Chapter VII: Angels Need Angels Too

Suddenly, two people appeared behind me and hit me, causing me to fall unconscious.

"What do you say, should we sell him?" one of them said.

"I think if we take out his organs and sell them, we'll get more money!" the other replied.

"W-What's happening?" I wondered.

"Oh, the chosen one... Hm, it seems Cesare is nowhere around to save you now, huh?"

"Excuse me? How do you know Cesare?"

"Everyone knows him. Everyone hates him! And now, here you are, his weakness in our hands!"

"Oh no!"

Why? Why me? What have I done to deserve this? Still, if it's time for me to die, so be it, it's not the first time. But still, I wouldn't want Cesare to suffer because of me.

"Take it off!"

"Excuse me?" I began to wonder.

"The cassock, take it off!"

"W-What? I won't!"

"Then we'll take it off ourselves!"

I'm used to violence from others, so it's nothing new. In the end, maybe it's better not to have anything of my own in this world.

"Send a letter to Cesare, along with this cassock!" one of them said.

"Wait, aren't we waiting for the boss? Here he comes!"

Suddenly, in that room, I saw a silhouette. A rather tall man, with glasses and hair as white as milk. From the way he's dressed, in those black clothes with shades of violet, he seems to be a bishop. Wait, what? Oh no!

"We meet again, Father Antonio!"

"Impossible. Why? S-Secretary Bishop, why are you doing this?"

The cardinal's secretary is the boss of the ones who captured me? Why? What does this have to do with Cesare? What's happening here?

"Well, ever since you first came here, I realized you're a threat. That's why you need to leave! I've sent a letter to your bishop stating that you came here to praise him and to thank the cardinal in person for his choice, so now you're safe!"

"But, Cesare..."

"Cesare again... You know, if you care even a little about him, you should leave! Leave tonight, and everything will go back to normal!"

"I don't have money to leave and besides..."

"Money is not a problem, Antonio! Just leave, and your return trip will be paid for!" the bishop said.

"And Cesare... What will happen to him?"

One of the kidnappers hit me in the stomach. The pain was so intense that I was left breathless.

"It's not your concern. We can only tell you that it won't end well!" the one who hit me said.

"Antonio, here in the Vatican, everything is in our hands. The Pope has nothing to do but tend to his family. We are behind everything here!"

"I don't believe you! I won't leave! I can't leave Cesare alone in your hands!"

"Do you know what happened to the last one who said that? We made a cut in his throat and hung him upside down. The next day when Cesare came, he found him already dead. He cried a lot, poor thing!"

"You will pay for this!"

"Oh, yes... When? At the judgment of the Lord? Ha ha ha!" the bishop began to laugh diabolically.

No. It can't be that Cesare comes here! I won't let him come! It's all my fault. I shouldn't have gotten out of the carriage and walked alone. I shouldn't have been so cold with Cesare... Oh, God... If only I had another chance!

Cesare POV:

How well I slept. I finally got home and can rest properly after a tasty dinner with Antonio. Wait, where's Antonio?

"Old man, do you happen to know where Antonio is?"

"Father, calm down. Father Antonio got off and decided to walk here!"

"How? And you let him? You deserve to be killed for this! You're lucky for your age and the fact that I'm merciful with the elderly."

"Forgive me, sir! It won't happen again!"

Where is Antonio? I get off the carriage and enter the apartment. I start to get restless. What if something bad happened to him? I shouldn't have made so many advances to him... Because of me, he got off, and now he might be in danger. There are knocks on the door... I think it's him!

"S-Sister Catherine, what's going on?"

"You received this package. I didn't open it, so you can open it!"

"How? A package? I wasn't expecting a package..."

Strange... Very strange. Why did this package appear just now? Still, I think the answer is inside. I opened the package and couldn't believe what I found... Antonio's cassock stained with blood, along with a letter.

"Father Cesare, we are in possession of someone known to you. Or at least we think so... Antonio seems to be his name. He kept struggling not to let us inform you of his presence, but we couldn't keep this fact just for ourselves. We think that it is your duty to come and see what it's all about. Oh, and we think there is no need for other people to be present at this moment."

It can't be! It can't be true! Just because of me, Antonio is captured by those who killed David. I can't let this happen again!

"Sister, bring me my battle clothes and sword. If necessary, I will even commit murder!"

"Father! Be cautious!"

"No need for caution! Action is needed!"

I left, riding on my black horse, and headed to where Antonio was. How do I know the place? It's not the first time those people blackmail me with loved ones. I arrived, but it seems there's no one outside. Surely they're inside.

"Antonio! Antonio!"

Antonio POV:

Oh no! Cesare is here! I have to stop him from coming in, but I can't...

"Let the fun begin! Your Excellency, I think it's better if you leave. It's not good for a bishop to be seen with people like us."

"Alright, boys... We'll see each other later!" the bishop said, leaving.

That bishop is truly despicable. And to think I wanted to kiss his ring when I saw him... I can't wait for the cardinal to come and tell him everything. I hope he'll believe me... I hope.

"Antonio!" tiredly yelled Cesare.

"Cesare, leave!"

"I can't leave you here... I have to free you!"

"Hey, hey, what do we have here? Father Cesare becoming the fearless defender of our prisoner. Hm, I wonder what we should do now," one of the captors said.

