In the morning, as usual, Zach would get ready and put on his black leather coat and lift his hat comfortably.
After breakfast he will go straight to the Gate to do his shift.
The journey takes almost 40 minutes due to walking, though the pace is faster than usual. Therefore, He got up early and left at 6 am.
Arriving at the gate, Zach went straight to the post, Santos with fiery eyes was already there tidying up some equipment. Zach arrives and puts his hat on the little table in the post. So did his wooden crate.
"Good morning, Mr Vedric"
"Good morning Mr. Clourfus"
They greet each other. "Want coffee?" Santos offers.
Zach shook his head twice, "No, I'll immediately guard outside" Zach said. This is because at home, he has been drinking sweet tea.
After the vigil didn't last long, Ramius arrived with an inexplicably dark expression. Then he would complain as he sat down directly on the outpost in front of Zach.
"Uh, really terrible" Ramius let out a long breath.
Zach glanced at Ramius out of curiosity "What's wrong, is there a problem?"
Hearing Zach's words, Ramius sighed again. "Family quarrel.." Ramius said.
Zach first raised his eyebrows and then smiled a little. He did not ask further because he thought it was a personal matter. Hence he immediately said, "You can rest first, walking must be tiring. I can keep watch"
Ramius ignored Zach's words, instead he slapped his forehead while complaining, "Tiring... My wife told me not to be on duty today... If it was another day maybe it wouldn't be a problem, I would have asked the captain for permission, but today is the day the joint team was formed."
Zach just frowned slightly, not believing he was going back to the original topic. Thus, he followed the flow of the conversation, "What is the reason your wife forbids you from serving?"
Ramius replied, "I live on Ballione Street, an area not far from the gate. My wife is very scared because last night, the victim of a serial killer was our neighbor."
"Why hasn't that madman been caught yet!?" Ramius clicked his tongue.
Zach couldn't help being surprised. He was silent for a few seconds before asking, "Serial murders happening again?"
"Yes, this is the eleventh victim! That's why, the Captain told me to come anyway. A joint team to deal with this matter will be formed".
After making sure he didn't hear wrong, Zach was dripping cold sweat. "I sealed the astral! How can there still be killings?" Zach muttered trying to match the facts he knew.
After that, Zach asked again, "Do you think the killer is still the same?"
"I think so. The victim lost his head and heart. So it can be confirmed that it must be the same person".
"It's so scary… I'm afraid that when I get home, the house will already be vacated…" Ramius continued in a slowly dropping tone.
On the outside, Zach does look calm and a little pitiful. But what was on his mind right now were many things that couldn't be connected. It was only then, Santos came out of the inside post and said, "If that happens, you can find another partner" With a joking tone.
"Hah, a brat like you won't understand. If that's the case then I might lose my reason for living!" Ramius brought his fist forward as it pushed it into Santos' stomach with moderate force.
While Ramius and Santos were teasing and joking with each other, Zach fell for a few thoughts. "I obviously sealed the Astral. Did the murder on Ballione Street happen before that? No, there's no way it wasn't noticed so quickly. So, are there two Astrals in town!?" Zach came to a conclusion as he silently thought again.
"If there really are two astrals, it would make sense knowing that a meeting of the Boreas clan would be held. Regardless of whether the clue would lead to my sealed astral or something else, I have to attend the meeting in order to be informed".
"Naturally, it's possible that these follow-up killings could have been carried out by humans to bear the name of the serial killer. If that's the case then, at least it's better than the first one. But it's worth being careful".
The fact that even a policeman and a detective couldn't catch the killer and then started to form a joint team like Ramius had said showed that the second possibility was very remote.
In the midst of his confusion, Zach got a strange problem. In the midst of this serial killing, Patrols are only being held normally as if they are not being made a priority.
Zach thought of the possibility that the Mayor had already prepared people to catch the serial killer which must be a Guardian. But Zach had his doubts, This Town doesn't have a settled faction!
It's likely that the mayor's alert on this matter should be greater. Except, the mayor and the military are used to this situation, or even don't really care. Back again, Zach bemoans one rumor, "Vandash City is the most corrupt city on the continent of Stonefield"
"If that's the case, then where did the idea of forming this joint team come from?" Confused Zach sighed to throw away all the bad thoughts.
While his thoughts were adrift, a Horse-drawn Carriage that seemed to be approaching from the direction of the city street appeared in Zach's sight. "More and more people are fleeing the city" Zach said casually as if it was normal.
"Heh, isn't that a natural thing" Ramius stood up and took care of the carriage going out of the gate.
...
During the day, when the sun is hanging in the middle. Zach who focused his mind on the chessboard in front thoughtfully moved the chess pieces.
He takes turns playing chess to relieve boredom. At this time, a group of people approached from a distance.
Ramius stood up and glanced at the people before he jumped out of the post. "They are the military. It seems that the formation of a joint team has been carried out," said Ramius providing information.
After getting closer, then the figures of the people were clearly visible to the eye. They wore matching uniforms. Red top and black pants with gold ornaments.
They were of various ages, and the youngest looked around 25 to 30 years old.
Zach and Santos inevitably stepped out of post to provide formalities for the military.
"Why did they come flocking, isn't sending one person enough?" Zach whispered to Santos.
Santos shook his head as if not knowing the reason.
At the gate there will basically be only three people on guard at any one time, while most gatekeepers will be at home or in the Gatekeeper's office.
Sending a number of troops for the joint team recruitment event made Zach unable to really digest what was happening.
After a while, the old man with the clear white beard took one step ahead of the rest of the troops. He stared at Zach and company without saying anything for almost a minute. As if filtering them.
Then, He took a piece of paper from the person behind him. He narrowed his eyes as he tried to read the words on the paper.
"Ramius Harith, With the authority of the military. We ask you to join the joint team to investigate and catch criminals who are currently active in serial killings in Vandash Town" The voice sounded full of obvious intimidation.
Ramius pursed his lips and lowered his head slowly. "I'll be happy to do my job"
In the end, the group of military forces recruited Ramius to join the joint team. This no longer surprised Zach, he already had a guess that Ramius would be chosen.
The first is related to the issue of guarding the gate, it makes perfect sense for only one person in a team to be selected. In the city of Vandash there are only six teams of gatekeepers.
The second was that Ramius was the most experienced of the three members of this team. In view of the Track is very clear. Ramius has been a Gatekeeper for almost eight years, while Santos recently joined.
It's the same with Zach who doesn't have a record as a Gatekeeper because he changed his identity.
The third reason is a fact about the joint team that Zach doesn't know at all. And even Santos knows only a few. It showed that from the start Ramius had been prepared by Allen to join the joint team.
After finishing taking care of that, the military force which numbered nearly ten people left and left the gate. Meanwhile, the three team members continued their activities as Gatekeepers.
"The joint team will start being active tonight. A large-scale investigation will be carried out... as well as a patrol," Ramius told his two colleagues.