"What kind of fuss?"
"Miss Fletcher, I can understand how you feel right now—"
"Please answer my question directly. Stop making excuses." Liz's eyes practically blazed with fury. "What exactly are you worried about?"
Molly looked slightly weary. She sighed softly, removed her thin-framed glasses, and leaned back a little. "Perhaps you know that there have been some demonstrations in Tanyi City these past few days."
Liz froze. "...What demonstrations?"
"Citizens are demanding that the Third District United Government negotiate with us, hand over Jane Hesta, and let her return to civilian life."
As she spoke, Molly pushed a newspaper toward Liz.
The moment Liz unfolded it, she frowned at the portrait on the front page. She looked up at Molly. "This is... Jane?"
Molly nodded.
The headline had been printed in heavy ink: "Let Her Be Free—Save the Girl Surrounded by Misfortune."
Without a word, Liz read the article covering the entire page, then silently placed the newspaper back on the desk.
"Never underestimate the public's sympathy for a little girl," Molly said quietly. "Especially when she so bravely confronted a Chelated Being at a critical moment, sustaining severe injuries herself to save all the children in the abbey. Who could bear to let her spend the rest of her life in danger? After today, probably all of District 3 will be watching to see what becomes of her."
Liz's brow eased slightly. "...So that's what you're worried about."
"We can't let this blow up any further." Molly pinched the bridge of her nose. "If word gets out, people will think the base cannot protect Hesta... That will only make public sentiment even more intense."
Liz looked at the flaxen-haired girl in the newspaper. After a brief silence, she said softly, "But if you suspend the investigation into Shawn over this, doesn't that prove we really can't protect Jane?"
"Suspending the investigation is not the same as ending it," Molly corrected. "Even without formal paperwork, we can still restrict Shawn's actions."
"...Then we might as well follow everyone's suggestion and let her go." Liz looked at Molly. "She doesn't know anything now, anyway. It would be nice for her to leave the base and live an ordinary person's life."
Molly smiled. She did not seem angry at Liz's words. "...Someone brought that up during the earlier meeting about how to handle this, but Chiba rejected it."
"Chiba?" Liz gave a disbelieving laugh. "I thought she was the type to just wash her hands of everything."
"She's far from someone who would let go." Molly's gaze returned to the newspaper. "Hesta being able to stay at the base now is entirely thanks to Chiba Masaki's quick response at the beginning. If she hadn't rushed through the adoption process and secured the child's status before the Military Police finished verifying the abbey children's registry, we would have had little chance of legally bringing her into the base.
"After all, legally speaking, since Hesta had already registered her identity at Saint Anne Abbey, she was one of the lawful citizens of Tanyi City in District 3. City Hall had priority custodial rights."
"Then what does Teacher Chiba think about these demonstrations?"
Molly continued, "In the past, civilian organizations needed at least two weeks of review and preparation, from filing an application to actually taking to the streets. This time, fewer than three days passed between the application and the march itself. Without someone pulling strings behind the scenes, they could never have managed it. Besides, even if Hesta left the base, what awaited her would not be any so-called 'ordinary person's life.' She would merely end up working herself to death for the United Government."
"Chiba's opinion was that, in order to keep Jane Hesta, we could 'spare no expense.' Those were her exact words," Molly said.
Liz drew in a deep breath.
"Liz," Molly's tone softened slightly, "though it may sound cold to say so, perhaps you've invested a little too much energy and emotion into this matter."
Liz opened her mouth at first, but she did not argue. After a while, she merely said softly, "...I'm Jane's aide."
Molly clasped her hands together. "The base's original purpose in punishing Shawn was to warn him that what he did was wrong. But now, we also need to understand why—why he showed such unusual interest in the newly arrived Hesta."
Molly looked at Liz. "Being overly fixated on punishment itself does not always mean justice has been served. Don't you think?"
Liz fell silent for a moment, then rose and picked up her hat, putting it on.
"...I'll think it over."
Molly smiled faintly. "I remember Valenti said this morning that she planned to arrange a brief interview with Calvin. Perhaps you could find an opportunity to speak with her. She should have some information that would be valuable to both you and Hesta."
Toward evening, Chiba drove Hesta back to the base. Though it had rained briefly earlier that day, the clouds had now cleared.
The setting sun on the distant horizon cast the whole world in a dim golden glow as Chiba brought the car to a stop.
"Don't forget to send me a copy of your class schedule when you get back, so I'll know when you're usually free and can arrange all the visiting times in advance. Be prepared—I might come pick you up anytime."
"Okay."
"We need to settle this as soon as possible." Chiba lightly rubbed the textured leather on the steering wheel. "The longer we wait, the more complications there will be. Best not to drag it out too long—it all depends on your shooting progress."
Hesta's hand, which had been undoing her seatbelt, suddenly slowed. Chiba noticed the change almost immediately. "What is it?"
"I was thinking that maybe there's a better solution than this." Hesta looked ahead, uncertainty in her voice. "I want to keep this method as a trump card. If the base still can't solve my problem, and Shawn takes further action, then—"
Hesta's voice stopped abruptly when she heard a faint, amused sigh from Chiba. She glanced sideways at her. "What are you laughing at, Miss Chiba?"
Chiba looked at her. "Since when have you held onto that fantasy?"
"I asked Ms. Moly's secretary. Guns are banned in Tanyi City, and carrying one in the base without authorization is forbidden too. If I really took such a risk, I might face punishment just like Shawn."
"Did the base's punishment restrict Shawn's actions?"
"...No."
"Then why should you let something like that restrict you?"
Hesta was momentarily at a loss for words. Liz's remarks from the night before last—about how a world where the weak were expected to endure bullying was wrong, and how someone had to pave the road to justice with sweat and blood—surfaced in her mind. Yet at that moment, she could not smoothly repeat those words herself.
She frowned slightly. "But fighting violence with violence will only... uh, push everyone toward more extreme paths."
"Don't think about that. That's for Molly and the others to consider."
"...Why?"
"Because that isn't the part you can control," Chiba said softly. "Shawn chose you first."
"Molly and the others always hope to solve every problem at its root—the bullying of newcomers at our base must have causes: issues within the perpetrator himself, loopholes in the system, the influence of trends in the culture or subculture... The list goes on.
"Understanding why the perpetrator chose to do evil from his perspective, then considering how to make him stop—that is for others to think about. You don't need to."
"Do you remember what I told you last time? Violence has no boundaries. Its limits depend only on how both sides respond."
Chiba lowered her head and took out a cigarette. A flame flickered before her eyes.
"For the weak, revenge is the only path to liberation."
Happy Qixi Festival, everyone! From now on, updates will be at 7:00 in the morning!
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