Atlanta!
-------------------------------
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