Calculation of the Plausible Expectation

The teleportation had taken Kairo, Genie, and Eldor-sekkat to another drop point.

Kairo felt the soft texture of a mat, a hearth's roaring fire warmed his cheeks, and he smelled the oily metal of an orrery nearby.

He shook his head to clear the ringing from his ears and quickly checked on the conditions of the others. They were still in a comatose state, but their vitals appeared stable judging by their regular breathing movements. He glanced around and felt hopeful when he appeared to be in his villa.

"I have to get you guys to the infirmary." He shook their shoulders, but neither stirred.

"As expected, the woman used the Soul Bells contract." Lyon impassively noted as he stepped into Kairo's view and knelt before Genie to check his condition.

His eyes glowed as he placed a finger on Genie's forehead and then on the malkin's. The glow eased, returning his eyes to normal.

"The malkin will return to normal after a night's rest, but Genie..." He glanced at his brother's body and then at Kairo.

Kairo felt tired and emotionally shaken. It didn't help that he was somehow disconnected from his spiritual sea, so unable to check on Genie's soul condition. He prayed the man was still there and recovering.

Lyon placed a finger on the Holy Ama Cross and nodded when he felt traces of Genie's aura still lingering. He scooped Genie into his arms and ordered Kairo to follow him with the malkin.

Kairo soon saw he had actually entered Lyon's private chambers. He eventually followed the demon prince soberly down a white and bland corridor, where they stopped before a section of wall. An opening was formed with Lyon's magic.

"Place the malkin on the far bed." Lyon ordered Kairo when they entered.

Kairo laid the beast down on a slab of blue meteorite, which emitted a low hum and a soothing warmth. His heart raced with relief when healing magic began seeping into the small body.

He tentatively made his way to Genie's bedside, who was showing positive signs of recovery.

Lyon's eyes glowed as he swiftly cast a spell on Kairo's grimoire to extract Genie's soul blood. It flew into Genie's forehead.

Kairo was glad to see the rapid movements beneath Genie's eyelids.

"It will take some time for his recovery." Lyon reassured him and added, "Follow me."

The seed oil aroma teased Kairo's senses as he followed the prince. The memory of their first meeting surfaced in his mind. He hoped this time he would avoid a cell visit.

They entered a modest-sized library, where plush red sofas and ottomans were laid at the room's center.

Lyon gestured for Kairo to sit on a sofa.

Kairo sat upright and on edge, feeling a hearth's roaring fire at his back. He lowered his eyes to the fluffy white rug at his feet when Lyon eased onto the opposite sofa.

"Look at me." Lyon coolly ordered Kairo, who carefully obeyed.

Lyon was relaxed as he stared at his wizard. Kairo, again, was proving to be of immense value to him. Not only did he help Genie succeed in his task, but he also saved his soul.

"Speak your mind freely; you've earned that right."

Kairo sighed, not sure where to begin and how much he should share. He figured, with Genie in a critical stage of recovery, holding back the truth would be a dishonor to him. So after releasing a heavy breath, he recounted the full events of the archives, then bravely asked about Genie's condition.

Lyon's eyes narrowed as he observed the boy's aura throughout the telling. It had remained a consistent and vibrant shade of blue.

"Genie's childhood was complicated, which I won't go into. But because of this complication, he was reforged to be a specter using a fiend that was steeped in cosmic magic."

"Fiend?" Kairo frowned when he recalled Genie's words in the Mage Library.

Lyon nodded and continued.

Genie lived outside his body as a specter since his 13th summer. It was during this time the Valide Sultan had planted a Soul Bell curse on him, to be Leela's puppet.

"Fortunately, we could rebuild his body and return his soul. But the Soul Bell Contract was still in effect and needed a cosmic power only the Demon King possessed at the time to negate it."

"The Demon King tried to save Genie?"

Lyon's eyes narrowed to empower his aura with rage, but he eased his emotions when he saw Kairo looking petrified.

"No. He gave Valerr the curse spell. It was fortunate I saved Eldor-sekkat and his pilgrims. They suppressed the curse while I rebuilt Genie's physical form. I sealed the bells in an ancestral vault. Then you came along with the cosmic power to solve Genie's problem permanently."

Lyon's mood was retrospective when he added, "He spent many solar-turns as a specter and a puppet for the last two. Seven solar-turns it took to return my brother's smile."

Kairo rapidly pieced together a string of events that led to the final solution. One thought stood out when Lyon had mentioned his timebound magic back at the villa.

"Did you see the future?"

Lyon chuckled. "The future is nothing more than overlapping calculations of fates defined by purpose. Where purpose exists, the future will always have tangible expectations. As a mage who draws his magic from cosmic laws, you'll come to understand this."

He rose and gestured for Kairo to take his leave. "Get some rest."

"Will Genie be okay?"

"I think you should be more concerned about yourself. While Genie is recovering, your access to your grimoire will be blocked."

"Blocked, how?"

"His spiritual consciousness will be using your spiritual sea's energies for his soul's recovery. This is due to the magic link forged between you."

Kairo didn't understand this concept, but if his power was helping Genie recover, he'd gladly give as much as the man needed, and even more. It took Lyon seven years to bring Genie back; he'd make sure he honored those years with interest. Genie deserved it.

"Noted." He bowed and left Lyon's chambers to find his way back to his villa.

Lyon smiled. Kretos truly blessed Genie with Kairo's arrival.