Elysium: Desired by the Cold-hearted Princess [GL]-Chapter 344: Awake...but at what cost?

Third-Person POV

Seraphina's gaze followed Darius as he paced across the hospital room for what felt like the hundredth time. His boots made soft sounds against the tiled floor, but the constant movement was starting to make her dizzy. The morning light had barely started to peek through the window blinds, but he'd been restless since the moment she opened her eyes.

"Are you going to keep doing that?" she finally asked, her tone half amused, half tired. "You're making me dizzy just watching you."

Darius froze mid-step and turned to her, running a hand through his dark hair, his face still pale with disbelief. "You're alive," he said slowly, as if saying it out loud would somehow make it easier to process. "You're sitting up, talking, and smiling. I just... I still can't believe what I'm seeing."

Seraphina tilted her head slightly, trying not to smile too much. "You sound like someone who's seen a ghost."

"That's because it feels like I have," he shot back. His tone wasn't harsh, just genuinely shaken. He looked at her for a moment longer before muttering, "In twenty-two years of my life, I've never seen anything like this. Not one single thing."

She chuckled quietly and leaned back against the pillows, still feeling a little lightheaded but nowhere near as weak as she should've been. "You're acting like I rose from the dead."

"You basically did," Darius said. "You were stabbed in the abdomen, Seraphina. The wound was deep, and there was so much blood loss that the doctors told me to start preparing for the worst."

She frowned softly, glancing down at herself. Her hands rested against her stomach, and even through the thin hospital fabric, she could tell there was nothing there, not even a scar. Her skin was smooth and unbroken, and the pain that had been consuming her last memory before the darkness was completely gone.

"How long," she asked quietly, "was I out?"

Darius sighed, walking toward the foot of her bed. "Weeks," he said. "You've been in a coma for weeks. The doctors didn't even think you'd last through another day, and then…" He hesitated. "Then Princess Electra came."

At the sound of that name, Seraphina's heart skipped.

Darius continued, still pacing slowly as if reliving it in his head. "She arrived, stayed in your room for maybe half an hour, and when the doctors came in after, they said your vitals were stable. They couldn't find a single trace of your wound. They said it was like you'd never been hurt."

His eyes met hers, and he shook his head. "I've never seen anything like it. No medicine, no spell, nothing could've done that. It's like…" He trailed off, clearly out of explanations.

Seraphina forced herself to look away, her throat tightening. Of course Electra healed her. She didn't even need to think twice about it.

The memory of that strange dream—no, not a dream, more like a vision—came flooding back.

She remembered the darkness she'd been trapped in, the cold emptiness that had felt endless, like floating in a void. Then, a sudden light, warm, and so bright that it almost hurt to look at. She'd seen Electra there, but not the Electra she knew. Her hair had been longer, glowing faintly like burning embers, and her presence had felt different, like something otherworldly and alive.

E.

That had to be her phoenix side. She hadn't just imagined it. That energy, that warmth that had wrapped around her in the dream, had been real.

Electra, or E, had healed her.

Seraphina exhaled slowly, trying to steady her thoughts. If E had been strong enough to do that, then she would have probably saved herself too, but where was she now? Was she safe? The idea of her still being in danger made Seraphina's chest tighten uncomfortably.

"Seraphina?" Darius's voice broke through her thoughts. "You okay?"

She blinked and forced a small smile. "Yeah, just… trying to process all of it." 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

He nodded, clearly still deep in his own thoughts. "The doctors are calling it a miracle. I'm calling it something else."

"And what would that be?" she asked softly.

"Magic," he said without hesitation. "Powerful magic. I don't know what Electra did, but whatever it was… it wasn't normal."

She gave a quiet laugh. "Since when is anything just normal in this world?"

Darius cracked a small smile at that, but it faded just as quickly. "You have no idea how close we were to losing you, Sera," he said quietly. "If she hadn't shown up—"

"I'm fine now," she interrupted gently. "That's what matters."

But he didn't look convinced. His eyes studied her face carefully, like he was trying to find some sign that this wasn't real. Maybe part of him still thought he'd wake up and find her lifeless again.

She wanted to tell him that she understood, that she was just as shocked as he was, but she couldn't exactly start talking about how her soul was magically linked to Electra's. He wouldn't believe her. No one in their right mind would.

So instead, she decided to play along.

"I don't really remember much," she said, feigning confusion. "Everything's just… blurry. I remember being attacked, then pain, and then nothing until I woke up and saw you standing there."

Darius frowned slightly. "You don't remember the princess being here?"

Seraphina shook her head. "No. Should I?"

