At first, Emma tried to break free from the woman’s grip using brute force.
But…
*Crunch.*
‘What kind of strength is this…?’
Despite her slender figure and thin wrists, the woman’s strength was beyond imagination.
“I have a good intuition. I’m looking for a certain man, and I have a feeling you might know him. So, could you answer my questions…?”
“……”
Emma didn’t know who this woman was, but it was clear she knew about Noah and was definitely looking for him.
Realizing she needed to escape this situation quickly, Emma…
*Swoosh.*
Pretended to be utterly flustered and turned her head toward Jet.
Seeing Emma’s expression, Jet thought she was scared and immediately stepped into action.
“Hey, you! I’m Sheriff Jet Gray of this town! What business do you have here? Who said you could just waltz in? If you can’t prove your identity right now, I’ll arrest you!”
“……”
*Swoosh.*
As Jet reached for his holster to stop her, the woman couldn’t press Emma further.
She clicked her tongue, made a sour face, and then…
*Swoosh.*
Pulled something out to show him.
“This is…”
“I’m from Pinkerton. The office said security personnel are allowed in.”
It was a badge symbolizing a Pinkerton agent.
But even after seeing the Pinkerton badge, Jet didn’t lower his guard.
“…I haven’t heard anything about Pinkerton sending someone.”
“It was a sudden decision.”
“Not enough. Show me more proof that you’re a Pinkerton agent.”
“Sigh…”
Annoyed by Jet’s suspicion, the woman forced a smile and then…
*Swoosh.*
Pulled out an undeniable document proving she was a Pinkerton agent and introduced herself.
“Sorry, Sheriff! I’m late with the introduction. I’m a 4th-grade Pinkerton agent…”
“4th-grade? That’s it?”
Pinkerton agents, excluding executives, are ranked from 1st to 5th grade, plus trainees.
1st-grade is the most experienced, and trainees can be promoted to 5th-grade once recognized.
To Jet, who’s been the town sheriff for decades, a 4th-grade agent seemed like a rookie.
Even if she’s from Pinkerton, how dare a low-ranking agent act so arrogantly?
As Jet showed his displeasure, the woman smirked and continued her introduction.
And then…
“…I’m Sophia Pinkerton, a 4th-grade Pinkerton agent. Nice to meet you.”
“……!”
Hearing her full name, Jet and Emma froze.
Well, of course…
Sophia… Pinkerton?
This world is unfair.
Some people can roam the world freely and act as they please just because of the family name they were born with.
The woman in front of them was one of those people.
Jet slowly removed his hand from his holster and cautiously asked Sophia,
“…How are you related to the founder of Pinkerton?”
“He’s my grandfather!”
“……”
…Considering her age, it made sense.
Pinkerton, rumored to have more combatants than the current U.S. Army, is a force to be reckoned with.
And she’s the granddaughter of its founder…
With such an overwhelming background, Jet’s confidence visibly shrank.
“…Even if you’re a Pinkerton agent, you can’t just barge into the sheriff’s office…”
“Sheriff Jet Gray of Justice Town! I’ve been wanting to meet you!”
“…You know me?”
“I’ve heard a lot about you from Ash Gray, the head of Pinkerton’s San Francisco branch. He’s your brother, right?”
“…So you know my brother.”
“Of course! He’s my superior!”
Though she called him her superior, it was clear that Sophia, as the founder’s granddaughter, held a higher actual position than Jet’s brother, the branch head.
Since his brother’s job was on the line, Jet couldn’t help but be cautious around Sophia.
And just like that, the initiative completely shifted from Jet to Sophia.
Jet sighed deeply and asked Sophia,
“Sigh… So, why did a Pinkerton agent come all the way to this backwater town?”
“While traveling east, I received orders from headquarters to investigate a series of murders that have been happening in Utah over the past few months.”
Sophia’s tone sounded like a child excited for a picnic.
Thinking she was just a naive girl, Jet spoke to her as if comforting a child.
“You mean the crimes committed by that outlaw ‘Zodiac’? Haha, then you’ve come to the wrong place. The latest victim was in Lincoln County, a day’s journey from here, not Justice Town.”
But Sophia was adamant.
“No, Justice Town is right in the middle of Utah, making it a perfect location for a investigation headquarters. Besides…”
Her determined gaze turned to Emma.
“…After chasing leads for the past few months, I believe the person I’m looking for might be here in Justice Town.”
“……”
“I plan to stay in Justice Town for a while.”
At first glance, Sophia seemed like a fluffy baby bird.
A baby bird living happily in its nest, untouched by the world’s storms.
But the way Sophia looked at Emma now…
*Ssshh.*
She looked more like a snake eyeing its prey.
And that snake…
*Swoosh.*
Slowly coiled itself and approached Emma again.
“…Your name?”
“Call me Emma.”
“Alright, Miss Emma. Where have you heard of an outlaw named Jamie James, and why are you looking for her?”
Sophia’s cold, triangular eyes put immense pressure on Emma.
But…
“The person I’m looking for isn’t Jamie James, it’s Jenny James.”
After three years of traveling with Noah, Emma had long surpassed the level of an ordinary girl.
In situations like this, trying to lie would only make things worse.
Emma smiled sweetly and shut down Sophia’s question entirely.
“And the reason I’m looking for her is personal, so I won’t be sharing that.”
“……”
Normally, people would tremble in fear upon learning someone was a Pinkerton agent.
Sophia had even revealed she was the granddaughter of Pinkerton’s founder.
Yet, Emma didn’t cower. Instead, she smiled confidently and stood her ground.
