What?!
Everyone immediately grew wary at those words. Dale and Andrea instinctively tightened their grip on their weapons, while Miranda shielded the sleeping children.
Louis was also startled by the news, and countless thoughts flashed through his mind.
Although he had long considered that his arrival would cause a butterfly effect, he hadn't expected it to be so massive!
First, a group of heavily armed "Believers" appeared out of nowhere, and now, even the farm, which was supposed to remain neutral in the original story, was actually involved with them!
However... Louis forced himself to calm down. He glanced at the guilt-ridden Hershel and remembered Otis's blatant anger toward The Believers back in the forest.
Although these people were involved, they definitely weren't on the same side. Otherwise, Otis wouldn't have risked his life to save them.
He had to figure out what was going on.
"Glenn, wait!"
A split second before Glenn could rush forward and grab Hershel by the collar, Louis reached out and stopped him.
He turned to the wrinkled old man and looked at him calmly. "Mr. Hershel, we were just ambushed by those people. They took half of our companions and blew up our RV with a rocket launcher."
He paused and pointed to Maggie in the photo. "Yet your daughter is one of them. But then Mr. Otis saved us and said they were no good..."
Louis's tone wasn't intense, but his attitude was firm. "What exactly is going on? We need to know the truth."
Under everyone's wary gaze, Hershel seemed to age significantly in an instant.
He closed his eyes wearily, leaned against the wall, and let out a long sigh.
"You're right," he said, his voice raspy. "This... is all my fault."
The old man sighed deeply and began to explain the whole story.
"About a month ago, my son... the young man next to Maggie in the photo," a trace of nostalgia flashed in Hershel's eyes, "brought back several survivors from the outside."
"They were all good people," Hershel recalled. "The leader was a history Professor named Lee, who was with a little girl. There was also a couple and Kenny's family of three."
Louis's heart skipped a beat.
"That Professor named Lee told me," Hershel continued, "that before they arrived, they had saved the life of a man on the road who called himself 'The Shepherd'."
A look of pain and shame appeared on Hershel's face.
"A few days later, The Shepherd actually showed up here with heavily armed men and a large amount of supplies. He said he came to repay the favor."
"He..." Hershel's voice trailed off, as if he were recalling something he didn't want to remember.
"When he first arrived, he acted very devout. He praised my farm, calling it God's Promised Land, and said I was a kind man."
"At the time... I was blinded by his appearance."
"He invited all of us, including Professor Lee and the others, to join his so-called sanctuary."
"But Lee and the others saw through his true nature." Hershel closed his eyes in pain. "They thought The Shepherd was a fanatical lunatic, not a good person at all. They warned me to take my family and leave immediately."
"And I..." He sighed heavily. "I couldn't bear to leave this farm; it's my everything. I thought he was just being a bit hyperbolic and wasn't actually that bad. So, I rejected Lee's proposal."
"After that, that group left. They felt it would soon become dangerous here."
"I didn't listen."
Hershel's voice was full of self-reproach. "As soon as they left, The Shepherd showed his true colors."
"He forced us to hand over large amounts of food as 'offerings' every few days, or else we would be 'judged'."
"We couldn't possibly provide that much... so he 'mercifully' gave me another choice."
"He said we could become a part of his group and substitute labor for food."
"The main members of The Believers are mostly well-trained soldiers with many weapons... We had no way to resist."
"So..." Hershel's voice was heavy, "he took my son and my daughter, Maggie."
Upon hearing this explanation, the doubt and hostility in everyone's eyes gradually faded.
Glenn also had a sudden realization. "No wonder... no wonder she didn't report it when she found out I was still alive..."
"But..."
Miranda, who had been silent, suddenly spoke up. She looked at Hershel thoughtfully. "Your daughter's status within The Believers doesn't seem to be low, does it?"
Although Miranda had been playing dead in the vehicle, she had been paying close attention to everything happening outside.
