Theo settled me in the bedroom before turning around to enter the study. He locked the door from the inside.

I pressed against the door and heard a rapid conversation from behind it. "Calcium supplementation during pregnancy... Seaweed... Wait a minute, doctor. You said humans need to soak in seawater every day if they're carrying merbabies?"

His voice suddenly rose. "But she's pregnant!"

I held back my laughter so much that my stomach hurt. Who would have thought that a vicious and cruel villain would be clutching a phone and consulting a doctor on obstetric knowledge? Even his voice was trembling.

When the study door suddenly opened, I almost fell into his arms.

Theo quickly held my waist, and the warmth of his palm seeping through the fabric was burning hot. He looked down at me, his gaze falling on my flat lower abdomen. His Adam's apple rolled. "You—"

I interrupted him boldly, "I'm hungry. I want you to make seafood stew for me."

The clinking sounds of pots, pans, and bowls quickly came from the kitchen.

The butler hesitated at the door. "Mr. Atwater almost burned the kitchen down the last time he cooked."

I replied, "Oh… It’s alright. He’s rich."

If it burned down, we could just move somewhere else.

The butler was speechless.

An hour later, Theo brought out the finished product with a soot-covered face.

The food looked... okay. It should not be poisonous. When I was scooping up a spoonful of stew, he suddenly grabbed my hand. "Wait."

Theo carefully picked out all the shell fragments and tested the temperature before handing the spoon back.

I deliberately frowned. "Too bland."

His hand, reaching for the salt shaker, stopped in mid-air before he turned around to turn on his tablet. He diligently searched for the daily recommended sodium intake for pregnant women.

I was speechless.

Thus, I began my life comparable to that of a queen. In the mornings, Theo personally squeezed orange juice for me. During showers, he treated me with the utmost care, like I was a fragile object. Even when I woke him up in the middle of the night due to my leg cramps, he would gently give me massages.

One morning, I woke up groggily to find him measuring my waist with a tape measure, his expression as serious as if he were defusing a bomb.

"What can you tell from just one month?" I teased him.

Theo's ears turned red, but he insisted on recording the data in his phone's memo app, titled "Merbabies Observation Diary”.

The most absurd thing was last week, when a business partner came to the company to see him. When the security guard called for permission, Theo was kneeling, tying my shoelaces. Meanwhile, I sat in the rocking chair, eating fruit while playing a game on my phone.

He said coldly into the microphone, "Don't bother me with such a thing anymore. My wife is taking a nap." He then casually placed a blanket over my legs.

"You lied!" I raised an eyebrow at him.

At this moment, I was lying in the rocking chair on the terrace, watching Theo build a swing set in the garden. The sunlight turned his hair amber, making the scene feel somewhat warm.

Suddenly, a system notification popped up.

[Warning! Villain's corruption level has dropped to 90%.]

The system's voice was tinged with doubt. "Elle, are you sure this will save him?"

I smiled and touched the pearl necklace around my neck. "At least he doesn't want to die anymore, right?"

After Theo was done with the swing, I swung my legs. "Honey, my legs are cramping."

He wiped his hands clean, knelt on one knee, and massaged them for me.

The system said, "Amazing!"

"Honey, I want a pink pearl."

I saw a pink pearl at an auction a while ago, and it was so beautiful. Unfortunately, the male lead, Reagan York, bought it to please Melody Carlisle.

"Cry one for me." I casually picked up a plate used for grapes and placed it under his chin.

Theo paused momentarily before raising his head, his deep eyes filled with disbelief. "The color of the pearl depends on the merfolk's mood."

I touched my belly and said slowly, "I don't care. If you don't cry, I'll release your baby into the sea."

His expression changed abruptly.

Three minutes later, I stared in astonishment at the notorious villain who was feared outside. His eyes were red as pearls dropped with a pattering sound. The pale pink pearls rolled around on the plate, sounding particularly pleasant.

The system suddenly made a ding.

[The villain's corruption level has dropped to 85%.]

I happily picked up a pearl. This task was simple. If this continued, I was afraid I would make Theo a sweet and naive merman who only cried pearls.

However, just when I thought I was sure to succeed, Melody came. She was dressed in a plain white dress and stood at the villa entrance with red eyes, looking pitiful. "Theo, please save my father... He's been caught. Only you can find him..." Her voice choked up.

I stood in the doorway, sneering, "Get Reagan to help."

Melody bit her lip, and tears came streaming down her face even faster. "He doesn't have those kinds of connections..."

I paused before realizing it. The male lead was always an optimistic, righteous, and domineering CEO, while the villain was sinister and ruthless. Thus, the first person Melody thought of was always Theo, with his bloodstained hands, when she needed someone to do her dirty bidding.

