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Back when the hero and his father had tried to use the law enforcement to throw mud her way, one of the 'counterattacks' Emilia had managed to come up with included the case of a young college girl named Michelle who had been bullied to the point of almost committing suicide.
Although she had briefly mentioned it at that time in the news report, it hadn't been a pivotal point in turning the situation around, and neither the media nor herself paid it much attention.
However, it remained a fact that this case had been pretty much 'ignored' by the law enforcement, and the girl was certainly suffering injustice even at this very moment.
Of course, such a thing wasn't too much of a concern to Emilia, and she had thought that simply handing the thing off to Noelle as a side project would be enough to have it 'handled' appropriately.
Much to her surprise, however, Noelle completely failed to make any progress in the case within the restraints of her 'assignment', and ended up calling her back to inquire about whether she should start digging deeper or just drop it.
Some of the things she mentioned caught Emilia's interest, because the case apparently involved one of her father's fiercest opponents and Mr. Black's political ally.
At that time, Cynthia had been quite smug. "Isn't she just so eager to avoid that dinner date with you?"
Emilia wasn't one to rush things, however, and decided that their 'bet' could be put off for later.
She intended to have Noelle work on it fully under her supervision after the exams, but Crystal's condition had taken a higher priority, and that's when she suddenly had an idea.
Wasn't Crystal supposed to be an amazing detective with a 'natural gift' in the original timeline?
Not only would this give her a great opportunity to observe the heroine's 'skill' in action, it should also help her distract the girl from whatever was bothering her.
Although at this point Emilia was quite certain that it was related to herself, which is why just 'asking' might even backfire, and she had to tread with caution.
As for Noelle, well, she should cherish her normal life while it lasts.
Crystal couldn't help but furrow her brows as she flipped through the file while trying her best to ignore Emilia petting Dixie's head while the girl took a nap on the girl's lap. "How did you come to know about her, Emilia?"
Since the girl was going to be the one doing most of the 'investigation', Emilia of course intended to hand her all the facts. "You remember the time when I went on TV for a while? For the trafficking case?"
"Ah, yes? I watched it all, of course, but I don't recall her name being mentioned?"
Emilia sighed. "Actually, I talked about it in a lot of detail during the interview, but the broadcasters cut that part out."
Crystal frowned. "Why?"
"At that time, I thought that maybe it was because it didn't fit well with the 'theme' they were going for, and there was already a lot of stuff going on with the trafficking and rescue case, so I didn't really dwell on it…"
How could Crystal not realize what was happening? Emilia clearly meant that the 'case' was being suppressed. Looking at the file again, however, she couldn't find any clue as to why.
It looked like a 'standard' bullying case, at the end of which the girl had jumped off a three-story building and ended up paralyzed in a hospital, unable to move or even speak. Her brain function remained normal, however, and the doctors believed that she could eventually recover.
"Why are you showing this to me, though?"
Emilia shrugged. "Because you're the smartest person I know? Since I can't figure it out, I can only ask for your help."
Crystal scratched her cheek in embarrassment. Although it felt good to be 'looked up to' by her crush, this responsibility was a bit too heavy for her to take on casually. After all, it involved a girl's life. "I-I don't know what you think, but I'm not a detective or anything. How can I figure out anything that the police can't?"
Emilia gently set Dixie aside till she was peacefully lying on the bed before coming right beside the heroine. "Well, I believe it's not that others 'can't' figure it out, they just don't want to. But… Crystal wants to bring her to justice, right?"
The last few words were whispered directly into her ears, and Crystal's eyes went wide in shock. "W-Why would you think that?"
Emilia smiled. "Because Crystal is a heroine of justice."
This was something that Cynthia disagreed with, but Emilia believed in firmly. Even when Danielle had lost everything in the original timeline, including her life, Crystal had been the only one who returned to seek out the 'culprit' on her behalf when no one else would care to.
Of course, this was based on Emilia's belief that the heroine really didn't just 'give up' on everything for 'true love' at the end, like Cynthia thought, and had a greater plan at work to be acting the way she did.
Knowing Crystal now, only this way would Emilia be convinced that her actions made sense.
In response to Emilia's unabashed declaration, compared to Cynthia once again rolling her eyes in her mind, the heroine's shock was clear on her face.
"H-Heroine of justice? M-Me?"
Emilia nodded, as if it was something obvious. "Right."
Crystal couldn't help but feel a sense of panic in her heart. It was true that she had always had a lofty idea of justice in her heart, however, she had never dared to express it to others. After all, it would seem like such a joke, coming from her incapable self.
Forget about enforcing justice, she couldn't even take care of any injustice that she herself would be facing.
This was one of the reasons why she had first started to admire Emilia, who dared to speak and dared to do, striking against the bullies who many knew existed but knowingly ignored.
Her expression was a bit sad. "Doesn't that title fit you more?"
Emilia thought it was quite funny, however, considering everything she had already gone through, and everything that was now willing to go through.. "Me? Ahaha… I'm just a willful girl, doing whatever I want. How can I be considered a 'Heroine of Justice'? I'll only help out those I feel like helping out, understand?"