Chapter 9
Reginald had a full set of jewelry crafted from pearls just for me.
He even wove shark–silk himself into loose robes that fit my growing belly, adorning them with bright, polished pearls.
The little fish and lower–ranked merfolk loved to gather around me, always chattering about whatever amusing gossip they heard from outside.
Later, they even started a musical, putting on full performances for me and Reginald.
By the end, everyone was laughing–not at the story, but at their overly dramatic faces and ridiculous expressions. It was too funny not to.
Once my belly grew round, everyone treated me like I was made of glass–tiptoeing around me, terrified they might hurt the little one inside.
Reginald, who watched my stomach grow larger day by day, was always amazed. He often leaned against me, pressing his ear gently to my belly, eyes wide with wonder.
“He’s moving… I think I just felt him move!” he whispered in awe.
The little fish and merfolk immediately chimed in with unfiltered praise.
“Princess Celine’s baby will definitely be the cutest in the sea!”
Aside from all that sweetness, I did not forget to dig around for news about Caroline.
According to the merfolk assigned to serve her, Sheldon had locked her away.
From her room, day and night, came her wretched screams.
Later, they reported that other male and female merfolk had gone in and did not come out for five days.
Half a month later, she gave birth again on a bed soaked in chaos.
I did not bother going.
It took her half a day to deliver her triplets.
Before she could even properly look at the neat row of tiny red fins, her body gave out from exhaustion. She fainted right away.
When she came to, the first thing she did was cry to see her children.
The moment she did and saw that she had delivered three red–finned babies, she was so furious that she passed
out again on the spot.
However, she was jolted back to consciousness by Sheldon’s cruelty.
Caroline lost her mind and fought with Sheldon. She insisted she had carried black–finned babies and demanded gold, jewels, and centuries of life.
Sheldon gagged her mouth before resuming his endless, violent ‘punishment‘.
Caroline tried to run, but the two red–finned children she had once thrown away caught her, beat her down, and handed her straight back to Sheldon’s bed.
1/2
Chapter 9
+25 BONUS
After giving birth to three more red–finned mer–babies, she had become the laughingstock of the merfolk.
The so–called ‘Princess Caroline‘ had ranked even lower than the lowest red–tail commoner.
The Mer–King, afraid that Caroline ruined Sheldon’s bloodline, quietly brought in a new consort for him.
However, Caroline’s suffering did not end there. Each day was worse than the one before.
Two months later, Reginald, having carefully tracked my due date, brought me ashore to deliver safely. He even hired a skilled midwife.
That day, the sea was calm and bright above, but beneath the surface, the waters churned with strange, ominous power.
Still, I never once experienced the torment I had in my last life.
I gave birth swiftly to three healthy, black–finned mer–babies.
When the Mer–King heard the news, he was overjoyed.
He sent over several more chests of gold and silver and personally hosted a grand banquet in my honor.
All the princes and princess–consorts looked at me with undisguised envy.
“I still remember someone cursing Princess Celine, saying even if she could give birth, they’d only be red–fins. Well… Slap in the face much? Three black–finned babies! I’ve never even seen one before–bless Princess Celine for making my dream come true.”
220
“Ha! The one who spat out five red–finned mongrels still dares to show her face? Doesn’t she feel shame crawling on her skin?”
“Shush! Don’t say it so loudly. She might start foaming at the mouth again, accusing people of being barren just because she can’t carry anything better than low–grade babies.”
Everyone knew what had happened between Caroline and I.
Once they saw the three sleek, black–finned children curled peacefully in my arms, they were practically beaming with joy.
Their disgust for Caroline only grew.
Behind their mocking smiles, every word they spoke was a blade dipped in poison, pointed straight at her.
