After finishing the shopping and returning home, putting the groceries in the fridge, showering together, and getting dressed, Dennis closed his closet door and then turned to look at Daisy beside him.
"Babe, we need to talk," Dennis said, calm but serious.
Daisy immediately turned to look at Dennis. When she saw his serious face, she looked a little startled; she felt like something bad was about to happen because those words usually brought disaster to a relationship. Seeing Daisy's face turn instantly serious, mixed with fear—watching her put up a defense like she was using a level-ten iron-mask technique before he'd even started—Dennis immediately changed his tactics. He gently pulled Daisy's hand and invited her to sit on the edge of the bed with a smile.
Once they were seated, Dennis immediately hugged Daisy and kissed her forehead. What mattered most in Dennis's mind was not making Daisy disappointed, let alone angry, before something undesirable happened. Naturally, Dennis's behavior left Daisy staring at him, completely dazed.
"Um... what is it, honey? Do you want to... do that?" Daisy asked, clearly misinterpreting Dennis's intentions as she took off her glasses and began unbuttoning her pajama shirt.
"It's not that. I just want to ask," Dennis answered, stopping Daisy's hand as she opened the buttons one by one.
"Okay, go ahead," Daisy replied.
Dennis took a breath and let it out. Then, he looked at Daisy once more with a serious expression.
"You were the one who finished off those Crawlers during the exercise, right? Or more accurately... it was all of you," Dennis said.
Daisy immediately went quiet and looked away. There was a long pause, and of course, in that silence, Dennis found his answer. He then reached out and held Daisy's head.
"Relax, I'm not angry. I actually want to say thank you. But why did you all do it?" Dennis asked.
Suddenly, "clap," a pair of wings—one black, one white—emerged from Daisy's back, and a halo of light appeared above her head. Daisy turned to look at Dennis, and he knew instantly that the one in front of him was Daisy Number Seven.
"Sorry, I'm stepping out. Number One is too shy to say it, so I'll do it since my goal is the same as everyone else's. I want you to be accepted... I want you to be seen... I want you to join my team. You know I can't join other teams because they always have their own motives for asking. To be honest, Gary and Olivia are just a makeshift team because they're usually just a duo," Daisy No. 7 murmured while looking down.
"Hmm... so that's how it is. Well... now that I'm on a team with you, it's not a problem. But besides me, does anyone else know about your condition? I mean, that you're split into seven like this?" Dennis asked.
Daisy shook her head. "Only you and my parents... no one else knows. That's why even though I've already awakened, I don't dare tell anyone about any of it... because... we all came from my awakening. That's why I was scared when you suddenly showed me your guild cards to me," Daisy No. 7 answered.
A memory flashed through Dennis's mind. Back when they were first matched by the government officials, Daisy had just experienced her awakening. During that matchmaking event, she had immediately explained her condition. At the time, Dennis hadn't really intended to take things seriously because he lacked confidence and didn't want to be matched for fear of disappointing his partner—especially someone like Daisy—so he had just nodded along just to get the event over with quickly.
"When we were matched by the government officer, was I the first person you were paired with? Or were there others? Because back then, you were very firm about everything with me from the start," Dennis said.
"You were the third person, and you're the only one I told everything to... hoping you'd run away like the others," Daisy No. 7 said.
"So you told the two guys before me, too?" Dennis asked.
"Hmm... not really. I only told them I was weird and that my personality likes to change in all sorts of ways, so they shouldn't be mad if one day I didn't listen to them, didn't act like a traditional wife, or defied them. Naturally, they ran off instantly, even though they initially wanted me just because of how I looked on the outside... you were the only one who stayed silent and didn't move until I finally told you everything, hoping you'd run. But instead, you just nodded and accepted me. So, yeah... we got married... even though I ended up being the subject of a lot of gossip for marrying you," Daisy No. 7 said bluntly.
Hearing Daisy's words, Dennis felt a slight sting in his heart, but he tried to remain calm and unaffected. Then, he took hold of both of Daisy's shoulders and looked at Daisy No. 7 seriously once again.
"I understand. From now on, be careful, okay? I don't know how others would react if they found out about you, and I don't know if there's only one person like me in this world. I don't want anything to happen to you," Dennis said seriously out of concern.
"Yeah, I understand. Thank you. You really love me—well, all of us—it makes me happy, hehe... but what do you mean by 'someone like you'? Is there something you haven't told me yet?" Daisy Number 7 said, not missing a beat.
Dennis looked at Daisy; in the end, he had to open up about what was happening to him to his wife because if he didn't, it would be unfair, and he would be hiding things from her. Finally, he explained how he could see her profile status from one to seven, her various powers, his system interface, and everything else.
However, he didn't fully explain his Manager talent or the fact that he actually came from a different world than the one he was in now. He no longer brought up the plane crash as the cause, but rather the two watermelons that fell on his head as he was walking home, which triggered his awakening.
Daisy No. 7 was stunned by what she heard, but her eyes seemed to sparkle, and though her face remained flat, it was clear she was happy. Seeing this, Dennis was a bit confused because he thought Daisy's reaction to his story should have been different. Suddenly, Daisy No. 7 leaned forward and hugged Dennis, then moved to sit on his lap while wrapping her arms around his neck.
"Um... why did you suddenly move?" Dennis asked, holding Daisy's waist.
"I'm happy you're finally willing to be open with me and that we're finally having a serious talk like this. Usually, we only discuss standard, essential things, so it felt like we were just roommates who had sex every day. Thank you, honey. I want us to be like this forever—open with each other and discussing things whenever something is bothering us," Daisy No. 7 said, clearly delighted to hear Dennis finally opening up to her after a year together, though it wasn't entirely certain she was actually paying attention to or understood everything Dennis had just told her.
"Alright, I'm sorry. Because I lacked self-confidence and always felt inferior, I ended up hurting you," Dennis said with a smile.
"It's okay, honey," Daisy No. 7 replied.
Then, Daisy Number 7 kissed Dennis, who hugged her back affectionately, and of course, the kissing led to other things without further delay. Three hours later, after all their physical needs were met, Dennis lay flat on the bed, exhausted. His hand was still linked with Daisy's, who had also returned to her true form and lay there panting. Both turned to look at each other and smiled, but suddenly "growl," both of their stomachs rumbled.
"Want to just order some food?" Dennis asked.
"Wait, what did we buy groceries for if we're just going to order take out again," Daisy replied.
"Oh... that's right. Do you want me to be the one who cooks?" Dennis asked. "Even though it's only a faint memory, I kind of remember that when mom and dad went out of town, I often cooked for myself at home. So, I'm confident in my skills, because I figured if I didn't cook for myself, with a body as big as mine, I'd definitely die if I didn't eat," Dennis muttered in his heart.
"Huh? You can cook?" Daisy asked, shocked, staring at Dennis with wide eyes behind her glasses.
"Of course I can, want to help?" Dennis asked. "Crap, I forgot. In this world, I'm an asshole with a million excuses who just sits around doing nothing," Dennis muttered in his heart, remembering what kind of person he was supposed to be in this new world.
"I'd love to, let's cook together," Daisy answered.
"Come on, honey, let's go to the kitchen," Dennis said as he sat up on the bed.
The two of them immediately got up and walked out of the bedroom. They headed to the kitchen and put on aprons—even though they were still naked—and began joyfully cooking the ingredients they had bought earlier to prepare their dinner. They danced around and sang together while chopping vegetables and meat as if they were on their honeymoon, completely unaware that both of their smartphones on the kitchen counter kept vibrating with their screens lighting up.