Zodiac.
To be more precise, the Zodiac Killer.
It was the nickname of a serial killer active in the United States in the late 1960s.
Here, it’s important to note that it’s the 1960s, not the 1860s.
In reality, Zodiac wasn’t from the Wild West era but a criminal who would make a name for himself about 100 years later.
So, why did Zodiac appear a whole century early, you ask?
It’s because the developers of <Outlaw> included an episode inspired by the real Zodiac case in the game.
<Outlaw> Chapter 8: [The Zodiac Serial Killings].
Unlike other chapters where the protagonist has to go to a specific area to start the episode…
Chapter 8: [The Zodiac Serial Killings] begins randomly after clearing Chapter 7, when the protagonist enters a city or town with a high population.
So, in other words…
“She’s arrived in Justice Town.”
It meant that the protagonist of <Outlaw> was at least near Justice Town.
The fact that the protagonist had come to Justice Town wasn’t that surprising.
After all, the protagonist had to visit Justice Town at least once to progress through the chapters.
What bothered me more than the protagonist was Zodiac himself.
“Zodiac, huh… Hmm…”
“Why? Do you know the name?”
“No, not really…”
Actually, as a veteran of <Outlaw>, I knew quite a bit about Zodiac.
Chapter 8: [The Zodiac Serial Killings] was the most challenging episode in <Outlaw>.
‘Every time you play, Zodiac changes, so you have to find a new Zodiac each time.’
In [The Zodiac Serial Killings], Zodiac isn’t predetermined; it’s randomly assigned to one of the NPCs in the towns near the protagonist.
Veterans who’ve played <Outlaw> dozens of times had to gather new clues each time to find and kill Zodiac.
The strategy for catching Zodiac changes every time, so it’s naturally tricky.
‘…With all the new settlers in Justice Town, it’s going to be even harder to find him.’
In the past six months, the population of Justice Town had multiplied.
Zodiac could very well be among those many new settlers.
After some thought, I came up with a plan.
My plan was to do nothing for now.
After all, the protagonist would find Zodiac eventually.
I could just wait and then swoop in at the last moment to snatch the reward.
‘So, I’ll just lay low until the protagonist finds Zodiac.’
Truth be told, I had a bit of history with the protagonist of <Outlaw>.
Of course, she didn’t know my face, but…
‘She’s got an uncanny intuition.’
It wouldn’t do me any good to be seen loitering around her.
I decided to take a break from hunting outlaws and just hole up in Deaf Man’s Tavern and the office for a while.
“If you get any new info on Zodiac, let me know. I’ll help if I can.”
“Sure, having you on board would be a big help.”
With that, Jet and I agreed to cooperate if Zodiac showed up and ended our conversation.
“Then I’ll be off. As for the bounty… Emma, you’ll handle it, right?”
Jet asked, shivering slightly, perhaps recalling Emma’s icy demeanor earlier.
Emma, who was clearing the cups on the table, answered promptly.
“Yes, I’ll go.”
“Emma’s going. Emma, take Bonnie and come back.”
“No, I’ll just borrow the Sheriff’s carriage and come back.”
“Huh?”
But then you’d have to walk back, wouldn’t you?
I didn’t quite get it, but since Emma insisted, I didn’t press further.
“Alright, go ahead.”
“Yes, I’ll be back.”
Swish.
Before leaving, Emma grabbed my hand firmly.
Startled, I pulled my hand back, and Emma smirked before following Jet.
“Then I’ll be off, Kid. See you later.”
“…Yeah.”
As Jet waved goodbye, Emma gave me a mischievous smile.
I stared blankly at the scene until the office door closed…
“…Ah, I should’ve told Jet not to call me Kid.”
…and then realized my mistake.
If the protagonist had indeed arrived in Justice Town, there was a high chance she’d run into Sheriff Jet.
If she heard Jet calling me Kid, she’d probably come after me like a shot, so I had planned to ask him to be careful.
But I forgot because of Emma.
‘Damn it… I can’t just cut that off…’
Clicking my tongue, I went back to bed.
“Still, what’s the worst that could happen? There’s no proof that I’m Kid.”
Even in the Wild West, you can’t arrest someone on mere suspicion.
There’s no evidence left that I’m ‘that Kid,’ so how could they catch me?
I decided to stop worrying and just get some sleep.
I was dead tired after drinking all night at Deaf Man’s Tavern.
“Yawn… Ah, this is nice.”
Sleeping in the middle of the day when everyone else is working felt great.
Sleep quickly overcame me.
But…
‘…If it’s for the Boss, I’d do even more.’
“……!”
Just as I was about to fall asleep, Emma’s vivid voice jolted me awake.
Blink.
Opening my eyes, I not only heard Emma’s voice but also felt the soft sensation of her hand from earlier.
Thump.
My heart was beating a little faster than usual.
