Reincarnated as an Energy with a System

Chapter 1987: Larrisa’s Case

A few days passed during which Ning went about his own days, continuing to handle the various tasks that needed to be done. While he did so, he received a call from Larissa regarding her own task.

The case of her father’s murder had now reached a point of no return. Things were finally happening.

"I’ve done everything I can," she told him. "I found the eyewitnesses, followed the records, checked every connection I could verify, and gathered enough evidence that I’m comfortable putting all of it in front of a court now. At this point, the only thing left is to hand everything over to my lawyer and let the case move forward."

Ning leaned back where he was sitting and smiled faintly. "Good. Then tell me what you need from me, because I already said I’d help once you were ready."

Larissa was quiet for a moment before answering. "I don’t need much. The evidence is mine, the investigation is mine, and I want the case to stand on that rather than on anything you can force into place."

"That’s fair," Ning said. "I can still cover the legal costs. Lawyers aren’t exactly cheap, and this could drag on for a while."

"No."

The refusal came quickly enough that Ning raised an eyebrow.

Larissa continued before he could argue. "I’ve been saving money for years because I always knew there was a chance this day would come."

Ning understood.

"Alright. Then I’ll stay out of the money side unless you ask."

The case moved forward soon after that.

By the time the first major court hearing began, public interest had already started growing around it, though most people still did not understand the full scale of what Larissa had uncovered. The defendant was the husband of Senator Grace Wyndham, a man whose name and face had appeared repeatedly throughout Larissa’s father’s old investigation and who now sat at the center of the accusations being brought against him.

Ning arrived in a simple disguise, wearing some glasses and a top hat.

He fit in with most of the people well enough that no one looked at him twice.

Larissa sat closer to the front beside her lawyer.

She looked calm, but Ning could tell from the way she kept one hand tightly folded over the other that the composure required effort.

Across from her sat Grace Wyndham’s husband with his own legal team.

He looked composed as well, though his expression carried the sort of confidence Ning had seen many times before in people who believed money, influence, or reputation would protect them.

The opening statements began.

Larissa’s lawyer stood first, and Ning quickly decided the man was better than he expected.

He did not exaggerate the evidence or turn the case into an emotional speech about Larissa’s father. Instead, he laid out the structure of the accusations carefully, explaining how the different witnesses, records, and physical evidence connected to one another and why the defendant could not simply dismiss every connection as coincidence.

Ning watched the opposing side carefully.

The defense tried to weaken the case from the beginning, presenting the defendant as a man caught in a collection of unrelated allegations that had been forced together by people searching for someone to blame. They challenged the reliability of witnesses, questioned timelines, and repeatedly suggested that Larissa’s investigation had become too personal to remain objective.

Larissa’s expression tightened slightly at that, but she did not react beyond it.

Ning could understand why.

The defense’s strategy was obvious enough. If they could not destroy the evidence directly, then they would try to make the investigation itself look contaminated by grief and obsession.

Unfortunately for them, Larissa had spent too long preparing for exactly that kind of argument.

The first witnesses were brought forward, and the case began moving through the events piece by piece.

Some testimony focused on meetings and payments. Other parts dealt with people who had seen the defendant around locations he later claimed never to have visited.

The defense challenged nearly everything.

Larissa’s side had answers for most of it.

By the time the physical evidence was introduced, Ning noticed the confidence across the courtroom begin to shift.

One particular piece drew more attention than the others.

The prosecution had obtained DNA evidence connecting the defendant directly to the unborn child of a prostitute involved in the larger investigation.

The moment that evidence was presented, the defense immediately attempted to distance the relationship from the rest of the case.

The lawyer on the other side stood and spoke carefully. "Even if the court accepts the biological connection, that does not establish participation in the crimes being alleged here. A private relationship, however questionable it may appear, cannot simply be transformed into proof of criminal involvement."

Larissa’s lawyer did not seem bothered by the argument.

"No one is suggesting that biological paternity alone proves every accusation before this court," he replied. "What it does prove is that the defendant’s repeated statements denying any meaningful connection to this woman were false, and once that denial collapses, the court must reconsider every other claim he has made regarding his relationship to the people involved."

Ning smiled faintly from the back.

That was a much better answer than trying to make the DNA evidence carry more weight than it actually had.

Larissa looked toward her lawyer with visible approval before returning her attention to the proceedings.

As the hours passed, the pattern became clearer.

The defense could still challenge individual pieces, but each new connection made it harder to explain the entire case away. Eyewitness testimony lined up with records, records supported timelines, and physical evidence contradicted several of the defendant’s earlier claims.

Still, Ning knew better than to expect an immediate resolution.

The court moved slowly.

Every major piece of evidence produced objections, questions, counterarguments, and demands for clarification. Witnesses had to be examined and cross-examined, documents had to be authenticated, and both sides were clearly prepared to fight over every part of the case that might influence the final outcome.

Ning looked toward Larissa again.

To her, nothing else mattered but justice. At long last, her father’s murderers had been found, and she would see this to its end, no matter how many days it took.