The Walking Dead: Starting as a Cowboy

As the winter chill gradually faded, Woodbury slowly came back to life.

As sunlight streamed through the glass and shone onto the bed, a refined-looking man blinked sleepily.

The man turned his head, and a naked woman appeared in his field of vision lying next to him.

The man's expression was indifferent. He pulled off the bed sheet, took a robe from the hanger, shook his head, and went into the bathroom.

dong dong dong-

A knock came at the door.

The man, with a toothbrush in his mouth and barefoot, slowly walked to the door.

When the door opened, a burly man with a buzz cut stood outside.

"Martin, what's up?"

The man brushed his teeth and asked vaguely.

Martin, head bowed, reminded him, "Governor, we have a mission today."

"Hmm." The governor nodded, straightened Martin's collar with both hands, and said calmly, "I understand."

Then, the governor patted Martin on the shoulder, his eyes moving upwards to look directly at Martin.

That indifferent gaze, and the madness in its depths, sent chills down Martin's spine.

Have you found a target yet?

Martin clasped his hands nervously in front of him and hesitated before answering, "Um..."

"We had found them, but they ran away too fast..."

"Shh-"

The governor put his finger to his lips and whispered, "Wait a moment."

The governor closed the door and went to wash up.

Martin, who was standing at the door, let out a long sigh of relief.

Only then did he realize that his back was soaked with cold sweat.

A few minutes later, the door opened again.

The governor straightened his clothes and looked at Martin. "So, Martin, what do you want to tell me?"

The governor's lips curled slightly, a smile that was neither a smile nor a frown.

Martinez took a deep breath. "I'm sure I'll find my target today."

"Very good, I like your promise."

The governor's fake smile faded, replaced by a much more genuine one. He stepped forward, put his arm around Martinez's shoulder, and led him outside.

"I still have some treasured red wine from last time. We'll finish the rest later. Let me tell you, that wine, um—"

Recalling the taste of that wine, the governor looked utterly delighted.

Martinez, all smiles, hurriedly tried to please the governor, clearly still recovering from the earlier incident.

As he walked, the governor paused, and Martinez's heart skipped a beat.

"Martin." The governor's faint voice reached Martinez's ears, sending shivers down his spine.

"I think you should know the consequences of not keeping a promise."

Martinez snapped to his feet, his gaze unwavering, and declared loudly, "I will definitely do it."

"Well, that's good. After all, you experienced it a few months ago, hahaha!" The governor resumed his easygoing demeanor, chatting with Martinez with a smile.

While outwardly complying with the governor, Martinez's thoughts inevitably drifted back to the horrific punishment he had received a few months earlier.

At that time, he went to Atlanta and found a group of nursing home survivors.

He could have wiped them all out in one fell swoop, killing both the elderly and the able-bodied. Unexpectedly, a group of people suddenly appeared, causing heavy casualties among his own men.

Finally, they managed to escape back to Woodbury.

The governor sent men to drag him off his sickbed and take him to the abandoned factory that was often used for gladiatorial games.

He was hung on the cross and subjected to cruel torture.

After giving up, he survived with great difficulty, gradually recovered his health, and is now slowly regaining his status.

Even now, the memory of that torture still makes Martinez tremble with fear.

The governor realized this too, so he often used that torture to haunt himself. Seeing his own terrified expression always gave the governor a cruel smile; he was thrilled.

Once inside the modified car, Martinez sat next to the governor.

As the convoy left Woodbury, the governor rolled down the window with a smile and waved goodbye.

"Oh, right. We're going out to find something to eat today. Have fun."

"Oh, it's no trouble at all. It's all for the Woodbury family."

"You two be careful, I'm really looking forward to the birth of your child."

"..."

The governor interacted with the residents in a friendly manner, and his amiable nature made him very popular with them.

"Let's go." The governor felt his face was about to freeze from smiling, so he kicked the driver's seat hard and scolded in a low voice.

The driver immediately stepped on the gas, the car lurched forward for a moment, and then stopped.

Residents outside the car asked with concern, "Is there something wrong with the car?"

The governor's mind started to tighten, his lips twitched slightly, and he quickly smiled and said, "It's alright, this driver hasn't been with us for long, his driving skills aren't very good yet, he needs more practice."

"Okay, okay, bye-bye!"

The convoy finally left Woodbury, and the governor's expression had completely darkened, his face ashen.

The atmosphere inside the car was unusually heavy. Martinez didn't dare to make a sound, his eyes fixed on the window, praying that he wouldn't attract the governor's attention.

After a moment of silence, the governor rubbed his face from head to toe and said gently, "Martin, where do you want to begin your search?"

Martinez pulled out a map he had prepared beforehand and began explaining his plan.

After listening, the governor's long voice rang out: "Well... I look forward to your good news."

After the convoy stopped in one place, the governor and several vehicles parked in a safe spot, while Martinez led his new men in one direction as planned.

With the governor absent, Martinez no longer suppressed his emotions and urged him frantically.

"Hurry up and drive! If you don't get to our destination in fifteen minutes, I'll kill you!"

Martinez relentlessly pressured his men and managed to find a group of survivors, the same group he had previously lost.

"Yes, boss, that's them." A gothic-style henchman with a lip piercing turned his head and excitedly pointed at the people outside the windshield and shouted.

The men saw them too, dropped what they were carrying, and ran into the town shouting.

Martinez, equally excited, looked down and casually slapped one of his men, yelling, "Go back and peel all that stuff off your face! What is that?!"

The Gothic-style subordinate covered his face, not daring to resist, and nodded repeatedly.

Martinez glanced at the driver and slapped him back. "What are you looking at? Go chase after him!"

While Martinez was searching for the survivors, he also sent word to the governor.

The governor and his men rushed over here as well.

The governor and Martinez's forces attacked the survivors from both sides.

The survivor was hiding in a house in the town, and his men had secured both the front and back exits.

The survivors inside had almost no chance of survival.

The governor picked up a megaphone and announced loudly, "Hello, I am the governor. We are chasing you, not for anything else, but for food."

"If you hand over the food, we will absolutely not lay a hand on you."