My Seven Wives in One Body and Me, her Manager-Chapter 34: Strategies for The Game

"Hey,"

Dennis, Gary, and Jason turned around. All three of them had their eyes go wide seeing their wives standing behind them in swimwear. Gary pushed his sunglasses up, his eyes scanning up and down as he took in Olivia wearing a white floral bikini with a sarong wrapped around her waist.

"Hey... why are you looking at me like that?" Olivia asked, covering herself up.

"No reason," Gary answered, turning back and lying down again as he lowered his sunglasses.

"Hey... give me your opinion before you turn away!" Olivia shouted, immediately lunging at Gary in front of her.

Jason let out a sigh, his face clearly showing disappointment as he saw Kimberly wearing a blue one-piece swimsuit covered by a bathrobe.

"Does it look good, babe?" Kimberly asked Jason.

"Hmm... do you want the husband answer?" Jason asked.

"Of course," Kimberly replied.

"It looks great... and it fits perfectly. You look sexy in that, babe," Jason said with a smile, giving her a thumbs up.

"Hmm... and the honest answer?" Kimberly asked.

"I don’t know, whatever," Jason replied, turning around and lying back down.

"You jerk, what do you mean whatever!" Kimberly shouted, immediately lunging at Jason in front of her.

Meanwhile, Dennis was stunned. He saw Daisy wearing a black bikini with black shorts and a wide sun hat.

"How is it, hon? Do I look good?" Daisy asked, spinning around to show off the outfit to Dennis.

Because he was so mesmerized—and because his wish to see Daisy in a bikini had finally come true—Dennis couldn’t say a word. He just gave a thumbs up and nodded with a blank look on his face.

"Hey... why are you being so quiet?" Daisy asked, immediately jumping on Dennis because she thought he didn’t like her outfit.

Eventually, Olivia, Kimberly, and Daisy were all lying down with their respective partners under the umbrella. They enjoyed their drinks and chatted about various things, until they finally started discussing the sparring match against their seniors that Steve had arranged. Gary grabbed his smartphone to forward the email Steve had sent him. Everyone opened their phones to read the message.

"Hmm... so the sparring match isn’t a direct, frontal duel?" Kimberly asked.

"Yep, we’ll be up against our senior team in a fort-conquest scenario where we have to take their flag," Gary answered.

"No wonder you wanted us to practice strategy," Daisy remarked.

"That was the plan, but after seeing our fight on the tracks earlier, I don’t think we need to practice teamwork. What we need is a strategy for how to conquer the enemy fortress," Gary countered.

"True. Too bad they didn’t list the simulation layout here," Jason said.

"It wouldn’t be as fun if we already knew the field conditions, right? We’d just end up studying the terrain beforehand," Dennis replied.

"Right. I actually asked Mr. Steve for the field map so we could plan out a strategy, but he hasn’t gotten back to me yet," Gary replied.

"It sounds like it’s going to be a blast. Our seniors don’t know the terrain either, right? So we’re both going in blind, which means we’ll have to come up with our strategy on the fly, right there on the field," Daisy added.

"Yep, she’s right," Dennis added, resting his hand on Daisy’s head beside him.

"Hmm... I’ll just guard the fort, near the flag. Anyone gets close, I’ll pick them off from a distance," Jason said, lying back casually.

"That was my plan for you anyway. If you charge ahead, you’re just dead weight," Gary remarked. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"I’m staying at the base too. I can create difficult terrain for the enemy using my magic," Olivia added.

"Hmm... true. That means the ones leading the assault will be me, Kimberly, Dennis, and Daisy," Gary muttered.

"Works for me," Daisy said nonchalantly.

"I’m in too," Kimberly added.

Meanwhile, Dennis glanced at Daisy, who looked perfectly relaxed as she held her glass with both hands.

"She can turn into anything, right... I just hope she doesn’t go overboard later," Dennis muttered in his head.

They went back to discussing their specific roles, even though they still had no idea what the battlefield would look like. A few moments later:

"Okay, everything’s clear now. Let’s go swimming!" Olivia suggested, sliding off her lounge chair and pulling Gary with her.

"Huh? In the ocean? Or the pool?" Gary asked, standing up as Olivia yanked his arm.

"The beach, obviously! We’ll hit the pool tomorrow," Olivia called out.

"Alright, let’s go, babe," Jason said, hopping off his chair and grabbing Kimberly’s hand.

"Okay, okay... stop pulling," Kimberly said, standing up and setting her glass down.

"Let’s go too," Daisy said, turning to look at Dennis.

"You go ahead first," said Dennis, who had never actually touched the water in a public place before.

"Ugh... I don’t want to go if I’m by myself," Daisy replied.