"I heard it. A man named Ben suggested checking the RV, but Maggie dismissed it in just a few words. The leader didn't hesitate much before following a newcomer's suggestion."
Although what Maggie said made some sense at the time, from their perspective, she had essentially let a potential threat slip away.
Miranda's analysis made the atmosphere tense once again. "That doesn't seem like the kind of treatment a hostage who just joined the organization would receive."
Hershel's expression changed instantly.
He avoided Miranda's gaze and didn't answer directly. "Perhaps it's because I'm friends with Professor Lee and the others."
"Those Believers always have some self-righteous bullshit dogmas to follow."
Louis ignored Hershel's excuse for the moment.
He had already fallen deep into thought.
Lee, the little girl, Kenny... "Mr. Hershel," Louis suddenly spoke, interrupting everyone's thoughts, "what were the full names of those people you just mentioned?"
Although Hershel didn't understand why Louis was asking, he thought for a moment and replied, "The couple was Paul and Karina. The history Professor is Lee, and the little girl is Clementine. Then there's Kenny and his wife..."
When he mentioned Kenny, his eyes dimmed for a moment, and a look of deep guilt surfaced.
But Louis had no time to focus on that. His brain was buzzing.
"Louis? What is it?" Glenn asked, seeing his strange expression. "Is there something wrong with these people?"
"No, it's nothing..."
Louis shook his head. "I know that couple. They taught me a lot back at Harrison Hospital. I just didn't expect them to have been here, so I'm a bit surprised."
In reality, a massive wave was surging in his heart.
If he remembered correctly, Lee and Clementine... weren't they the protagonists of The Walking Dead game!?
Louis hadn't played The Walking Dead game in his past life; his second-hand computer would sometimes lag even when making PowerPoints, so it couldn't handle those specs.
But he had heard of the game's content and its protagonists. He had always thought the TV series and the game were two parallel universes, but he hadn't expected them to merge here!
In an instant, all the clues connected in his mind.
A butterfly gently flaps its wings and triggers a storm... He had saved Paul and Karina.
That couple met the game's protagonist group on the road and joined them.
This mixed squad then happened to save "The Shepherd" on the road, a man who should have died in the original timeline.
That bastard survived and went on to develop this fanatical cult known as "The Believers."
This organization then targeted Hershel, using his kindness to coerce him and take Maggie... And that scout Martin they met at the gas station, judging by the similar operating style, he was likely a member of The Believers as well!
At this thought, the fire of rage began to burn fiercely in Louis's chest.
Back when he was a real child in his past life, he had understood a truth:
Not all acts of kindness receive a beautiful response.
So back then, he also learned something else.
If an act of kindness didn't lead to a reasonable outcome... then use strength to satisfy yourself.
What he hated most in his life was scum like this who took advantage of others' goodwill to bite back.
In the apocalypse, goodwill was already scarce, yet these people were wantonly trampling and depleting it, making things even harder for those truly in need while they branded themselves with "justice" and "judgment."
They had stolen the supplies the team relied on for survival, captured a large number of core members, and nearly cost him his life... If Louis were still that little Wizard who didn't know a single spell when he first transmigrated, he might have endured it.
But now, he couldn't!
"Mr. Hershel." Louis slowly raised his head, interrupting Hershel's muttering.
"Do you know where their base is?"
Hershel snapped out of his memories and answered instinctively, "In an abandoned factory in the suburbs. It's a bit of a distance from here."
The suburbs? A factory?
Good, good, good. Louis nodded to himself.
He had been worrying about where to go if the CDC was gone, and now these people were practically begging to offer him an alternative.
"Why are you asking this?" Hershel looked at him in confusion.
Why?
Louis sneered in his heart.
To kill all those bastards, of course!
Killing intent flashed for a moment, but even so, it wasn't convenient to say it directly.
So, under the gaze of several people, Louis looked up with a determined expression.
"Those people took my companions," he said, looking around at everyone with eyes full of resolve. "I'm going to find a way to bring them back."