My Seven Wives in One Body and Me, her Manager-Chapter 93: Internal Conflict : The Angel and The Demon

After they had been holding each other on the floor for a while, Dennis finally calmed down, but he kept hugging Daisy and wouldn’t let her see his face. Meanwhile, Daisy could feel Dennis’s entire body trembling, and his hands, wrapped around her waist, were gripping her clothes tightly.

"If you want to talk, I’m ready to listen," Daisy whispered slowly into Dennis’s ear.

Dennis remained silent. He knew exactly what he had told Daisy—that he didn’t want to keep secrets from his wife—but now he was scared and confused. In his heart, it felt like there were two people saying all sorts of things to him. On one side, he imagined himself with horns, a tail, and holding a red trident, saying "as long as she doesn’t know, it’s fine, right? It would be a waste because your wife is beautiful and you want to be with her, so there’s no need to say anything."

On the other side, he imagined himself wearing a white robe, with a halo over his head, angel wings, and carrying a harp, saying, "you must be honest. A relationship built on lies is called betrayal. Surely you don’t want to hurt the wife you love, right?" Then the demon Dennis spoke up again, "it’s okay, reality can be buried and you don’t need to tell everything. That’s not keeping a secret, it’s just not saying everything for the sake of the greater good."

Then the angel Dennis countered, "if you don’t say it, you’re the one who will suffer and you will keep lying to the wife you love. Is that what you want?" The demon shot back, "do you want your wife to leave you because you said that? You want to be with her, right? Making out and being intimate with her feels good, doesn’t it? Don’t be stupid." The angel replied once more, "you will hurt your wife if you act like that. If you love your wife, even if you have to part ways because you told the truth, you must accept it."

In the end, the debate raged on in his heart without any conclusion, each side constantly contradicting the other, leaving Dennis even more confused and lightheaded. Suddenly, Daisy gently pushed Dennis back and studied his pale face, which was covered in a cold sweat. Daisy smiled as she looked at him.

"Are you hungry?" Daisy asked, casual and soft.

Finally, looking at his wife’s face, Dennis felt a surge of pity and sadness; he immediately gripped Daisy’s shoulders gently, and the two voices in his heart suddenly became one. He had made his decision and knew what he had to do.

"Honey... Daisy... there’s something I have to tell you... just now... I had a dream... but honestly... it’s hard for me to talk about it," Dennis muttered, stammering.

"Hmm? Oh, in that case, hold on a second," Daisy said.

Suddenly, a pair of black and white angel wings emerged from Daisy’s back, and a halo appeared above her head. Daisy transformed into Daisy Number Seven, then she looked at Dennis tenderly and smiled. Her hands reached up to hold Dennis’s cold cheeks.

"There’s no need to tell me. May I see what’s inside your head?" Daisy Number Seven asked.

Dennis was silent for a moment, but because he had steeled his heart and clenched his fists as a sign that his resolve was firm, he looked back at Daisy and answered with a nod. Daisy Number Seven pulled Dennis’s head toward her and pressed her forehead against his, then both of them closed their eyes.

Every dream Dennis had experienced immediately played out in Daisy Number Seven’s head, and they watched them together inside the council room in Daisy’s mind. While they watched the final dream, the atmosphere in the council room—which had been a bit noisy and could be heard by Dennis through telepathy—suddenly went silent.

Curious, Dennis opened his eyes to look at Daisy Number Seven’s face, but he was shocked because, contrary to his expectations, Daisy Number Seven looked calm; her breathing was steady and a smile lingered on her face. However, he could also see tears streaming from her closed eyes. After the vision ended, Daisy Number Seven gently pushed Dennis back. Now, Dennis could see her face clearly, and when she opened her eyes, he could feel Daisy Number Seven’s gaze piercing through his own eyes and into his head.

Suddenly, "slap," Daisy Number Seven struck Dennis so hard his face was thrown to the right. Then, Daisy Number Seven stood up calmly.

"I’m sorry, dear, but I need some time alone. Please don’t come into the bedroom for now," Daisy Number Seven said in a voice that was calm but felt incredibly heavy to Dennis.

"Alright," Dennis replied slowly.

