It had been like that for a while.


    ***


    After more than an hour of detailed examinations, Mansfield was brought back to his room. His condition was better than expected, thanks to his formidable physical constitution, but he still needed plenty of rest to recover.


    Principal Maxwell advised him to get some sleep, but he was wide awake. He pointed to a chair. "Mr. Maxwell, please sit."


    Looking at him, Principal Maxwell knew he wanted to know what had happened while he was unconscious.


    He had watched Mansfield grow up and felt a deep affection for him.


    "Mr. Maxwell, can you tell me what happened after I lost consciousness?" Mansfield asked.


    Principal Maxwell nodded, his tone calm and serious. "Yes, there are some things I think you should know."


    Mansfield leaned against the headboard, his face pale but his eyes clear andposed. "Go ahead, Mr. Maxwell."


    "A lot has happened in the three months you were out," Principal Maxwell began. "First, your father. He was under immense pressure, but he never gave up on you. He used every resource at his disposal to find a cure for you."


    Mansfield''s eyes grew slightly red. He had never doubted his father''s love.


    "Second, there''s Eleanor." Principal Maxwell''s tone was filled with admiration and concern. "That girl practically worked herself to death to save you. She poured all her energy into the brainputer interface project, oveing countless technical hurdles Just three days ago, she and her team pulled three days of nonstop work with almost no sleep to get everything ready while you were crashing."


    Mansfield listened in silence, his chest knotting so hard it actually hurt.


    He could almost picture Eleanor in theb, forgetting to eat or sleep. The debt he owed her was too heavy.


    Principal Maxwell watched him, gauging his ability to handle the information, and continued, "There''s one more person you should know aboutn, Eleanor''s ex- husband."


    Mansfield looked up, listening intently.


    "From the very beginning, this project faced enormous controversy and financial pressure. It wasn who, against all opposition, invested a massive amount of money to get it started and keep it running. At the same time, he supplied the hospital with thetest monitoring equipment to record detailed data on your brain activity."


    Principal Maxwell paused and took a deep breath. "Most critically, we urgently needed the ''Helios'' chip. It''s a new, cutting-edge product from a foreign techpany. It''s incredibly expensive, and the procurement


    process is extryplex Through normal channels, it would have taken at least a year. Butn used his private jet and his business connections to have the chip flown in within three days. Without that chip, the oue-"


    Even though Principal Maxwell didn''t finish, Mansfield knew. Without that chip imnted in his brain, he never would have woken up.


    He was alive because of thebined efforts ofn, Eleanor, and their team.


    Principal Maxwell looked at Mansfield, his tone grave. "Mansfield, your recovery is thanks to Eleanor''s brilliance, perseverance, and sacrifice. It''s also thanks to the path paved byn''s resources, wealth, and connections. The two of them were both indispensable."


    Mansfield listened in silence, every word from Principal Maxwell branding itself onto his heart.