"It’s fine, I’ll catch up in a bit. I just need to mentally prepare myself first," Dennis answered with a smile, patting Daisy’s head.

"Grr... okay, but you better actually come out. If not, I’m coming back here to get you," Daisy said as she stood up.

"Okay, don’t worry, I’m coming later," Dennis promised.

Finally, Daisy joined Gary, Olivia, Jason, and Kimberly as they walked down to the shore to swim and play in the water. Dennis lay back down, simply watching his friends and Daisy splash around at the water’s edge, their faces lit up with carefree laughter. Dennis just smiled; he seemed more content being on his own since he really wasn’t used to this kind of thing in his life.

As he was relaxing, watching a cheerful Daisy dive into the waves, "bzzzzt," Dennis’s smartphone suddenly vibrated. He picked it up, and his eyes went wide when he saw an incoming video call from his mom.

Without delaying, he picked it up immediately. His mother’s middle-aged but still beautiful face appeared, looking clearly confused as she stared at him.

"Wait, who are you? Where’s Dennis?" his mom asked.

"Huh... it’s me, Mom. It’s Dennis. How can you not recognize your own son?" Dennis answered.

His mother could be seen squinting at the screen of her smartphone or laptop until her face took up the whole frame; she seemed to be in her home office.

"You’re... Dennis? I heard from the school that you were hit by a watermelon? Are you really Dennis?" his mom asked hesitantly.

"It’s really me, Mom. You remember our Saturday ritual where the three of us always made pancakes with Dad at home? The ritual only the three of us know about?" Dennis said.

"Oh my... you really are Dennis? Goodness... why have you become so thin? What happened? You’re really okay, right? Are you eating enough? Where is your wife, Daisy? I want to talk to her. How could she let my son get this thin?" his mom said, sounding worried and anxious as she fired off a barrage of questions, forcing Dennis to pull his phone away a bit because the speaker was so loud.

"Geez, Mom, I had an awakening when that watermelon hit me, and now I look like this... it’s not because I’m skipping meals or sick that I’ve gotten thin... I still eat a ton and Daisy takes great care of me, so please don’t be dramatic," Dennis said, answering his mother.

"My goodness, I’m going to have a talk with Daisy’s mom about this... our houses are close, after all. I was so shocked when the school told me you were hit by a watermelon... I only just got the chance to call because your father and I have been so busy here in Ruby City," his mom said.

"What are you planning, Mom? Just drop it, don’t go doing anything crazy. Daisy and I are perfectly fine. We’re still together and we’re still looking after each other. Please don’t create problems and don’t overreact," Dennis said, starting to sound annoyed.

"Overreact? I’m worried about you, you know! What if something happens to you?" his mom said.

"Mom, I’m not a kid anymore. I can take care of myself. Please don’t worry, and don’t go telling Dad all kinds of crazy stories, okay?" Dennis said, reminding her.

His mom stared at Dennis’s face through the screen, her eyes narrowing as if she were searching for something in her son’s expression. Finally, she let out a long sigh and leaned back into her chair.

"Fine, I get it. But if anything happens or if you find yourself in trouble, please let me know right away. If it’s too hard to call, just leave a message—if not for me, then for your father," his mom said.

"Okay Mom, for sure," Dennis replied, smiling and feeling relieved.

"Where are you anyway? You’re not at home, are you?" his mom asked.

Dennis explained everything—how they were on a break and how he’d made friends who had invited him to the beach. His mother listened to her son’s story, her stiff expression slowly softening into a smile as she heard Dennis talk. Once Dennis finished his story:

"I’m so glad you have friends now. Your father and I are always praying for you and we love you very much," his mom said with a smile.

"Thanks, Mom," Dennis replied.

"Alright then, I have to get back to work. Give my best to Daisy. I’ll be seeing her mom soon anyway, so I’ll let her know you two are doing great," his mom said, smiling.

"Yeah, thank you, Mom. I’ll call if anything comes up," Dennis said.

"Okay, I’ll be waiting. Bye-bye, I’ll call you again later," his mom replied.

The call ended. Dennis set his phone down, but when he looked forward, he saw a soaking-wet Daisy staring at his face from inches away. It caught Dennis completely off guard, making him flinch.

"Uaaaah... you scared the life out of me!" Dennis said.

"Who was that? Mom?" Daisy asked.

"Yeah, Mom," Dennis answered.

"Oh, I see. I wanted to talk to her too," Daisy replied.

"We’ll call her again tonight. If the signal holds, it means we’re getting close to Ruby City," Dennis answered.

"Hmm... alright then. Come on, let’s go back out there," Daisy said, pulling Dennis’s hand.

"Okay, okay... let’s go," Dennis replied, standing up.

Finally, they ran toward the ocean to join their friends, who were still having the time of their lives at the water’s edge.