R-16 (The following scenes may contain insinuation of abuse recommending caution to the reader)
Giovanni finally freed from the tormentor's embrace, his legs weak and his complexion paler, he dropped onto the bench in the garden. With teary eyes and trembling hands, he didn't mind the blue fire around him, he still felt very cold.
Mattias wanted to help Giovanni to his feet to keep the other one away from the fire, but before he could, Bishop Darcy appeared beside them and pulled Giovanni to him.
Bao seeing his master arrive made the blue fire vanish as if it had never existed, only the grass around them was singed. Dante holding Rutger didn't know what to do in this situation.
"What do you think you're doing?" Bishop Darcy questioned as soon as he saw Giovanni's condition and made sure he wasn't hurt.
He had arrived just as Rutger had kissed Giovanni and everyone looked shocked seeing it as if the priest had gone mad.
For Emery, this wasn't much different from the villain looking for a new kind of death, but he felt deeply angry seeing this scene, he simply wanted to burn that villain to dust and vanish from the protagonist's life forever.
Then a blue fire that he knew was Bao's started and tried to burn Rutger to death.
Emery soon came to his senses and went to Giovanni, he couldn't let those people get hurt which could make Giovanni once again condemned for having relations with demons and him being flogged to death.
"I was just comforting Brother Giovanni. In my country, we kiss as a way of comfort." Rutger said shaking his clothes a little, which was burned, he would have to go back to his room to change.
How did the fire start? Who was the culprit?
Rutger didn't worry about it, as it could be a protective item put on by the damn Bishop Darcy so they wouldn't touch his possessions.
He smiled very arrogantly like he was saying, I've touched what was his and I'm taking him because he's mine.
Yes, Rutger had lost all reason.
Little Bao was hiding under the garden bench, he didn't want to be distrusted, although no one would think a fluffy puppy could have such demonic blue fire.
Everyone was shocked by Rutger's response, even Yani was disconcerted by everything, he wanted to take Giovanni's body to beat the priest, but they would think Giovanni was possessed and would repeat the same situation in the past of being whipped to death from blood loss.
Though he could just blow up that abbey... Yani honestly thought he should just blow it up and end it all.
It was a brief moment, he didn't care about the innocent people there, but probably Giovanni would care enough to be traumatized which would delay his growth.
Giovanni still wasn't calloused enough for that.
Fortunately, Bao was helpful at the time. So Yani even wanted to kiss the puppy's furry head to say thanks.
Bao: *shy*
Emery: You didn't do more than the obligation!
Bao: *sad eyes*
Emery: Oh dear, come here *says offering food*
Bao: Wolf! Wolf! *happy*
Everyone: *rolling eyes at such literal dog food*
Emery was stunned by Rutger's response for just a moment, the next he threw his hand in a punch that knocked the priest to the ground. He wanted to hit more and take advantage of the fact that the other fell to the ground, but Giovanni holds his clothes looking at him with big round, teary eyes.
Which made Emery give up hitting that despicable man and he hugged the young man, hiding his face in the hug. He looked coldly at the stunned Father Rutger who still couldn't believe Bishop Darcy had hit him in the face like a thug in the street.
Emery took advantage and even kicked Father Rutger, just once, because he rolled to his side holding his stomach, kneeling down to throw up his breakfast.
Too bad he wanted to kick some more!
Despite not being adept at a violent solution, the deranged attitude of that villain made him act that way... He couldn't deny that it was a little satisfying.
However, seeing Rutger throw up he only felt that he was now a little disgusting, which lessened his satisfaction a little.
Dante was also surprised by the attitude of the two clergymen, they looked like pub men he harassed and fought as if they were poisoned by the cheap drink.
"I'm taking Brother Rutger now, he needs to see he didn't get burned. Bishop Darcy should see the same thing with his disciple," Dante said seeing the tension flare-up between Father Rutger and Bishop Darcy.
He helped Rutger to his feet and the priest was breathing heavily with pain, even though he hadn't broken anything, he felt the pain of humiliation and wounded pride being greater than the purple bruise forming on his skin.
Emery wanted to say something else and call Rutger a scoundrel, was it too late to make Bao burn this damned man alive?
However, Giovanni was still holding Emery's clothes tightly, not letting him move properly, only then did he look at the pale young man clinging to him and let the anger go away in that moment.
He had to take care of Giovanni first.
Seeing Bishop Darcy's silence, Dante took advantage and took the force of Father Rutger who looked very abnormal as if he was out of his mind for far. Pour some cold water on the man to see if he realized how abnormal he was acting.
Rutger glared at the scene of the two men embracing, from his perspective, that hateful image was mocking him. He wanted to see Bishop Darcy feeling offended to see him touching what was his.
In Rutger's already twisted mind he thought that Bishop Darcy saw Giovanni as a toy, so if anyone soiled that toy the Bishop would abandon the novice, which would be an opportunity for Rutger himself to regain control of the injured Giovanni.
Of course, with his thoughts already disturbed he forgot that Giovanni would most likely run away from there so that wouldn't happen, because of what he'd already done.
Rutger couldn't help but think he should take another chance, just kissing maybe wasn't enough, should he show that Giovanni was totally his or that he was already his before the bishop intruded?
Fortunately, Dante took Rutger away at that point.
"Bishop Darcy, is Brother Giovanni all right?" Mattias asked when he saw Giovanni's bad state.
The young man had been smiling with him for a short time now he has just been harassed and nearly burned with a mysterious fire.
Seeing the brave novice confront him to inquire about Giovanni's condition, which was not easy given the bad reputation of the original Bishop Darcy, he felt that this boy was a good person.
"He's a little nervous, I'll take care of him now," Emery said trying to sound not too cold but he looked very serious and Mattias just shook his head in agreement.
"So I'll come back... hum... If Giovanni wants to look for me later I always work in this garden in the afternoon."
Mattias said a little shy, he was intimidated by Bishop Darcy's presence, but he still wanted to meet Giovanni again, he didn't have many friends at the abbey.
Lots of colleagues, lots of exchanges and connections, but few real friends.
"I'll tell him," Emery stated. It would be good for Giovanni to make a friend his age, at least he would be less isolated despite his personality being the type who likes to be more alone than with other people.
But having a friend who could help him through some bad times wouldn't be something unwanted.
Mattias said goodbye and went to his next job, but his thoughts turned to Bryan what if someone found him now?
Was there someone like Father Rutger and trying to take advantage of the young dark elf?
Mattias couldn't help but check on the dark elf, just to make sure the young man was all right.
"Giovanni... Giovanni... Can you walk?" Emery called out a few times, but sensing the young man's trembling body, he kissed his hair and his forehead, every part of his face making the young man's face red as if it were on fire.
Giovanni came back to himself feeling his warm lips touching his cold, slightly damp skin, Bishop Darcy's embrace was warm and he didn't want to leave. Feeling safe and secure.
"It's okay, he's already gone. No need to be scared now." Emery said patting Giovanni's back to give him some security.
Emery didn't tell him to stop being scared, as that was impossible, but now he was there to protect the young man, so everything would be okay.
They held each other for a while, Giovanni calmed down a bit and after all the fear was over he felt very tired and sleepy.
At that moment there was a commotion from the stairs, it seems Fathers Mario and Aldo have just analyzed the bodies, their students are now on stretchers taking the covered victims to the morgue for further investigation and to prepare the bodies for burial.
Emery really wanted to ask the doctors for their opinions on how the victims had died, but with Giovanni once again becoming tense as he heard the priests' voices descend, he took a different stance and used the invisibility spell on them.