Timid Little Girl (Volume 1)

"You rascal! You dare commit such a heinous act against my granddaughter. You have chosen death! I do not care, for the punishment I shall face, but your life will end here and now!"

Natasha rushed towards the Headmaster, grasping his empty hand tightly, pleading with all her strength. "Grandpa, no! Please don't do this!"

"Don't stop me, Natasha!" The Headmaster's voice boomed. "Once I have made my decision, there is no turning back, only cowards do. I will never allow anyone to humiliate my daughter let alone my granddaughter, in such a way! I, Albert Forbury vow to end this demon's life this instance!"

"Grandpa please!" Natasha begged, her voice shaking. "Please don't do this to yourself. As much as you wish to end his life, I do too. But if I were to commit such an act myself..."

She paused, tears streaming down her face. "Would it ever bring me peace?" 

"Would I feel relieved?" 

"And if you do this," she added softly, "I'll lose you, the only support I have left in my life. The only person that showered me with familial affection that I longed for." 

"Grandpa... Will you leave me too?"

Her words struck the Headmaster deeply. His fury began to subside as he looked into his grandaughter's tearful eyes. Taking a deep breath, he gently placed a hand on her head, stroking her hair. 

"You're right, Natasha," he said softly, his voice trembling with emotion. "You're absolutely right. I apologise for my childish outburst, my dear."

"..."

Turning to Kaito, the Headmaster bowed slightly. "Mr Lionheart, I must apologise to you as well. It was unbecoming of me to lose my composure in front of you. Now, would you be kind as to share this recording footage? Here is my iWatch share code, I believe this is how it works, correct? Forgive me, if I am wrong, I'm a bit behind in the latest technological trends."

"No problem at all, Sir," Kait replied, quickly fumbling with his watch. "Let me just quickly accept your share code... There, it's done."

"Great. Thank you, young man." Albert smiled warmly.

"And one more thing."

"?"

The Headmaster grasped Kaito's hand. His voice trembled with gratitude as he said, "Thank you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. You saved my little angel. Words cannot express the depth of my gratitude. Thank you, Mr Lionheart, no, thank you, Kaito." 

As the Headmaster's voice broke with emotion, Natasha threw her arms around him in a tight embrace.

"No need to thank me, Sir," Kaito said modestly. "She saved me once before, I'm only returning the favour." He glanced at Natasha with a smile and a sense of gratitude. But she tilted her head, pointing to herself in confusion. "Wait, I did?".

The Headmaster chuckled softly. "I see. That's great." 

"One more thing," he continued, turning back to Kaito. "Please, continue to be friends with my granddaughter. She may act like a tough cookie, but deep down, she longs for trustworthy friendships."

The Headmaster's face turned wistful as he began to recount Natasha's past. "From a young age, the only close family Natasha had, was her mother, my beloved daughter. I was devastated when my daughter ran off with that... That b*stard Wilford. And never did I hear from her again, until her sudden passing. It was only at her funeral that I met little Natasha, and even then her demeanour who had never known a proper childhood." 

"That man... That wretched b*stard..." The Headmaster's voice wavered, his emotions evident. "He couldn't even look me in the eye. I knew, I knew very well that he was guilty of her pain."

"It was there and then, that I made up my mind. There, I decided to take little Natasha into my custody. But, I had to fight, and after endless custody battles with the Wilford family and their... Questionable ties in court, I was only permitted custody of her only on weekends." 

"Despite an unjust proceeding, I cherished those weekends. My wife and I worked hard to give Natasha the childhood she deserved. Slowly, she began to regain the spark, a spark of an innocent ordinary girl." 

"But, then... tragedy struck again."

The Headmaster paused, his eyes clouded with sorrow. "My wife passed away," his voice grew quieter. "I was consumed by grief. I drowned my sorrow in alcohol, forgetting everything and everyone. I even forgot about Natasha - my little angel who needed me the most."

"What was there left to even live for? I thought to myself."

"Every day, I sank deeper into despair, brooding over my pain. I even considered ending my own life. But then, I thought of my wife, she would never forgive me for a selfish act."

"I was ashamed." 

"I was embarrassed." 

"And I felt completely lost, unsure of what to do." 

"..."

Tears welled in his eyes as he continued, "Months passed. Then, on a freezing winter morning, the doorbell rang, echoing incessantly. In my anger, I flung the door open, only to find no one there. All that greeted me was the howl of the wind, as blizzard raged on. I looked to my left, I looked to my right, but nothing. So, I dismissed it as some sort of prank by the youngsters. But as I was about to head back inside, a timid voice called from below, 'Will you leave me behind too?'"

"There she was, a timid little girl," the Headmaster's voice cracked as he recalled the moment, "trembling in the cold, her nose running. In that instant, I fell on my knees, overcome with guilt. I quickly wrapped her in my arms, and I started crying, 'I'm sorry, Natasha. I'm so, so sorry.'" 

"And do you know what she said?" he asked, his voice breaking. "'Will you also leave me, Grandpa?' She uttered the same words, and that shattered my heart, I had assured her that I would always be with her, yet I was wandering around grieving like an old fool."

The Headmaster wiped a tear from his cheek. "There, I reassured her that no matter what, I would always be with her. To my response, she simply smiled at my words... And then she collapsed." 

"She had developed severe hypothermia. I panicked and screamed, I couldn't even think clearly enough to call an ambulance. Fortunately, my neighbours heard my cries and rushed over to my distress."

"Thanks to the quick response of the paramedics and the hospital's medical staff, she was nursed back to health. To this day, Kaito, I remember it vividly. If I had been even a minute later, my little angel wouldn't be here now with us."

"And what to speak of that b*stard? He never even came to visit his own daughter. Only the maids assigned to care for Natasha were present. Some of them were fired on the spot for gross negligence, after all, they failed to realise Natasha had escaped from her room."

"But here we are, it looks like Grandpa almost made the same mistake again, eh Natasha?"

"Yes, Grandpa. Hehe." Natasha replied, wiping the last of her tears.

"Oh, one more thing, Kaito. By now, I'm sure you have realised by now, that Natasha Wilford is my lovely granddaughter. We apologise for the sudden confusion earlier. It is not that I do not want to acknowledge our familial relationship openly, but the Wilford Family forbids it. They have made it clear that no one at school, nor in public, should know about our connection."

"Well, apart from you now, ohoho!"

"I guess I am honoured...? But yes, I figured, after you suddenly started calling her your 'granddaughter', and my doubts were then cleared once Natasha spoke." Kaito shrugged.

"Very observant, young man. I must say, I wouldn't mind having you as my grandson-in-law. You're not only intelligent but also incredibly strong. I don't know how you managed to take him down, but I would love to hear the full story."

"Grandpa, what are you saying?!" Natasha exclaimed, her face flushing with embarrassment.

"Ahaha... Sure, I can share the nitty and gritty stuff," Kaito chuckled. "But as for him over there...?" He gestured toward Victor's lifeless body.

"Don't worry Kaito, I know exactly how to deal with him," the Headmaster replied with a mischievous wink and a sinister smile.