I glanced back at Theo standing at the corner of the stairs. He stood there quietly, his eyes unfathomable, while he held the slippers I had just kicked off.

A sudden surge of anger welled up inside me. "You're not allowed to go!"

Melody bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes. "Since Elle won't allow it, forget it..."

She looked pitiful as she turned to leave.

Just as she was about to step out the door, Theo suddenly said, "Wait."

I watched as he knelt, gently put my slippers back on, and even adjusted their position. Then, this bastard actually got up and followed Melody!

"Theo!" I grabbed a slipper and smashed it on the back of his head. "Don't come back if you go!"

The slipper hit my target, making a crisp smack.

He paused and did not turn around. He just rubbed the spot where he had been hit and continued walking.

I was so angry that I almost threw the other slipper at him as well.

...

At 3:00 am, I checked my phone for the 28th time. The screen was still completely black.

Suddenly, the system notification popped up with a beep.

[Warning! Villain's corruption level has increased by 12%. Current value: 97%.]

I sat upright, nearly straining my back. "What? I've been carrying his baby like a hen, working myself to the bone. I only managed to reduce his corruption level by 15%. He went out with the female lead for one night, and it increased by 12 points?"

The system added quietly, "To be precise, it’s only been four hours and 38 minutes."

"What? Did Melody use him as ransom for the kidnappers?" I sneered, touching my belly.

Suddenly, the sound of a car engine came from outside the window.

I darted to the window and saw Theo's car slowly drive into the front yard, its headlights casting two hazy streaks of light in the rain.

What angered me even more was that he was carrying something in his hand when he got out of the car. The packaging had Moonlit Sea's logo printed on it.

This costly seafood restaurant was Melody's favorite.

"Very well." I gritted my teeth and commanded the system, "Exchange the 'False Abortion Pill’ for me immediately!"

The system was so scared that its code was all messed up. "Elle, stay calm! Merbabies are resilient. This tool requires 5,000 points..."

"Do I look like I care about points?"

The reason why I was lazy in this world was that the points I earned from the tasks I did in other worlds before were enough for me to retire on.

...

When Theo gently pushed open the bedroom door, he saw me curled up on the bed, pale-faced and clutching my stomach. "Elle?" The food container in his hand clattered to the floor, scattering baked salmon everywhere.

I weakly looked up and saw a slap mark on his left cheek.

Theo's hands trembled as he picked me up, and he immediately drove me to the hospital.

I deliberately lay on the hospital bed with my back to Theo, listening to his rapid breathing as he spoke with the doctor.

"There are mild signs of miscarriage. She needs absolute bed rest. It's crucial to keep her emotions stable," the doctor advised sternly.

Theo's voice was hoarse. "She… and the baby..."

"She's alright for now, but further stress could make things worse."

"Mr. Atwater... Mrs. Atwater's human body isn't suited for carrying a merman's offspring. The first three months are especially critical. If this goes on, I'm afraid the offspring..."

The hospital ward door closed. Then, there was a dull thud that sounded like knees slamming heavily onto the floor.

"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have..." His voice trembled as he whispered against the back of my neck.

I quietly pricked up my ears, waiting for him to continue.

"I shouldn't have left you home alone..." His fingers cautiously touched my shoulder.

I immediately turned around, nearly bumping into his nose. "I'm furious! Get out!"

The system had just told me that Melody's father owed two million dollars due to gambling. She did not want to borrow money from Reagan. Instead, she thought of having Theo rescue him without spending a penny.

Upon arriving at the scene, she discovered that her father's kidnapper was Theo's former henchman, who had been expelled from the Eternal Night Gang for misconduct.

Melody did not believe Theo and thought he had deliberately sent someone to do it, so she slapped him.

Theo opened his mouth helplessly but said nothing. He just suddenly hugged me so tightly that I could barely breathe.

"Let go! You're pressing on my belly!" I punched his back.

He immediately jumped back as if he had been electrocuted and looked helplessly at my belly, his eyes filled with lingering fear. "Elle... don't be mad... I brought you salmon."

I was confused. Had it not been for Melody?

"You said you wanted baked salmon the night before the last. I wrote it down in my notes," he explained quietly.

I remained quiet.

"So..." Theo suddenly knelt beside the bed, carefully taking my hand. "Can you forgive me?"

Looking at his red-rimmed eyes, a sudden idea struck me. "I'll forgive you if you cry one purple pearl."

Theo said nothing.

Three minutes later, I sat on the bed, smugly counting the purple pearls before me. I heard the system's notification.

"Villain's corruption level has dropped to 70%."