A week had passed at the academy, and by now the students had grown accustomed to the new lifestyle, with classes running smoothly.
"I never thought I'd be able to move it again," Axel murmured, surprised as he rotated his shoulder.
In the past few days, Axel hadn't been able to attend classes, having undergone surgery to fix his shoulder and complete the remaining tests. The only downside was that he had been forced to stay in the academy's hospital, an experience he had found incredibly boring.
"You really are an extraordinary case, kid. Even though both my healing skill and essences were used, your recovery speed is amazing for a half-skeleton like you, no offense."
The man speaking, releasing a faint cloud of smoke, was Dr. Dexter Thorn, the academy's chief physician and the holder of a grade C spirit weapon. He had been in charge of Axel's treatment.
"But aren't you spending too much time staring at that bracelet?" the doctor asked curiously, noticing how quickly Axel had focused on it.
"Samantha gave me some topics to study and said that within a week, I had to reach at least a basic level of knowledge."
Dexter checked the subjects and raised an eyebrow, surprised by the amount of material.
"These topics are usually covered in a full school year. And what if you don't manage to learn them?"
"I asked her the same question... and she just smiled." The mere memory of Samantha's smile sent a shiver down Axel's spine.
"From the bottom of my heart, I feel sorry that you have to deal with that lunatic." The doctor looked at Axel with all the pity he could muster.
"Who are you calling a lunatic?"
"Damn it!"
Dexter jumped up in fear and crushed his cigarette on the floor.
"You were smoking near my toy, Dexter? Some habits die hard." Samantha spoke with a mischievous smile, but to Dexter, it looked more like a death threat.
"And you should stop giving the students mental trauma," the doctor sighed, visibly frustrated.
The two had known each other for a long time, having explored the Inverted World together, and from what Axel could tell, there might have been something between them.
"How boring. Look, Axel—lunch and dinner."
Samantha handed him two large bottles filled with a slimy, dark purplish mixture. At the sight of the food, Dexter was hit by traumatic memories. Once, out of curiosity, he had tried it and ended up spending a night in the hospital. According to Samantha, they were high-calorie, easily digestible meals packed with all the necessary nutrients. To Dexter, they were poison disguised as food.
Axel, however, had no trouble drinking it all, even licking his lips, a scene that Dexter still found unbelievable.
"Just out of curiosity, what did you eat in the confinement zone?" Dexter had to ask.
"Anything that could fit in my mouth," Axel replied calmly.
Only then did Dexter understand. Axel's standards were simply too low.
"Now let's see if you've studied well, I hope you have."
Even though Samantha was a little crazy, she wasn't stupid. Given Axel's current condition, training him was out of the question. So during this time, while trying to help him steadily gain weight, she wanted to boost his knowledge as much as possible.
'Not that I expect much.'
Even though she had threatened him to learn everything, she hadn't really expected Axel to succeed, but to her surprise, he managed to give at least a decent answer to every question.
"You really learned all of this?" she asked, surprised.
"It was interesting, and I had nothing else to do," Axel replied naturally.
For someone like Axel, who had never had the chance to learn, never having gone to school, there was a strong curiosity about everything he had missed, which made learning easier. But this didn't apply to the people he met. Except for Samantha, who had entered his life in such a drastic way, and Aria, he struggled to remember anyone else.
Several times he had even forgotten who Dexter was, and if it hadn't been for all the time spent together during his healing, he probably still wouldn't know.
"This makes me happy. Now, how is his condition?" she asked more seriously, turning to Dexter.
"The shoulder is healed, and even though the scars on his body are still visible, they've healed properly, even the one on his chest," the doctor said, oddly.
Axel only said that he had been injured by a monster that had managed to enter the containment zone, but the wound seemed far more serious than he made it out to be. In the end, though, it didn't seem to cause any issues, so they simply accepted it.
"As for his pain perception, it's almost nonexistent. He understands that he's being hurt and knows it should hurt, but he doesn't feel the pain. I checked him carefully and there doesn't seem to be any nerve damage, so I assume it's more of a psychological issue," Dexter concluded.
Knock knock
"Can I come in?"
Someone knocked and entered politely.
"Oh, you're early," said Dexter.
"Classes ended a bit sooner today," replied the boy.
Axel watched the two talking, wondering who the boy was.
The two exchanged a glance, realizing what Axel was thinking. The boy was Nathan Blackwood, Axel's deskmate. When he found out that Axel was hospitalized, he came to visit and bring him notes from class. From those interactions, both Nathan and Dexter understood Axel's problem with recognizing faces.
"Of course, you know who he is, right?" the doctor asked with a teasing smile.
"...Of course... Rex?"
"Oh, come on! Rex is a dog's name. At least try something more reasonable," said the boy, disheartened.
"Hah!" Samantha laughed.
"Seriously, Axel, you should start making a bit more effort to remember people," Dexter said, rubbing his eyes.
Later, the two left Axel and Nathan alone. After a moment of silence, Axel wanted to ask something.
"Why do you keep doing this?"
"Hm? Doing what?" Nathan asked, confused.
"Bringing me notes."
Understanding what he meant, Nathan searched for the best way to express himself.
"I think it's unfair."
"What is?"
"The way you're isolated and mocked for something that isn't your fault. They call you history boy to make fun of you, or disease carrier even though it's not true. I just think it's unfair," the boy said, clearly upset.
"It's not a big deal," Axel replied calmly.
For someone like him, who had grown up in harsh conditions, he knew the true cruelty and lowliness people could reach. That's why insults and ridicule did not affect him.
"It is a big deal. Growing up under constant pressure is exhausting. I'm the oldest of four siblings, and my youngest sister is only six. Unfortunately, she suffers from a facial deformity that covers more than half of her face. But she's really sweet and kind. This bracelet," Nathan lifted the fabric bracelet on his wrist proudly, like a precious treasure, "she made it for me before I left."
Nathan continued, the anger and sadness clear in his voice.
"Sadly, others don't see her kindness, only her deformity. She's grown up being bullied and mocked, labeled a monster, and laughed at. My brothers and I always protected her, and my parents love her, but living a life where people stare at you like an animal has given her a fear of people. She can't even leave the house anymore," he said, clenching his fist in frustration.
"Couldn't you just heal her?"
Axel's bluntness made Nathan smile faintly, but he shook his head.
"It's too expensive. My brothers are still too young, and supporting all of us is a heavy burden for my parents. But now I'm a Sinner, and you should know that once you return from the first expedition, you can join the army at a high rank and get good pay. Isn't that great?"
"That's if you return."
"..."
The atmosphere quickly became gloomy. Ignoring the shift he had caused, Axel asked another question.
"So you're doing all this because I remind you of your sister?"
"Haaa… At first, I thought so, but after getting to know you better, you're completely different. You don't care about others."
"Then why do you do it?"
"Is it really that hard for you to accept that a classmate is visiting because you had surgery? I think everyone has the right to be asked if they're okay," the boy replied, exasperated.
Axel remained silent, surprised by Nathan's sincerity and the humanity he saw in him.
He had grown so used to human indifference that he had forgotten someone could care about his well-being. It was a strange feeling, but not an unpleasant one.
"Thanks," Axel said sincerely.
Nathan scratched his head, embarrassed, but a moment later almost wanted to punch him.
"What was your name again?"
"I swear, this is the last time. My name is N-a-t-h-a-n B-l-a-c-k-w-o-o-d. Got it?"
"Okay, Nathan. I won't forget."
"Why not?" he asked, suspicious.
"Because now you seem interesting," said Axel with a smile, catching Nathan off guard.