Sophia wasn’t pleased with Emma.
What bothered her the most was…
‘…I can’t figure out what she’s thinking.’
Looking into Emma’s calm eyes, nothing came to mind.
Sophia had an unusually sharp intuition.
Others might not believe it, but Sophia had solved cases based solely on intuition…
She could even tell if someone was an outlaw or a civilian just by meeting them.
But with Emma, no intuition came to her.
‘This Emma is looking for an outlaw named Jenny James… The vice-leader of TKK is named Jamie James. The names are oddly similar. Is this a coincidence?’
……
The conclusion came quickly.
There are no coincidences in the world.
Sophia, having decided to dig into Emma, smirked and asked, “So, Miss Emma. As a Pinkerton agent and investigator of the recent Utah murder case, I have some questions. Age, occupation, family relationships, acquaintances?”
“…Are you suspecting me of the murder case now?”
“Interrogations usually start with the small stuff. Please cooperate for the peace and security of the town and Utah.”
“……”
The peace and security of the town were just excuses.
Emma realized that Sophia only wanted information about Noah.
‘What’s the relationship between this Pinkerton lady and the Boss?’
Whatever the relationship, today was clearly her mistake.
Noah was a man of many secrets, and here she was, blabbing about him openly.
Emma didn’t want to answer Sophia’s questions, but she had no excuse not to.
So, she began to speak slowly, carefully filtering out any information about Noah.
And then…
“I am…”
“Sheriff!!”
“…!”
Before Emma could finish, a deputy rushed in, calling for the sheriff.
“Sheriff!! Big trouble!”
“…What? What’s going on?”
Jet, who had been holding his breath, watching the tense standoff between Emma and Sophia, sighed and asked.
“Did something happen in the town again?”
“…Yes! It’s a murder case!”
“Sigh… Did some outlaw cause trouble again?”
Despite the deputy’s words about a murder case, Jet remained indifferent.
After all, Justice Town, with its many outsiders and outlaws, was always a place where trouble brewed.
Even though Noah was catching outlaws like crazy, there were limits.
But the deputy waved his hands, shouting, “No, it’s not that, Sheriff!”
“Then what is it?”
“That crazy outlaw who appeared in Lincoln County a few days ago, remember?”
“…Don’t tell me.”
“His name… what was it? Ah, Zodiac! It seems like he’s shown up in town!”
“…!”
At the mention of Zodiac, Jet’s indifferent expression turned to shock.
And that was…
“…Zodiac is in this town?”
Sophia, who had been trying to dig into Emma, was equally shocked.
**
Blink.
I woke up shortly after falling asleep.
An hour? Or maybe just 30 minutes?
I had a very light sleep and woke up very quickly.
‘…If it’s the Boss, I can do even worse.’
This was all because of Emma.
The recent excitement had left me too heated to sleep easily.
“…Tsk.”
My body felt hot, and my whole body tingled as if I’d been burned by fire.
Displeased, I clicked my tongue and went to the kitchen to drink some water.
Gurgle.
Having slept a little, the drunkenness had subsided, and I felt hungry.
But since Emma hadn’t taken the horse, it would take quite some time for her to arrive.
‘Should I go back to Deaf Man’s Tavern?’
Feeling like I wouldn’t be able to sleep if I lay back down, I dashed out of the office.
“No Name, let’s go.”
“Hehe.”
Deaf Man’s Tavern served not just drinks but also snacks when you were hungry.
I planned to have a quick breakfast there.
‘Bob’s gonna be mad why I came at closing time.’
I smirked and galloped across the wilderness with No Name.
Clip-clop, clip-clop.
With No Name’s swift gallop and the wind in my face, I sobered up and felt better.
Just as I excitedly arrived at the town center…
Murmur.
“…Huh?”
Something felt off as I saw people gathered in one corner. I got off No Name and approached them…
“What’s that?”
Soon, I found a body lying in a pool of blood among the crowd.
“Alright, folks. Stop gawking and get back to work… Oh, Kid.”
“What’s going on? Did another outlaw cause trouble?”
“Well…”
I was on friendly terms not just with Sheriff Jet but also with the other deputies.
As I approached the body, the deputy, thinking I was okay, stepped aside to let me inspect it.
The face was familiar.
“Old man Hector from the fabric store.”
Ah, this guy made my clothes and blankets. Guess I’ll have to find a new store.
I clicked my tongue and examined the body.
He was stabbed in the neck, right at the vital spot, and the clean cut suggested the killer was quite skilled.
I focused on the area around the neck wound.
But then…
“Kid, not that. Look at this.”
“This? Huh?”
The deputy pointed to the body’s fingertips, as if that was the important part.
Focused on the neck, I hadn’t noticed the letter clutched in the body’s hand.
‘A letter?’
Curious, I picked up the letter and froze.
The letter began like this:
[This is the Zodiac speaking.]
One good thing about being in this damn Western game is that I became fluent in English.
As soon as I entered this world, I could use English like a native speaker.
But I hadn’t forgotten Korean, so I became a perfect bilingual.
This is the Zodiac speaking.
Translated directly, it means ‘Zodiac speaks,’ ‘Thus spoke Zodiac.’
Frowning at the narcissistic opening, I read the rest of the letter.
[I like it here because there are many people. I’ll stay here for a while.]
[I just killed a drunk middle-aged man. Killing him was too easy.]
[So, it wasn’t fun. I need more stimulation.]
[Next, I’ll kill a little girl.]
“…Oh, damn.”
After reading the short letter, I sighed.
Chapter 8 [The Zodiac Serial Murders] had officially begun.
