48 Chapter 45 - Everything has a price

*crack crack*

The sound of shattering glass echoed throughout John's bedroom as the scene shifted once more. He found himself once sitting in the lavishly decorated imperial meeting hall. The room was filled again with several nobles gathered around, waiting for today's court session to begin.

Soon, a faceless noble stepped out of the crowd and said, "Your Majesty, we have a petition for today's court session."

"Silence!" John shouted, slamming his hand on the armrest of his imperial throne. The room fell quiet, and John took a deep breath. "Before we start the session today, I have an announcement to make."

One of the faceless nobles from within the crowd spoke up, "What would that be, Your Majesty?"

John surveyed the gilded hall, made in gothic fashion with intricate details. He could feel his fury boiling inside him. "I, John von Eldrin, first of my name, as of this instance, am abdicating my throne." The words hung in the air, and for a moment, no one spoke.

*crack crack*

Suddenly, the scene shattered before his eyes, and he found himself back in his bedroom. Isadora was there, helping him pack their bags. "John, what have you done?" she asked, pulling out a few clothes from their dresser.

"Something I should have thought of a long time ago," John replied as he turned to look at her. Before he could get a proper look, the scene shattered once more, and John found himself back in the empty black room with the other John.

*crack crack*

"Kekekeke, is this your way of saying things won't go how I predicted they would?" the other John said, letting out a maniacal laughter.

"No, it's not. The sights you just showed have, in a way, enlightened me of the path I have to take. I have till now been far too straightforward and naive in my approach…and for that, I thank you," John said, his face breaking into a wide grin.

"This isn't the end, you know. I will be back, and when I come again…the price you will have to pay will be far greater than you can bear," the other John said in a serious tone after seeing the grin on John's face.

"We shall think of that when the time comes. Now let's end this charade," John gave his final goodbye to the other John. His expression soured, and the scene shattered before him one last time.

*crack crack*

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As John was having his conversation with the other version of himself, his body began to show signs of waking up. The movements were small, but the nurse in the room noticed his eyelids flickering and his fingers twitching.

"The prince is showing signs of waking up! Quickly, call the doctor," the nurse said, her voice urgent. She hurried to John's side, noting his vital signs and preparing for his awakening.

With a soft groan, John's body started to stir from its long slumber. Just then, Oberon burst into the room, slamming the door open and running to John's side.

SLAM!

"Has he woken up?" the old man asked anxiously, sitting down next to the young prince and turning to the nurse who was recording John's vital signs.

"Unfortunately not, sir, but his body is showing more movement now. He should wake up soon," the nurse replied, shaking her head lightly.

Oberon let out a long sigh and turned to look at John, who remained unconscious.

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Kostas looked up as John entered his conscience space. "I see you came through?" he said.

"What…happened to me?" John asked, visibly confused. "I remember fighting that beastman, and then things just went black… after which, well, I'd rather not talk about it."

"Everything has a price, John," Kostas replied cryptically. "Even things you never asked for will take their due for what they have given you."

John furrowed his brow in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked, but before Kostas could give him an explanation, Pallas intervened. and touched John's head with his right index finger and spoke. "You should wake up for now. We can talk later. Everyone outside is worried about you."

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John groaned as he slowly opened his eyes, feeling the bright light searing into his pupils through the open curtains. He tried to shield his eyes with his left hand, but to his surprise, his hand refused to move. Confused, he looked around the room and noticed that almost everyone he had met since he came to the north was gathered there.

"John," Oberon called out, relief and concern in his voice as he saw the prince opening his eyes. The doctor quickly announced that the prince had woken up and checked John's eyes and mouth for any complications.

"Praise be to the gods, he has awoken. Call the grand duke and send a letter to the imperial palace," Hans said, opening the gates to John's room.

Dante was already by John's side, looking apologetic. "I'm sorry, if only I had stopped you, none of this would have happened," he said.

John shook his head and managed a confused smile. "It's fine. I'm not dead, am I?"

Oberon spoke with a somber expression on his face. "Close to a month and a half."

"What?!" John exclaimed loudly, unable to believe that he had been unconscious for so long.

"Your highness, please don't exert yourself. Your body is still recovering from the long coma," the doctor said, holding John back from shouting any further.

Realizing he had been rude, John apologized and agreed to cooperate with the doctor's examination. Turning his head away from the doctor, John looked at Dante in the eye and spoke, "By the way, Dante, I'd like to talk to you in private. I have something I should discuss with you."

"Alright then, we will talk once His Majesty gets here. I, too, have things I need to discuss with you," Dante replied with a nod.

Noticing that John was done speaking to the duke, the doctor approached him, "Your Highness, can you feel my hand?"

John's brows furrowed as he looked at his left hand, which was almost fully gripped onto by the doctor, yet he couldn't feel anything. "What are you talking about…huh? Huuuuh?" He tried to wiggle his fingers, but there was no sensation. "WHAT THE FUCK, WHY CAN'T I FEEL MY LEFT HAND?" John shouted, his frustration and fear palpable.

The doctor removed his hand, revealing the black spiral markings that stretched from John's arm all the way up to his neck. "We aren't sure yet, Your Majesty, but I had suspected this, and it seems that my thoughts were true. I don't think you will be able to move your arm for the foreseeable future," the doctor said, his voice low and somber as he stared at the ground, ashamed to not have found an answer after a month and a half of constant analysis.

"Out," John said under a huffed breath.

"John, we're sorry," Dante said as he sat beside him and held his hand.

"Get out," John said once more, his voice colder and more forceful this time.

The doctor attempted to speak once more, but John cut him off with another shout. "I FUCKING SAID GET OUT!" he shouted, his voice hoarse from exhaustion and frustration.

After his outburst, it took no more than ten seconds for everyone to exit the room, leaving the boy alone to his thoughts. John closed his eyes and lay back on his bed, slowly drifting back into his conscious space and looking at Pallas and Kostas before he spoke, "Explain."

"Everything has a consequence, John…even the things we never asked for," Kostas said with a bitter expression on his face.

"Well, this is still a theory, and we aren't sure how much of it is true, but we believe it's the price of the universe letting Chaos Energy and the other John break the limits of your body for some time," Pallas said, ignoring Kostas's words completely.

"Sorry, what now?" John exclaimed, having no idea what the dragon was talking about.

"Oye, lizard, the kid doesn't know what happened in the real world while he was trapped in the chaos," Kostas said as he facepalmed.

"Right, we should start by explaining to you how things went after you fainted," Pallas said as he began to retell the events of what had happened during the battle.