"Let Antonio go! Deal with me, not with him!"

"Indeed... But things seem to be getting complicated now that you've come!"

One of them came behind me and put a knife to my throat. So, it seems I'm fated to die once again...

"Cesare, if you don't do what we say, Antonio will die! We don't want that, do we?"

"Let him go... If not, you will suffer!"

"On whose behalf? Yours? Don't forget that you are at a disadvantage now..."

"Cesare, leave!" I said with my last strength before feeling a strong blow to my back, followed by two more hits to my stomach and face.

"Antonio, no!"

Cesare was devastated. Even though he came with a sword and was prepared for battle, the men captured him and tied him up, then began to beat him with their feet. I can't just stand and watch. I can't let other people suffer because of me. Lord, what should I do?

I became unconscious. I don't know anything about what's happening there. I just see a light. A pleasant and warm one. I walk towards it, but someone stops me.

"Antonio! You have two options. First, you can go back home, and Cesare will die. Second, you can stay here, and there's a possibility for both of you to be saved. Choose!"

"Who are you?"

"Me? I am Archangel Michael, and I have come to help you... So, tell me. One or two?"

"I choose the second option. I can't let Cesare die, even though he's a scoundrel and behaves like that."

"Are you sure? If you leave now, you'll be able to be with your family, parish, and people."

"No... I don't agree, as long as Cesare will die!"

"Very well, then!"

I woke up. Cesare was still on his knees, being humiliated by those scoundrels. When I realized that their attention wasn't on me anymore, I tried to untie myself. Well, of course, I received a couple more hits, but it was enough for Cesare to regain his strength and start to take revenge. Well, I can't say I feel sorry for those guys, even though they ended up with some broken bones and a few minor cuts, I hope...

"C-Cesare, is that you?" I said weakly after the beatings.

"Yes, it's me! Come on!"

Well, it seems I can't walk anymore. At least for the moment. But somehow, I wouldn't want to be carried like a princess by Cesare...

"You can't walk?" Cesare asked me.

"Yes, I can... Actually, no, I can't..."

"Alright then, come on!"

I couldn't shake off the fear. Cesare picked me up just like a princess from a fairy tale, put me on his horse, and we rode home.

"Antonio, hold on tight!"

Well, I guess Cesare isn't a bad person... I believe he's a good man. A very good man. An angel... Wait! Him, an angel? Well...

"Antonio, are you crying?"

"No, I'm not crying, just got some dust in my eyes from the road..."

I guess eventually I should give him a chance... I think I'll end up breaking those cherished vows of mine soon. Well, I guess it had to happen eventually, right? But I hope it won't happen too soon...

We finally arrived home. Both of us were covered in wounds, and when Sister Catherine saw us, she disinfected my wounds first and then bandaged them.

"Sister, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, Antonio!"

"Well, could you let me take care of Cesare's wounds?"

"S-Seriously? Do you really want to do that?"

"Yes... It's the least I can do for him. After all, he saved me, didn't he?"

With Sister Catherine's approval, I took the disinfectant and bandages and went into the room. Where was I when Sister was bandaging me? Well, Cesare took me to Sister's room because I was too weak. Now, after I've recovered a bit, I can go back to the apartment.

Cesare was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at the wounds on his arms and legs. What scoundrels! Cesare's face is full of cuts and wounds, but oddly enough, it makes him look better...

"C-Cesare, I spoke with Sister, and I can disinfect your wounds and bandage them..."

"You? Do something for me? Be serious!" he said sadly.

"Cesare, I-"

"I'm glad you're alive. I think those bastards told you about the incident in the past, right?"

"Y-Yes... I'm sorry!"

"It's all in the past... David was very much like you. The same kindness, warmth, and..."

"Cesare, I'm here! I promise I won't be so cold to you anymore, and... Thank you for everything!"

"Hm, you might... You might let me sleep with my head on your chest tonight?"

"Sure, but let me bandage you first..."

Well, it certainly isn't like before... Neither am I the same as before. I should have realized his pain before all this happened. It's all my fault!

"Antonio... Did those men say anything? Did you see anyone else around?"

"I-I didn't see anyone else... The only thing they said was that they hate you... Why?"

I couldn't tell him that their boss was the cardinal's secretary, could I?

"It's because of my family... Well, here, family describes you, not your actions or anything else... That's why everyone is afraid of me and hates me."

"I don't hate you, so don't generalize!"

"Well, you're different!"

"Cesare, I was told that if I leave, nothing will happen to me, but you will suffer. I couldn't agree to that!" I said quite emotionally.

"Why? You were at home with your family, not with a pervert like me..."

"I'm sorry I said that, and I hope we can start over..."

"Maybe... Aw, be kinder, please!"

"Sorry, I'll try!"

After finishing cleaning and bandaging Cesare's wounds, I took the disinfectant and the rest back, then lay down next to Cesare. Of course, he slept with his head on my chest, as we had agreed.

"Good night, Cesare, and... Thank you!"

"Good night... I hope today will be a lesson for the times when you want to go out alone at night. From now on, I forbid you to go out alone... You know what could happen now, right?"

"I promise! I just hope you won't put yourself in danger for me like you did today..."

"Anytime you need me, Antonio! After all, I'm your guardian angel... Isn't it said that even angels have their own angels?"