In the reception room where Mahiru and Akasaka were waiting.
Holding the child in his arms, Akasaka grew increasingly curious about who Mahiru's father really was.
In any case, his status had to be anything but ordinary.
The treatment they were receiving said it all...
Meanwhile, Mahiru was filled with unease, her fists clenched tightly atop her knees as she kept comforting herself inside. [This is all for the child... for the child...]
Before long, the door opened.
Timoteo entered first.
Close behind him came Iemitsu Sawada, with the sleeping Sawada Tsunayoshi in his arms.
Seeing that Timoteo had arrived, Akasaka instinctively looked at Mahiru, thinking this might be her father.
Though he looked a little old, it was not entirely unacceptable.
But what puzzled Akasaka was...
The Ninth in the original work, whether in the anime or manga, did not seem like a scumbag, did he?
He also did not seem like the type to abandon Mahiru...
It was only when Iemitsu Sawada entered that Akasaka felt a bad premonition rise within him...
"Could it be him?"
The moment Mahiru saw the Ninth had arrived, she immediately stood up from the sofa and greeted him warmly. "Grandpa Ninth, it's been a long time."
Timoteo still wore a kind expression as he looked gently at the child before him. "I never expected you to have grown so much. Honestly, you... the Vongola Family would always welcome you. Why wouldn't you stay with the Vongola Family?"
Timoteo wanted this child to remain within the family, where she could be protected.
Even if Mahiru used the Vongola Family's name to run wild out in the world, Timoteo would not have minded.
He would simply consider it a debt owed to the child.
Though he was not the real culprit, of course. He