Was with you until your final point. Per the “Ability Modifiers” section of Attack Rolls in chapter 9, making a melee weapon attack uses Strength. The only exception to this is weapons that have finesse, which the crossbow does not. And despite this being an attack with a ranged weapon, you are using it as a melee weapon attack.
I remember trying to watch anime on Hulu recently. I have the sub with ads and the ads kept causing a desync in the subtitles. The ads they added kept causing problems with their player. So I just downloaded it because it was unwatchable.