An Unexpected Encounter

"Zz... Guys! We're under attack! Guillermo... Guillermo got shot! I don't know what to do, come quickly! We're in the forest to the west, hurry!"

"How is this possible? Is it another group of survivors?" Jason couldn't help but frown. He grabbed his modified M4 and prepared to head out.

The others' expressions changed drastically. They picked up their weapons one by one and ran in the direction where Glenn and Guillermo had gone just moments ago.

Jason feared encountering a hostile group of survivors. His group was growing, and he couldn't afford to start a war, especially when most of his people were inexperienced in this area!

He knew they were near Hershel's farm, where people lived. For that very reason, he had warned everyone to stay alert while exploring.

Soon, they saw them in the forest. Unexpectedly, a fat man was standing next to them. Guillermo was on the ground, and from the others' perspective, they couldn't tell if he was alive or dead. The fat man standing there said something while wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Seeing this scene, Jason's usually calm face showed an expression of disbelief. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. There was no doubt that the fat man in front of him was Otis, but he really couldn't remember if this was the day Carl got shot in the original story.

But now that he thought about it, did the shooting have to happen for Rick to meet Hershel at any cost? If so, Jason knew he was the only one to blame for Guillermo getting shot when his original intention was to interact with the people on the farm.

Several people ran forward. Jason immediately began checking Guillermo's wounds while Shane and the others aimed their weapons at Otis.

"Who are you? Why did you attack them? Where's your partner?"

Otis was stunned at that moment. He had just been hunting and hadn't expected to wound a stranger who had suddenly appeared. Nervously, he responded, "I... I'm Otis! I... I didn't mean to shoot him, I was just hunting. Look, that's my deer, right there. It wasn't my intention, I swear! I aimed at the deer and didn't realize there were people here."

Shane nodded, furious, and continued questioning Otis loudly. "You're lying! I don't believe you!"

"I really didn't mean to! Believe me, I was just hunting! You have to believe me!" Otis was holding his rifle tightly as tears welled up in his eyes.

Jason did a quick check. He discovered that while Guillermo had passed out, the only thing he could determine was that the injury was serious, but it was too soon to make a final judgment.

In cases like this, it was difficult to assess the extent of the damage caused by a gunshot wound just by looking, as the bullet's trajectory was unknown.

Jason looked up at Otis, stood up, and placed a hand on Shane's arm.

"He was supposed to be hunting. Guillermo was injured by accident! The wound isn't deep, but he needs surgery!"

After finishing his sentence, Jason turned to Otis, who was still apologizing.

"Otis, right? Is your house nearby? Do you have anything there that can help us? He needs a minor operation!"

"Hershel! Hershel has the equipment to save him! I can take you there!"

"Where?"

"That way, just straight ahead," Otis pointed into the forest.

"Lead the way!"

Shane grabbed Otis's shirt roughly and was about to march forward when Jason's voice stopped him.

"Even if the wound isn't fatal, we can't just move him carelessly! God knows how far we have to carry Guillermo in our arms!"

"Then what do we do? He's bleeding a lot, and if we don't hurry, I'm afraid he'll die!"

While everyone was at a loss, Jason suddenly ran to a small tree, pulled out his machete, and started cutting.

After quickly chopping down two small trees, Jason swiftly trimmed some branches off the logs. In the blink of an eye, he had two sturdy wooden poles.

Jason looked at a few people and pointed at Glenn and Otis.

"Take off your jackets, both of you, quick!"

After speaking, Jason also removed his own jacket, then ripped open the legs of his pants and cut some fabric strips with a few quick slices.

In just about two minutes, Jason had skillfully manipulated the jackets into a simple stretcher!

"Alright, looks like it's done."

Everyone fell silent, then quickly moved to place Guillermo onto the makeshift stretcher.

Jason helped secure it and began instructing the others.

"Rick, you and I will take the left side. Shane and T-Dog, take the right. Hold him steady! Move!"

After speaking, the four of them lifted Guillermo together. The stretcher felt stable enough. They followed Otis, who was being dragged along by Shane, running out of the forest in a completely different direction from where they had come.

In no time, they had run relentlessly, carrying Guillermo on the stretcher. Except for Jason, who was the most trained, everyone was breathing heavily.

Shane, out of breath, yelled angrily at Otis, who was barely managing to run.

"You damn idiot, run faster! Or I'll put a bullet in you myself. Move it!"

Otis dropped to his knees, gasping.

"I'm sorry, I can't run anymore. You guys go ahead. There's not much farther to go, just keep going straight."

Seeing that Otis could no longer keep up, the four didn't waste any time and just kept running.

Glenn, who had been behind with Otis, was also out of breath but was in much better shape. He stretched his arms to help support Otis and slowly followed the four people ahead.

After running out of the forest, Jason spotted lonely houses in the distance, standing in the middle of the fields.

"Keep going! Come on, come on! Don't stop!"

Rick and the others also saw the houses in the distance and finally felt a bit of relief, picking up their pace.

"Hershel! Is Hershel there?"

Dozens of meters away from the house, Jason shouted loudly. Soon, a few girls ran out of the house, followed by an elderly man with white hair and a beard.

By then, the four had already reached the house's entrance.

"I'm Hershel. What happened? Is he hurt?"

Hershel immediately spotted Guillermo unconscious on the stretcher, his bright red blood staining his abdomen.

Shane had been holding in his anger for a while, but now he finally exploded.

"You're Hershel, right? He got shot! Otis shot him!"

Hershel didn't argue with Shane. He simply stepped forward to examine Guillermo's wound.

"Alright, bring him inside and lay him on a bed. I'll be able to check him properly." Hershel said quickly.

"Glenn, go get the medical backpack. We have plenty of supplies for situations like this," Jason said as they carried Guillermo inside.

The only thing Jason needed was a sterile place to treat Guillermo properly.

"Yeah, I got it."

After a while, Hershel spoke.

"His internal organs and arteries aren't damaged, but we need minor surgery to remove the bullet fragments! I heard you have equipment here, I need to use it!"

"Yes, you can assist me and get whatever you need. If there's anything else, don't forget to tell me." Jason said seriously as he walked to the bathroom to wash his hands thoroughly.

"Alright, I understand," Hershel replied before turning and heading into the room.

Jason was in charge—after all, he had medical knowledge that would help in this kind of situation. But having some extra help wouldn't hurt.