Everyone remained silent.
Their gazes were all fixed on Carol's face, quietly waiting for her to speak.
At least from their interactions so far, if Carol said such a thing, there must be a reason for it; otherwise, she would never act so unusually.
Standing directly under the light, Carol slowly took a breath and looked up at Shawn.
"I hope everyone understands that no one can empathize with what happened to Jessie more than I can."
"But precisely because of that, I don't want to simply execute Pete."
"It's because such a death would be too easy for him."
"And because of Jessie…"
"Do you remember a few months ago?"
"Back then, Sophia and I depended on each other, and if it weren't for everyone's help and support, we would never have made it alive to the Prison."
"Contribution points are just external things; what's more important is for Jessie to come out of this herself, to develop the belief to survive."
Upon hearing this, Shawn finally understood.
Carol's intention was not to spare Pete.
On the contrary, she was the one who most wanted to personally execute Pete.
It was simply that as a fellow woman, and even a fellow victim, Carol saw Jessie's predicament, and contribution points were only one aspect of it.
Pete could be executed, even with more cruel methods.
But the timing needed to be prolonged until Jessie officially broke free from Pete's control and mental manipulation, until Jessie could recover, just like Carol once did, carrying the will to survive and raising her child.
Only then would it be Pete's time to die.
So, one could even say with a sense of relief that Pete's existence finally had a purpose.
His death could bring about a new life for Jessie and her child.
However, this presented a dilemma for the vote.
Most people had chosen 'yes,' meaning to execute Pete immediately, which contradicted Carol's idea.
So, at this moment, everyone turned their gaze to Shawn again.
Under these circumstances, Shawn immediately slammed his hand down.
"Since that's the case, let's go with Carol's idea… Merle."
Merle, who was idly fiddling with a knife and fork nearby, looked up and met Shawn's gaze.
With just a look, he knew what Shawn wanted to do.
Merle's lips twitched, and he smiled.
Pete
...
Night.
A light frost had settled on the grass outside.
Aside from those on rotating guard duty, no one wanted to stay outside; they had all returned to their rooms early to sleep peacefully.
However, there were a few figures in the darkness, jostling each other, their movements erratic.
Darkness was Merle's camouflage; he hooked Pete's neck with his forearm, tilted his body backward, and dragged him from the cell block towards the long connecting corridor.
When Merle reached a corner, he pressed his back tightly against the wall.
A dark figure moved in front of them, its fist clenched, and it swung violently at Pete's abdomen!
A muffled grunt sounded.
Pete was in pain but couldn't say anything.
His mouth and nose were tightly covered, and he could only passively endure the continuous blows.
Fists landing on the soft abdomen wouldn't cause particularly obvious external injuries, but they would make Pete suffer immensely.
Suddenly.
A faint sound of footsteps came from around the corner, followed by a beam of light from a flashlight accompanying a figure; this was the duty member in the cell block tonight.
When the flashlight illuminated the corner, Philip's eyes widened.
He saw Merle and Shane controlling Pete and using him as a punching bag for practice.
His brain paused for a moment, and Merle and Shane also froze their movements.
The atmosphere at this moment was in a strange state of awkwardness.
Under Pete's pleading gaze, Philip lowered his head, somewhat confused.
"Huh?"
He gently tapped the flashlight, and as his thumb pushed the switch, the flashlight's beam flickered continuously until the surroundings plunged back into darkness, and Philip's voice came from nearby.
"Is this flashlight broken or something? Strange…"
Then, the three rigid figures clearly heard Philip's footsteps fade away.
From beginning to end, it was as if he hadn't seen the three living people at all.
Using the faint night lights in the corridor, Merle and Shane exchanged glances, then both looked at the restrained Pete.
Shane didn't hesitate and continued to deliver heavy punches!
...
The sounds of pounding lasted until 4-5 AM last night.
In the morning, when everyone woke up, they were still joking with each other.
"Hey, whose family was it last night, making noise repeatedly until dawn?"
"I don't know, not me, I lasted longer than them."
"You're full of it."
"Hahahahaha."
"…"
Shawn woke up early and stretched, feeling good.
Especially when he saw Pete appear, looking listless and limping, clutching his lower abdomen, his mood improved even more.
"Carol is right."
"Wiping out the roots all at once isn't as good as keeping him tied by your side and tormenting him continuously."
Carol, though appearing delicate and pitiful, actually had no fewer methods than survivors who spent years hunting Walkers in the wilderness.
Shawn ascended the high platform; today there was no fog, and the sky was clear.
A beam of light slanted down, and looking past the dense forest, the scenery had a unique charm.
However, the pack of wolves that had been guarding the gate was nowhere to be seen, making it feel like something was missing.
"If this world were still like before, without Walkers, that would be great."
Li walked over from a nearby watchtower; it was his turn to change shifts as day broke.
He stood beside Shawn, gazing into the distance.
Unconsciously, he had already stayed in the Prison for two or three months.
Although he wasn't among the first group of survivors to arrive here, he had witnessed the Prison's process of becoming strong.
If nothing unexpected happened, Li could personally witness Clementine grow into an adult here.
However, no matter what, the arrival of a new era would always be accompanied by regrets, which was why Li let out that sigh.
"Don't think so much; living one more day is one more day gained."
Shawn patted Li's shoulder.
He was about to ask if anything unusual had happened last night, then he would go back to building cars.
But then, a few wolf howls suddenly reached his ears, drawing Shawn's attention.
Shawn looked and saw that the wolf pack, which had previously disappeared, now appeared in the distance.
They came from far away, stopping on the concrete ground a hundred meters from the Prison.
They weren't looking towards Shawn, but instead, led by the Head Wolf, they turned their backs to the Prison and looked towards the road behind them.
Their limbs were low to the ground, lowering their center of gravity, and their wolf eyes stared coldly, sharp teeth exposed from the soft flesh that usually covered them.
"What is that?"
Li looked in the direction the wolf pack was facing.
After a few seconds of staring, he saw a Walker stumbling from the end of the road.
Then came a second, a third…
Until hundreds of Walkers appeared, only a few seconds seemed to have passed.
"A Walker horde!"
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