With a gasp, Axel woke up.
Looking around he seemed to be on some sort of hospital bed. He then looked up at the walls and noticed they were the same color of the walls in the castle.
Axel then put his hand on his face, his mask was still on, though he could feel that there was something wrapped around his head.
"Oh, your awake" a scout near him said, "Well, I suppose this is about the time you would wake up," he murmured.
"How long was I asleep?" Axel asked the scout.
"About an hour, but that's just when you got here, I couldn't tell you the full time," the scout responded.
His hand shot out, trying to grasp something to give him leverage to get up.
"Hold on, hold on," the scout exclaimed, "You got a nasty concussion, the healing glyph will help you, but sudden movements won't be helping," they explained.
As Axel tried to grasp something, his hands grasped a bag. He sat back down and looked at what he grabbed.
"Your partner vouched for your work for your original job, and chasing the wild witch," the scout said pointing to the bag.
'That was nice of them'
"Guessing you heard that when turning in your job?" Axel asked.
"Me? No, Paste told me when came down to give me dinner," the scout said pointing to an empty plate.
"Tomato Paste?" Axel asked.
"Yep, she's a nice person," the scout commented, "Johnny by the way," they introduced.
"Johnny huh," Axel said getting up, slower than he did previously.
"Now, I would take at least three days before removing the healing glyph along with the paper, then another day before getting back to work," Johnny directed.
"Understood," Axel said grabbing his money and beginning to leave.
"Hold on a moment, I have to ask you a few questions," Jonney said taking out a clipboard and a pencil.
"Sure, ask away," Axel replied, sitting back down.
"So, I assume you have no prior injuries like this recently, right?" Jonney asked.
"Yeah," Axel replied, trying to feel what part of his head isn't bandaged.
"Ok, ok," Johnny said writing the information down, "Any pain currently?" they then asked i n a steady voice.
"Not at all," Axel replied.
"Good, good," they said taking more notes, "Now, are you human or witch?" they asked in the same steady voice.
"Well, a witch obviously," Axel replied.
"Ok, ok," they said noting the answer down, "Then I am going to have to ask you why your ears are round, and the location of your coven sigil," they then said.
"That's, because," Axel said, trying to come up with an answer.
"Look, my job is to help I don't care if your human or witch, just tell me the truth, so I can help you if you need it," Johnny said.
"Yes," Axel hesitantly replied, "I'm human," he told Johnny.
"Ok, then everything checks out," Johnny said finishing up his report, "You're good to go," they told Axel.
Johnny took the notes that he was taking, got up, and opened a filing cabinet that was already slightly open.
It was overfilled yet neat, one could imagine that they could pull any record they desired if they just knew how the papers were organized.
Johnnny carefully took Axel's notes and stored them into the cabinet, trying put it in so that the cabinet door could be closed, it didn't work.
"You're all good, tell Ms. Lilith what I told you," Johnny said shooing Axel away.
"You don't care that I'm human?" Axel asked confused.
"Look, my job is to help heal workers of the Emperor's Coven, and that paycheck says all I need," Johnny said, "Now have a good day," they said.
"Okay," Axel responded slowly while slowly getting up, "See you later," he said starting to go.
"No you won't," Jonny replied, "Unless your injured, which don't do that," they told Axel.
"You stay down here full time?" Axel guessed.
"That's right!" Johnny answered, "Why be up there, when it's so safe down here?" Johnny rhetorically asked.
"Safe from what?" Axel asked.
"He doesn't come down here," Johnny explained, "I don't know why but I'm not complaining, if he were to come down here, well I don't know what I'll do," he continued.
"He?" Axel remarked.
"The one who cry's the titan's tears, the one who shows the titan's rage, you know who he is, now leave before you say who he is, unless you want to summon him to my safe space," Jonny ranted while pushing Axel to leave.
'The titan? Who, What?'
"I understand, have a good day," Axel responded, leaving.
"Thank you, have a nice day," Johnny thanked.
-------------------------------------------------------
The small doctor's office that Axel rested in was underneath the castle, he had to take an odd elevator to get up to the main floor.
The doors had teeth, and it opened from top to bottom, the buttons were fleshy, and elevator hummed a tune as it went up.
'Man I miss home'
After getting off, Axel quickly went to find the cafeteria. He hoped that there was still at least some food still available.
And to his happiness, there was.
Very little people where there at the time, most of them were cleaning up. Some mopping and some washing dishes.
Grabbing a plate, with the same food that was always on it, he sat down and began to eat. It sill tasted bad, but he shoveled it into his mouth anyways.
He was tired, and he needed a distraction from the itching of the bandages hat surrounded his head.
"So I see you visited Johnny didn't you?" a scout said taking a seat in front of Axel.
"Paste?" Axel asked, recognizing the voice.
"You caught me," Paste replied, "Now, what got you all banged up?" she asked.
"Wild witch," Axel replied simply, still putting food in his mouth.
"Ah! Those darn wild witches," Paste responded, "How could they live in a world that doesn't want them!" she ranted, slamming her fist on the table.
"How could they," Axel replied in a monotone voice.
"What were they doing if I may ask," Paste inquired.
"They were shopping, then we chased her, then she beat me, then I got fixed up by," Axel then took a pause, "Wait, aren't we not really allowed to tell other scouts our names?" he asked.
"So you noticed," Paste replied with a smile under her mask, "It's pretty simple, they can't fire Johnny, because they he's the only scout who can heal everyone effectively," she explained.
"Don't they have anyone else who can heal?" Axel asked curious, putting down his fork.
"Yes, but none have the experience, or the connections with the scouts, as Johnny, and if they have some real powerful healing magic, their part of the Healer's Coven," Paste answered.
"It still feels odd to call him by his actual name," Axel commented.
"Oh, that's not his actual name," Paste replies, "That's just what he likes to be called by, so we call him that, at least that's what everyone tells the higher ups," Paste tells Axel.
"I get it," Axel said picking bake up his fork.
"You're getting in the groove fast," Paste said with a laugh.
"Thanks," Axel said taking another bite of his food.
He sat, thinking. Of the witch, of the fight, and the words that Johnny had said, and the ones Paste said.
'Paste said that they couldn't fire Johnny, but scouts are giving Sigils of the Emperor's Coven, how do they remove those?'
He thought for a moment, and Axel almost asked Paste about it.
'They probably have a machine to remove it'
With a reasonable answer, in his eyes at least, he went back to eating.