Chapter 8: The Gangster Queen Awakens
"Finally done with shopping."
Asher murmured to himself, heading towards the car, a smile on his face. The white scarf she had knitted for him was still wrapped snugly around his neck, providing a physical warmth that mirrored the unfamiliar pride swelling in his chest. He had protected his family today. He had won a victory.
"Wifey, I am back." He stopped in front of the door, and opened it, only to freeze in his tracks.
"Who the hell are you calling wifey?!!" Juliana snapped at him, her face filled with rage, and disgust, as she stared at Asher. The gentle, timid girl who had just wrapped a scarf around his neck and thanked him was completely gone, replaced instantly by the murderous viper from the night before.
"Huh?"
Asher was dumbfounded, standing outside the car, the two bags of food in both hands, as he blinked continuously. It felt like he had just been submerged in ice water.
"What are you saying, Dear--"
"Don’t fucking call me that?!! Just because we are married doesn’t give you the right to call me such names!!" Juliana screamed at him, her eyes burning with unadulterated hostility, and added:
"And how did I get here?!! Did you abduct me or something?!!"
Now Asher was dumbfounded. Wasn’t this the same woman who was meek and lovely just some minutes ago? How did she turn back into a ruthless wife?? The whiplash was enough to make his head spin.
He blinked again, and without another word, he got inside the car, placing the bags at the back. He needed to tread carefully.
"So you don’t remember what happened today?" He asked, trying to start a conversation with this ’new’ Juliana to gauge her reaction.
"Huh?!!" Juliana paused, the raw anger faltering for a brief second as genuine confusion crossed her features, and after some seconds, she blinked: "I remembered I went to sleep after Breakfast! Tell me, how did I get here?!!" She yelled, her voice trembling slightly with the panic of missing time.
’She doesn’t seem to be lying... But why can’t she remember anything that just happened?! For the last two weeks, this is actually the longest conversation I have with this Juliana... Wait.’ Asher’s eyes widened in shock as the puzzle pieces slammed into place.
’Don’t tell me she has split personality?!!’
He gripped the steering wheel tightly as the realization washed over him: ’This explained everything... This morning when she was knitting, and got shy just by my greetings, it was actually her other side, the one who also won the competition. This current personality doesn’t seem to remember any of that...’ He turned his head to Juliana, who was glaring at him with all the warmth of a drawn blade.
’I Actually like the other side...’ He shook his head, instantly scolding himself:
’What are you thinking, they’re both your wives... Wait, doesn’t that mean I married four wives instead of three?!’ He shook his head again, the sheer absurdity of his situation overwhelming him:
’Stop thinking nonsense!! How the hell can I handle someone with split personality?! This is even trickier than Kelly’s situation.’ He thought, resting his forehead on the steering wheel, not knowing if he could laugh or cry.
Asher thought at least one of his wives finally opened up, and accepted him, but he just found out only one part of her did. How should he even think of handling this issue?
He turned to her again, and exhaled softly, feeling a profound wave of pity wash away his earlier annoyance.
’I don’t think she knows about this... I am guessing the other Side always locks herself in her room, and just focus on knitting, hiding this from me... But this side is the complete opposite of her. Now I know why she was married to me, no normal family can accept this.’ He sat upright, resting his back on his seat. Kelly was catatonic, Sara was disabled, and Juliana was violently fractured. The three families hadn’t just dumped their daughters; they had disposed of their broken secrets.
"Hey!! Are you listening!! I say I am hungry and take me home, right now?!! Whatever you are planning, I won’t give myself to you!!!" She yelled, crossing her arms defensively.
Asher raised an eyebrow at her words, choosing not to take the bait, but instead of answering, he asked a calculated question:
"Are you into business, or you’re an awakener?"
"Business?! Why would I be into that?!! I am an awakener! A full-fledged awakener!" She said coldly, insulted by the very premise.
Asher nodded his head, filing the information away: ’Also different... The other Juliana is into business. She didn’t say it, but I am pretty sure with that personality, she can’t draw a sword and fight. If I can find a way to join these two into one, won’t that make her too overpowered? No, at the moment, I don’t have the experience or relationship to even try that.’ He sighed, pushing the key in the ignition and starting the car:
"Last question, Please answer this; Have you ever been told you have different personalities?"
Juliana froze, all the aggressive energy instantly draining from the cabin, then slowly turned her head to him: "Why did you ask that?" She asked, her tone so cold Asher trembled slightly.
"Umm... You felt different today, you didn’t even know what happened today." He stammered, caught off guard by the sheer intensity radiating from her.
’What the?! Why am I scared of her?! I am her husband and also stronger than her.’ He thought to himself, exhaling softly. Even as an F-Rank, the pure killing intent she carried was suffocating.
"Well, I have heard that a lot from many people, including my stupid and annoying family, gosh! I hate them!!! If I get the opportunity, I will deal with every last one of them for throwing me into such a situation." Her voice dripped with venomous hatred for the bloodline that had discarded her.
Asher blinked, recognizing a shared trauma: ’Seems I am that situation.’
BANG!!
Before the car could move, a deafening gunshot rang out. A bullet burst the back window, and cracked the front between the two, creating huge, spider-web cracks on the glass.
"....?!!"
"This?"
Juliana and Asher were stunned, ducking instinctively. They sharply turned around, seeing the five men, and Fat Pig behind their vehicle. She was holding a smoking gun, her face twisted in psychotic glee.
"Hey slut and her stupid husband!!! Get down here, or I will kill you!!" Fat pig yelled, pointing the barrel directly at them, and continued:
"And don’t even think about running!! My husband is a C-Rank Awakener! He is bringing 20 guild members, you can’t run because we also know where you live!!"
"....?!!"
Asher was stunned, his eyes wide opened, his mind racing to figure out how he was going to protect Juliana from a bullet. But he completely miscalculated who he was sitting next to.
The next moment, Juliana screamed, her words freezing not only him, but the six armed men outside. The timid knitter who had hidden behind his back in the market was gone. The gangster queen had been provoked.
"How dare you fat old hag, fucking slut call me a slut!!! Do you think you’re above me?!! I will deal with you right now!! Even that foolish and black-faced husband won’t be able to recognize you when I am done!!!" She screamed, kicking her door open, ready to tear them apart with her bare hands.
"....?!"
Asher stared at her, utterly bewildered, realizing these thugs had just picked a fight with the absolute worst version of his wife.