He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "No, I guess not. You were unconscious. I just thought maybe you'd… feel something."

She shrugged, feigning nonchalance even though her heart was still racing from the memory. "Sorry to disappoint."

Darius didn't say a word for another few minutes, and Seraphina couldn't blame him. If she were in his position, watching someone who was supposed to be dead sit up like nothing happened, she'd probably be pacing too, but the silence was beginning to gnaw at her.

After a moment, she cleared her throat softly. "Darius," she said, her voice steady but low, "do you know where Electra is?"

He blinked, finally turning his attention to her. His lips parted slightly as if he wanted to respond but then closed again.

Seraphina frowned. "You… do know something."

"I—" Darius started, then stopped again, looking unsure of what to say. His expression shifted into something complicated, like guilt, hesitation, and confusion.

Seraphina's chest tightened. Why would Electra leave after helping her? Why wouldn't she wait, even for a moment, to see her wake up?

She wanted to ask again, but before she could, a commotion outside the door interrupted them.

There were raised voices, not angry, but desperate.

"Please! You have to let us in!" one of the voices shouted, muffled but clear.

"This is a restricted area!" came the sharp response of one of the guards.

"She's awake! We need to see her; it's important!" another voice followed, high-pitched and panicked.

Darius frowned immediately, his attention snapping toward the noise. "What on earth—"

Seraphina's breath hitched slightly. The voices sounded familiar, faint, but familiar enough that she instantly started trying to place them. She tilted her head, listening harder.

"Miss, stand back!" one of the guards barked.

"I'm not leaving until I see her!"

That voice.

Seraphina's heart skipped. She knew that voice.

Her eyes widened slightly. "Wait," she murmured, lifting a hand. "I know that voice."

Darius glanced back at her. "What?"

"One of them… one of them sounds like Irina," she said, her voice picking up. "She's one of Electra's best friends."

Darius looked even more confused. "Electra's friends? How would they even know you're here?"

Before she could answer, there was another loud thud against the door, followed by a sharp, frustrated yell. "Please! You don't understand; it's important!"

Darius exhaled through his nose, clearly irritated now. "Alright, enough," he muttered as he strode toward the door.

Seraphina turned slightly, trying to see past him, her heart now pounding for reasons she didn't fully understand.

The door opened, and immediately the sound of chaos poured in. Three girls were standing in the hallway, their faces flushed, eyes wild with panic. The guards looked tense, one holding a hand up to block them from moving closer.

"What's going on here?" Darius demanded.

"Your Highness," one of the guards started, bowing slightly, "they refuse to leave. They're claiming they know the patient."

"Because we do!" one of the girls yelled from behind the guard. "She's awake, isn't she? Please, we have to talk to her!"

Seraphina leaned forward instinctively, her eyes widening as she caught sight of the faces in the hallway. Irina, Penelope, and Roxana.

Her breath caught.

"Let them in," she said quickly, her voice carrying enough weight to make Darius pause.

He turned toward her. "Are you sure? They look—"

"Yes," she interrupted firmly. "Let them in."

Darius hesitated for a moment longer before sighing and nodding to the guards. "It's fine. Step aside."

The guards moved back, and the three girls immediately rushed into the room.

Irina reached Seraphina first, and Seraphina barely recognized her. Her normally neat hair was messy, her eyes swollen and red, and her whole body trembled like she'd been running nonstop. Penelope and Roxana followed close behind, both of them looking just as distressed.

"Seraphina," Irina breathed, her eyes wide as she looked her up and down. "You're awake. Oh my god, you're actually awake."

Seraphina blinked, startled by how shaken they looked. "Of course I'm awake," she said, confusion lacing her tone. "Why do you all look like you've just seen a ghost?"

Irina opened her mouth, but the words came out broken at first. "It's Electra."

The moment the name left her lips, the air in the room shifted.

Seraphina's pulse stuttered. "What about her?"

Irina swallowed, trying to calm herself enough to speak, but her voice still trembled. "She's… she's about to be executed."

The world seemed to stop.

Seraphina's eyes went wide. "What?" she whispered, as if she'd misheard.

Penelope spoke up next, her tone weak but clearer. "It's true. The queen, Jella, ordered it. The public execution is happening in less than an hour."

Darius's jaw dropped. "That's ridiculous," he said sharply. "KIng Vale would never allow that."

Irina shook her head quickly, tears filling her eyes. "King Vale isn't king anymore. They took his crown, and he has been imprisoned."

Darius froze, and Seraphina could barely process it. The words only felt like blows, each one harder than the last.

"No…" she whispered.