What worried him was that if Aladdin continued like this, he might truly become intoxicated with power. Although it wasn't his responsibility, he had grown close to him in such a short time that he felt like family.
Aladdin sighed. How could he explain to Genie that, as a reincarnator with knowledge from another world, he already knew everything there was to know about Jasmine, from her likes to her dislikes? He could never expose such a secret.
Nonetheless, he found reason in Genie's words, because Jasmine truly knew little about him beyond fragments of his past and present.
"You're right. I should take it easy," Aladdin said. He realised that he could train and relax at the same time and still make progress.
Genie's shoulders fell as he breathed out in relief.
Suddenly, the door shot open.
Jasmine strode into the room with an angry and annoyed expression, with General Rakim following behind her with a tired and defeated look.
Carpet and green carpet flew into the room.
"We're leaving," Jasmine said, stopping in front of Aladdin.
"What happened?" Aladdin asked, sensing the tense atmosphere.
"Nothing. We're leaving," Jasmine responded, folding her arms.
"Oh, oh, seems like we have a situation on our hands," Genie transformed into a news reporter and appeared in front of Jasmine with a mic near her face.
"I'm not in the mood, Genie. I want to return to Agrabah immediately," Jasmine pushed away the mic and said with a glare.
Genie slowly backed away and gestured to the flying carpets to come near.
"Any idea what happened?" he asked quietly, his blue hand covering his mouth.
Carpet nodded. He moved closer to Genie as though he was saying something.
Soon, Genie's eyes widened in surprise. "Oh my, that's serious." He transformed back to his normal form and said, "Let's see how he handles it," Genie whispered.
They both refocused their attention on Aladdin and Jasmine.
Seeing that Jasmine was unwilling to answer his question, Aladdin turned to Rakim and asked, "Can someone explain to me what happened?"
"Your Highness, I simply explained to Princess Jasmine that since you're the last remaining imperial lineage, she needs to help you restore the bloodline," Rakim explained, with his head bowed.
He had received news about what had happened at the Imperial Magic Court's Library training ground earlier that evening through a messenger bird while he was showing Jasmine around the city, and his impression of Aladdin had grown even more than before.
This led him to boldly bring up the topic of restoring the Ababwa Imperial bloodline.
During the reign of the last Emperor of Ababwa, the Witches of the Sand had slowly killed off members of the imperial bloodline in their attempt to seize the empire. Yet despite this, the Emperor had fallen deeply in love with the Empress and refused to take another woman or form a harem, even when the Empress failed to conceive an heir.
Even if the Empress gave birth after another harem member did, as long as the Emperor willed it, their child would inherit the throne. If she could not, the Empress could have adopted one of the children from the harem and groomed them as the next ruler. Those were the customs of the empire of Ababwa.
But none of that had been possible.
And this was what led them to their current situation.
Even the previous Emperor wouldn't forgive him if he learned that Rakim had let such an opportunity slip by, especially after discovering Aladdin's extraordinary magical aptitude.
He couldn't afford to wait for the next generation, fearing that the same pattern would repeat due to the influence of the Emperor and Empress on their children.
Unfortunately, who would have thought that despite coming from a royal family herself, someone who should understand their situation, Princess Jasmine would oppose such an idea, would rather abandon her royal life, take the Prince with her, and travel the world freely.
Rakim had never heard such a statement from a princess before, so he had tried to explain the situation to her. Unfortunately, none of his words had managed to convince her. And observing her current temperament, he was worried that she might turn their Prince against them.
After explaining the situation to Aladdin, Rakim fell silent.
"This is a delicate matter which you should have spoken with me about first before speaking with Jasmine," Aladdin responded.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness," Rakim said. "I would like to ask what Your Highness decides on this matter."
"I understand the duty of restoring the imperial bloodline to ensure that it doesn't die out easily if a situation like the Witches of the Sand arises again. And although I am willing to agree…" As Aladdin spoke, Rakim became hopeful. However, his next words shattered that hope. "I will only do it if Jasmine agrees to it as well."
He had worked hard for several years just to be able to claim Jasmine's heart. To throw it all away for a harem of women he didn't know was something he wouldn't allow. But that didn't mean he wasn't open to such an idea. He had already entertained such thoughts when he had chosen his first wish.
This wasn't just fiction, but reality after all. There was no telling how Jasmine might change over time due to the differences from the events of the animated story. This was why he had given her the power to allow a harem or not.
As an Emperor, he understood his duties. But as a husband to Jasmine, he understood her heart the most. So he knew that giving her this power of control was the right thing to do.
"I see," Rakim nodded. "In that case, I hope to discuss this matter more in depth when you return next time. Please have a safe journey back to Agrabah."
Aladdin nodded. He took out the golden key from around his neck and pointed it at the space before him, opening a portal to the Palace of Agrabah, leading to the garden where they had last disappeared.
Immediately, Abu and Rajah appeared in the room out of thin air.
Abu seemed to have a bloated stomach, holding a banana in each hand while lying on a hammock. A pair of golden bracelets decorated his wrists.
Meanwhile, Rajah appeared to be asleep.
Just as Abu was about to fall to the ground due to the lack of support holding his hammock together, Genie caught him.
"We're leaving, monkey. It's time to return home. We'll be back tomorrow," Genie said as he grabbed Abu and tossed him through the portal.
Abu shrieked sharply at Genie and threw one of the bananas at him. He wanted to throw the other as well, but quickly held himself back and stuffed it into his mouth. He landed on a pillow created by Genie on the other side of the portal.
Abu raised his fist and continued to scream through the portal at Genie.
He made a decision on this day that he would capture Genie one day and make him grant his wishes!
Rajah woke up due to the sudden noise, stretching out her claws tiredly. The moment she saw Jasmine and Aladdin, she stood up and rushed toward them.
"It seems that you enjoyed your day here," Jasmine said, rubbing his fur.
Rajah let out a low, excited growl.
"Let's go home," Jasmine chuckled and said.
Without paying attention to Rakim, Jasmine held onto Aladdin's hand as he led the way into the portal.
"See you later, General. It was nice taking a stroll around the Empire of Ababwa." Genie appeared before the General dressed like an explorer, wearing a hat, with luggage in his hand and a backpack. He shook his hand.
Rakim returned the handshake with a smile.
After receiving information that this blue being was a powerful magical entity, who was highly skilled in magic, potentially rivalling the previous Grand Magician, he became even more cautious in his approach toward it.
He wanted to do everything possible to ensure it continued supporting the Prince after seeing how close they were.
Due to Genie's subtle manipulations, Rakim didn't know that Genie was the previous soldier who had led Aladdin to the Empire. As far as Rakim knew, that soldier had resigned to become a civilian after receiving his reward for taking care of the lost Imperial family and was now building his own family and spending time with his ancestral relatives.
Meanwhile, the blue magical being before him was an eccentric entity that could pop in and out of existence at will, choosing when to be seen or remain hidden.
"I hope that you can help me convince the Prince and Princess Jasmine that the future of the Imperial lineage depends on them and that they should do everything in their power to restore it," Rakim said, tightening his grip on Genie's hand just as he was about to pull away.
"I don't know, General. That's a very difficult spot you're trying to put me in," Genie responded solemnly.
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