Without any further delay, Daisy Number Seven walked into the bedroom and "click," he heard her lock the door from the inside. Dennis just hung his head helplessly and stared at the floor as if the tiles could provide a rational explanation for Daisy Number Seven’s behavior. The living room went quiet, with only the low volume of the television and the hum of the refrigerator in the kitchen serving as a background.

Of course, the demon inside Dennis’s heart resurfaced, mocking him and calling him stupid, an idiot, and every other name in the book. Meanwhile, the angel Dennis told him that he had done the right thing and that even though it wasn’t his fault, destiny simply could not be avoided.

Dennis could only smile, though his heart remained at odds as a sense of gratitude emerged from the angel and a feeling of regret surfaced from the demon. He walked toward the apartment exit, grabbing his jacket by the door, then opened the door and stepped out.

Moving aimlessly, as if his body were on autopilot, he took the elevator down and walked across the lobby. Suddenly, "thud," Dennis turned around and saw Jason standing behind him, holding his food delivery bag and looking like he had just finished work. The moment Jason saw Dennis’s face, he understood exactly what was happening.

"Come with me, man, to my place," Jason invited.

"No need, bro," Dennis replied.

"It’s fine. I bought way too much food for just me and Kimberly. Come on up to my unit," Jason said, opening his bag to reveal two pizza boxes that still looked warm.

"Uh... but," Dennis said hesitantly.

"Forget it, come on, don’t overthink it," Jason said, patting Dennis on the shoulder.

"Growl," Dennis’s stomach suddenly let out a loud rumble. He immediately clutched his midsection and thought "great, perfect timing." Jason, who also heard the sound, promptly pulled Dennis’s arm toward the elevator; the guy was clearly not taking no for an answer. Ultimately, Dennis went along with Jason, heading back up to return with him to his unit.

***

Meanwhile, inside the bedroom of Dennis and Daisy’s apartment, Daisy was lying face down on the bed. But in reality, inside the council room, Daisy Number One through Daisy Number Seven sat silently in their respective chairs. The atmosphere was quiet and tense, until finally, the primary Daisy—Daisy Number One—turned to look at Daisy Number Seven.

"Why did you slap our husband?" Daisy Number One asked, annoyed.

"It’s nothing... I just wanted him to snap out of it and stop being sad," Daisy Number Seven answered casually.

"What if he gets the wrong idea?" Daisy Number Four asked.

"And why didn’t you say anything and just went into the bedroom instead?" Daisy Number Six asked, clearly frustrated.

"She’s right. We’ve known who he was from the beginning, haven’t we? Our father-in-law told us everything about him and we discussed it back then... what’s wrong with you, Number Seven?" Daisy Number Five said.

"Exactly. And we still married him and we love him. Besides, he’s not the man who refused to be his biological father," added Daisy Number Three, nodding and folding her arms across her chest.

"You’re right, Number Three. He isn’t that man, even if he is that man’s biological son. Aside from what Dad told us, I also investigated him before he became our husband. But... that’s not the problem. Right now... our husband is shaken. He’s seen our memories and he knows now that what happened to us is connected to him. He isn’t like us, divided into seven to carry the burden together. Right now, he must be feeling both sad and guilty. Do you guys understand that?" Daisy Number Two asked, looking at the others one by one.

"He must be so sad," Daisy Number Three muttered, looking down at the table.

"But... for this matter, I suggest we don’t say anything to him. Let Dad be the one to tell him, not us," Daisy Number Seven said.

"Yes, that’s right. I agree with that," Daisy Number One added.

"Alright then, let’s go out. Tell him that we’re okay," Daisy Number Four said.

[Pardon the interruption, Ladies, but at the moment, Master has left the apartment and gone downstairs...]

"What... what?" Daisy Number One through Number Seven shouted, standing up and slamming their hands on the table.

[Please do not interrupt, I haven’t finished speaking. Currently, Master is at the home of your friends, Jason and Kimberly.]

"Oh, I see... whew... what is he doing at Kim’s place?" Daisy Number Five asked.

[He was shaken and almost left the building. If he hadn’t run into Jason, he surely would have left you.]

The room immediately fell silent again. Suddenly, Daisy Number One vanished; then she woke up from the bed, threw open the bedroom door, and ran out of the apartment to catch up with Dennis at Jason’s place.