Caroline shot Reginald a disdainful glance. "Prince Reginald, no one knows my sister's body better than I do. Whether she can even conceive is still a question, and even if she does, the best she'll manage is a red-finned mer-child."

The Mer-King said nothing to scold her. After all, he valued heirs above all else. He only chuckled lightly and dismissed us with a wave.

Reginald did not want me to bear that humiliation. His face darkened as he exclaimed, "Princess Caroline, please mind your words!"

Caroline was not afraid of him in the slightest. She beamed triumphantly and replied, "Am I wrong? That belly of hers is only fit to birth red-fins! Lowly, weak, and useless creatures!"

She pressed a hand protectively over her own bump.

"Whereas I'm carrying not one, but two black-finned mer-children. If anything happens to me, none of you could bear that responsibility!"

Her arrogance was based on her past experience. With her new life seemingly playing out similarly to the last, she was certain it would go her way.

In my previous life, I had conceived two black-finned mer-children just three days after consummating my marriage with Sheldon.

Caroline had not conceived until six months later, and even then, it was only a red-finned offspring.

However, despite her status as a Pregnancy Maiden, she was never strong enough to produce black-fins.

I smiled calmly. "Then, I wish you many children and a long life, dear sister."

I was not upset. Not in the least.

In fact, I had a feeling Sheldon would give her quite the lesson once they were behind closed doors.

Just as expected, as soon as Reginald and I returned to our estate, I overheard gossip fluttering through the fish around the gates.

Apparently, after Caroline and Sheldon returned home and entangled with each other with great enthusiasm, she began to bleed severely.

It was premature labor.

Human and merfolk births were not quite the same. I had studied all of it carefully once I became a Pregnancy Maiden.

The Mer-King, afraid something might go wrong, summoned me personally to assist.

The fish-doctors did not dare look too closely, but I saw enough.

Her body was torn. It was worse than mine had been during my traumatic first birth in my previous life.

It was only the beginning.

It would get worse. Much worse.

Caroline gasped between contractions, her face pale but full of fire, "Celine, watch closely. See how I give birth to black-finned mer-children! Power, wealth, centuries of life… They're all mine this time! Hahaha!"

She was delirious, desperate to birth the babies and prove her worth.

However, Caroline and Sheldon had been far too rough. Her birth canal was torn in several places, and blood was everywhere.

Four long hours passed before the first child was finally pulled from her womb.

Its tail fin was a brilliant, unmistakable red color.

I made sure to cradle the child gently in my arms and brought it right to her bedside.

Beaming, I said warmly, "Caroline, don't fall asleep yet. Look, your little one's already here! He looks so much like his father, doesn't he?"

Caroline's eyes widened in horror, and her body jerked.

"No, no, it's not possible! This isn't my baby! I was carrying black-fins! This wretched thing, this worthless, filthy thing, there's no way it came from me! You! This is your doing! You were jealous, and you switched them!"

Caroline thrashed around and screamed, "There's still another! Doctor, bring me my other baby! If anything's wrong with my black-finned child, I'll have your heads for it!"

The poor doctor turned pale at her words.

"P-Princess, just a bit more. The second baby's almost here!"

Soon, it arrived.

Panting, weak, Caroline clutched the blankets. "Quick! Show me my black-finned mer-child!"

The doctor wiped the sweat from his brow and swaddled the child.

He then brought it to her.

"No! This can't be true!" Caroline screamed.

She stared at the red-finned mer-child in the doctor's hand and passed out on the spot.

Everyone had assumed, thanks to Caroline's bragging and insistence, that she was carrying black-finned heirs. At most, they expected silver or purple fins.

However, no one had expected two red-fins in a row.

In merfolk society, red-fins were the lowest of the low. Fragile, weak, and worthless.

They were seen as slaves and would be a shameful stain in royal bloodlines. Even commoners wept in disgrace if they gave birth to one.

There Caroline was, having given birth to two, born into the royal family.

It was nothing short of a scandal—the greatest joke the merfolk had seen in generations.

Reginald saw the obvious grin on my face and could not help but laugh along.

"Celine, did you already know this would happen?"

I nodded, meeting his eyes with quiet seriousness.

"Do you think I'm cruel? My younger sister gave birth to the lowest kind of red-finned mer-children, and instead of feeling sorry for her… Here I am, gloating."

Reginald's smile faded. He gently shook his head.

"You and Princess Caroline are sisters by blood, yet she insulted you and claimed you were only fit to bear red-finned mer-babies. If anyone's cruel, it's her, not you."

He reached out and softly clasped my hand, his voice warm and steady.

"If she had given birth to black-fins, she would've been even more arrogant. She never would've spared you a second glance. Everything that's happened to her… She brought them upon herself."

My eyes stung with unshed tears.

Caroline was born to the emperor's most beloved consort, and the emperor adored her.

Out of all the princes and princesses, she had the finest silks, the rarest pearls, the best of everything. He spoiled her into arrogance.

Caroline hated me, so naturally, the emperor turned cold toward me too.

Time and again, just to please her, he would humiliate and punish me.

After marrying Sheldon, my life only worsened with endless torment and nights of pain. I had often thought of ending it all, but every time, my mer-children would find it and report me to Sheldon.

What followed was more suffering and deeper despair.

The centuries of life granted to me as a merfolk bride felt less like a blessing and more like an unrelenting curse.

It was not until I married Reginald that I realized I, too, was someone worthy of being loved.

He stood by me, defended me, and treated me like I was the most precious pearl in the sea.

How foolish Caroline was to believe that Reginald was not good enough, and even more foolish to look at my happiness and feel jealous.

That night, Reginald held me in his arms.

Wrapped in his warmth, I asked suddenly, "That love manual of yours… How's the studying going?"

His ears instantly flushed a deep crimson.

"All those… Hundreds of positions… I've learned them all," he stammered.

I once woke up in the middle of the night to find him quietly studying the illustrated manuals in secret. His face beet-red, hands trembling, eyes focused with utmost seriousness.

It was so endearing that I could not help but tease him once in a while.

I gently brushed his scales and whispered, "Honey… I want to try."

I wanted to shed the nightmares of my past.

"Okay."

His voice was soft, trembling with excitement.

With care, he undressed me, his fingertips reverent, his gaze full of love.

When he saw my body, the flush spread down to his neck, but he did not disappoint.

Reginald had memorized it all. His movements were awkward, unpracticed, and it took some time for us to find our rhythm.

The shadows in my heart slowly faded. His tenderness never once sparked revulsion in me.

Instead, it made me begin to enjoy this feeling.