Sarah's eyes widened. "You're suggesting..."

"I'm not suggesting anything definite. I'm acknowledging a possibility." Elias met her gaze. "I love Kaelen. I have feelings for you. Those two facts can coexist. The question is whether the two of you could coexist. Whether Kaelen would be willing to share. Whether you would be willing to be part of that kind of arrangement. Whether either option is fair to anyone involved."

"That's a lot of variables with unknown values," Sarah said, and despite everything, there was a hint of humor in her voice. "Not very optimizable."

"No. Which is why I want Kaelen to be the judge. She knows me better than anyone. She can evaluate the situation objectively and decide what she's comfortable with. If she says no, then..." Elias's jaw tightened. "Then I honor my marriage vows and you and I find a way to be friends. Only friends."

"And if she says yes?"

"Then we figure it out together. All three of us." He paused. "Four, actually. Aria would need to accept you too. She's very protective of her mother."

Sarah laughed, though it came out slightly choked. "This is insane. You know that, right? This entire situation is completely insane."

"Yes. But I've never claimed to be good at handling emotions efficiently. I'm good at calculations, optimization, technique development. Emotions are..." He gestured vaguely. "Messy."

"They are indeed." Sarah took a deep breath, centering herself with Sovereign-level control. "Alright. I'll do it. I'll come with you to meet Kaelen and Aria. But Elias—you need to prepare her first. Don't just show up with me as a surprise. That would be cruel."

"Agreed. I'll talk to her through my quantum link, explain the situation, give her time to process before we arrive."

"And if she refuses to even meet me?"

"Then I respect her decision." Elias's voice was firm. "Kaelen comes first. Always. She's my wife, the mother of my child, my partner for over a century. Whatever happens, I won't betray that."

Sarah nodded slowly. "I understand. And I respect that, even though it..." She stopped, swallowed hard. "Even though part of me wishes I'd found you first."

"I wish that too," Elias admitted. "I wish a lot of things had been different on Earth. But they weren't, and we can only move forward from where we are."

"Forward," Sarah repeated. "Into the most awkward situation imaginable."

"Possibly. But also honest. Transparent. The optimal approach given suboptimal circumstances."

"There's the Elias I remember. Optimizing the impossible."

They stood there, neither quite ready to leave the comfortable familiarity of the recreated laboratory. Finally, Elias spoke.

"I need to go consolidate my breakthrough. But afterward, once I've stabilized at Stage 4, we'll descend together. Give me three weeks."

"Three weeks," Sarah agreed. "That gives me time to prepare mentally for meeting your wife and explaining to her why her husband's old research partner is suddenly in the picture."

"I'll handle the explanation," Elias said. "You just need to be yourself. Kaelen will appreciate your directness and intelligence."

"You have a lot of faith in her."

"I have a lot of experience with her. She's the most understanding person I've ever met." He paused. "Except possibly you."

Sarah smiled sadly. "Three weeks then. Come find me when you're ready to descend."

Elias nodded and turned to leave, but Sarah called out.

"Elias?"

He looked back.

"Thank you. For being honest. For not pretending the feelings don't exist. For..." She stopped, emotion threatening to overwhelm Sovereign-level control. "For remembering me."

"I never stopped," Elias said simply. "I just thought I'd never see you again."

He left through the dimensional portal, returning to his mansion and the cultivation chamber where he'd spend the next three weeks consolidating the most significant breakthrough of his life.

Behind him, Sarah stood alone in her recreated laboratory, surrounded by memories of a life lived eighty-five thousand years ago on a space station in a universe that no longer existed.

She'd waited millennia for this moment. And now that it had arrived, it was more complicated than any scenario she'd imagined.

But that was life—or cultivation, or existence across infinite realities.

Complicated. Messy. Impossible to optimize.

And somehow, despite everything, worth it.

Three Weeks Later

Elias stood in his cultivation chamber, his comprehension of Stage 4 Dimensional Infinity finally stabilized. The breakthrough had integrated smoothly, his understanding of hierarchical infinities now as natural as breathing.

He reached through his quantum entanglement to his other self in the multiverse.

"Kaelen?" he called through the link. "I need to talk to you about something. Something important."

In the multiverse, his duplicate felt Kaelen's immediate attention. "What's wrong? Are you hurt?"