Only then did I realize…
That I wasn’t the only one who felt disappointed when Jet interrupted earlier.
“…This is really dangerous.”
With less than $50,000 left to go home…
The concerns I had when saving Emma six months ago were becoming more real.
I had a foreboding feeling that the biggest obstacle to my return home…
Might very well be Emma herself.
‘Boss, I like you.’
I finally closed my eyes and fell asleep.
Clack, clack.
Like most middle-aged men, Jet found it difficult to deal with young women in their teens and twenties. Not understanding what they were talking about, Jet quietly drove the carriage. Emma was also a woman of few words, so neither of them spoke first.
The silence was broken when the carriage arrived in front of the sheriff’s office.
“Sheriff.”
“Hmm? What is it, Miss Emma?”
“Did you happen to look into what I asked you about last time?”
“What you asked? Ah…”
Jet had momentarily forgotten what Emma had requested but soon remembered. Emma had clearly asked him a few months ago…
“Miss Emma, you definitely asked me to find an outlaw, right?”
She had asked him to find an outlaw. The name of that outlaw was…
“Yes, I asked you to find an outlaw named Jenny James.”
Jenny James.
Emma remembered it clearly. She had seen a girl carrying dynamite on a train heading to San Francisco…
‘Jenny James?’
Noah had mentioned the name Jenny James. And when she went to the villa in San Francisco, there were piles of letters addressed to Noah under the name ‘JJ.’ The sender of those letters was likely Jenny James.
Emma was very curious about Noah’s past. She had been digging into Jenny James, who she assumed had a close relationship with Noah… and since she was also suspected to be an outlaw, Emma had asked Sheriff Jet for help.
But…
“I’m sorry. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t find an outlaw named Jenny James.”
Upon arriving at their destination, Jet stopped the carriage and gave Emma a disappointing answer.
“After hearing your request, I looked through the wanted posters for female outlaws over the past ten years, but there was no one named Jenny James.”
“…Ah.”
As Sheriff Jet arrived, the deputies who came out to greet him quickly unloaded the bodies from the back of the carriage. Jet briefly directed them before heading into the office with Emma.
Even as she followed Jet, Emma persistently questioned him.
And…
“She’s probably not from Utah. Jenny James… she’s most likely from California, specifically San Francisco.”
“But Miss Emma, I’ve checked all the wanted posters in California…”
“Could the person you’re looking for be Jamie James?”
The answer to Emma’s question didn’t come from Jet but from someone else.
A voice suddenly interrupted their conversation, startling both Emma and Jet as they turned their heads…
“I know an outlaw named Jamie James.”
A woman in a tailored suit stood crookedly in a corner of the sheriff’s office, smiling slyly.
Her clothes weren’t particularly high-end, but she exuded a sophistication rarely seen in such a rural area.
“…Who are you? Who said you could come in? This is the sheriff’s office. You can’t just walk in without permission…”
“Shh, hold on, Sheriff.”
Jet frowned, clearly displeased by the uninvited guest, but the woman, unfazed, approached Emma, focusing solely on her.
And then…
Rustle.
“…This is.”
“It’s one of the wanted posters I usually carry. Take a look.”
She pulled out a very old bounty poster from her bag and handed it to Emma.
[Name: Unknown]
[Age: Early 20s (estimated)]
[Dead or Alive: $98,000]
[Characteristics: Deputy Leader of the Secret Society TKK and ‘The Angel of San Francisco’]
“…!”
Seeing the mention of the TKK deputy leader, Emma immediately sensed that the person on this poster was the one she was looking for.
‘But why is she called ‘The Angel of San Francisco’… Ah…’
Emma could see why she was called that when she read the list of crimes.
[Crimes: Assault, arson, robbery, looting, and countless murders]
Usually, the crime section of a wanted poster lists the outlaw’s specific crimes. But “countless” murders…?
What was even more shocking was the bounty.
$98,000.
This was overwhelmingly high, second only to the undisputed top bounty Emma knew of.
Emma was momentarily stunned by the poster but quickly regained her composure and casually asked the woman in front of her.
“This is a wanted poster for a faceless outlaw. Why are you showing this to me?”
“This faceless outlaw was captured three years ago.”
“…!”
“After being captured, her name was revealed. Jamie James.”
Jamie James…?
Not Jenny James?
Could it be an alias or a nickname?
Or maybe…
In an instant, countless possibilities flooded Emma’s mind.
What snapped Emma out of her thoughts was…
Tap.
“So? Is this the person you’re looking for?”
The woman gripped Emma’s shoulder tightly, persistently questioning her.
“Could you have been mistaken? Not Jenny James, but Jamie James. Where did you even hear that name? Why are you looking for that outlaw? I’m looking for a man who was close to Jamie James. Perhaps…”
The woman’s eyes held not just obsession but a faint glimmer of madness.
Emma immediately knew who that obsession and madness were directed toward.