"No. I'm fine. Better than fine—I've reached Stage 4 Dimensional Infinity, 81% comprehension. But something else happened. Something I need to tell you about before I return."

"Tell me," Kaelen said, her voice carrying both concern and curiosity.

Elias took a breath—unnecessary for his current physiology, but old habits died hard—and began explaining.

About the tea house gathering. About recognizing a familiar taste in the chef's cooking. About the battle with Marcus Thornheart. About the moment he'd recognized Dr. Sarah Whitmore, his research assistant from Earth, reincarnated as a Sovereign-level cultivator who'd spent eighty-five thousand years hoping to find him.

Kaelen listened without interrupting. When he finished, there was a long silence.

Finally, she spoke. "You have feelings for her."

It wasn't a question, but Elias answered anyway. "Yes. I do. Not the same feelings I have for you—different, complicated by shared history and old memories. But feelings nonetheless."

Another pause. "And she has feelings for you."

"Yes."

"And you want to bring her here. To meet me. To let me decide..." Kaelen's voice trailed off.

"To let you decide what happens next," Elias finished. "This affects you more than anyone. You're my wife. Any decision made needs to be one you're comfortable with."

Through the quantum link, Elias felt his duplicate's perception of Kaelen. She was thinking, processing, analyzing with the same methodical approach she used for complex cultivation problems.

"I've heard stories," Kaelen said slowly. "Of powerful cultivators with multiple wives. Harems built over millennia. I always thought it seemed... inefficient. Emotionally complicated."

"It is inefficient. And definitely complicated."

"But," Kaelen continued, "I also understand that cultivation spans eons. That the person you are after a hundred years might have room for connections you couldn't imagine when you first married. That love isn't a finite resource that diminishes when shared."

"You've thought about this before," Elias observed.

"I've thought about a lot of things during the years you've been in the Infinity Realm." Kaelen's voice carried a note of humor. "Including the possibility that you might encounter someone significant from your past life. Though I'll admit, I didn't expect her to have followed you across death and reincarnation."

"Neither did I. The probability was infinitesimal."

"And yet here we are." Kaelen was quiet for another moment. "Bring her. Let me meet this Dr. Sarah Whitmore who knew you before cultivation, before optimization techniques, before you became the Quantum Saint. I want to see who you were before I knew you."

"You're sure?"

"No," Kaelen admitted. "I'm nervous and uncertain and possibly making a terrible decision. But I'm also curious, rational, and willing to at least have the conversation. Bring her. We'll figure it out together."

Relief flooded through Elias. "Thank you. For being understanding. For being willing to even consider—"

"Don't thank me yet," Kaelen interrupted. "I might meet her and decide I hate this entire situation. I might tell you that you have to choose. I might..." She paused. "I might surprise both of us. I don't know. But I want the chance to make that decision with full information."

"That's all I can ask for."

"When are you coming?"

"Within a few days. I need to finalize preparations and coordinate with Sarah. Then we'll descend together."

"Elias?" Kaelen's voice softened. "I love you. That doesn't change regardless of what happens with her. Remember that."

"I love you too," Elias replied. "And I promise—whatever we decide, your happiness comes first."

He severed the connection gently and stood from his cultivation platform.

Three weeks of consolidation had been successful. His Stage 4 Dimensional Infinity comprehension was stable. His techniques had evolved to account for hierarchical infinities. He was as ready as he'd ever be.

Now came the hard part.

Facing his wife with his complicated feelings about a woman from his past life.

Introducing two brilliant women who both had valid claims to his affection.

And somehow finding a solution that didn't hurt everyone involved.

Elias activated his communication array and sent a message to Sarah: "Consolidation complete. Kaelen has agreed to meet you. Prepare for descent in three days."

The response came quickly: "Understood. I'll be ready. And Elias? Thank you. For being honest with her. For giving this a chance."

"Three days," he confirmed. "Then we face the most complicated optimization problem either of us has ever encountered."

"Human emotions generally are," Sarah replied.

Elias smiled slightly and began final preparations. In three days, he'd return to the multiverse with a Sovereign-level cultivator in tow, explain to his wife and daughter that his old research partner had been reincarnated across infinite space, and try to navigate a situation that had no optimal solution.

It was inefficient, complicated, and probably going to be emotionally exhausting.

But also honest, transparent, and the right thing to do.

And for once, Elias Vance was more concerned with doing the right thing than the optimal thing.

Progress, perhaps.

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