Chapter 1The Triple Curse

My sister-in-law, Lydia, was diagnosed with a rare triple womb, sending our entire family into a frenzy of joyous celebration. My mother, delighted beyond words, exclaimed, "Three wombs? Perfect! She can deliver three strapping grandsons for me in one go!"

I urged Lydia to seek a second opinion from a specialist at a major hospital. The specialist’s diagnosis was chilling: severe fetal deformities. A termination was imperative to save her life. But after Lydia recovered, she was unable to conceive again.

She and my mother blamed me. “What triple womb? I say it’s just your own barren jealousy, because you can’t bear children, and you envied my miraculous triple blessing.”

“The Vance family legacy is severed by your hand! How dare you still draw breath?!”

My mother and Lydia, in a sickening alliance, smothered me with pillows until I stopped breathing.

Then, my eyes snapped open. I was back. Back to the very day I suggested Lydia seek a second opinion at the hospital…

* * *

“SLAP!” The moment my eyes opened, a stinging slap sent stars dancing across my vision. My mother, her face a mask of fury, jabbed a finger at me. “Clara Vance, you wretched girl! You insisted your sister-in-law’s triple womb would lead to deformities, urging her to visit some ominous clinic for a check-up! I say you’re utterly superfluous—a pointless waste of breath!”

“When I carried your brother and you, I never once saw a physician, and you both turned out perfectly healthy!” she ranted. “I swear your intentions are malicious! You want the clinic’s ill fortune to curse away my precious grandsons…”

My cheek burned, but as I listened to Mother’s soul-crushing accusations, the truth slammed into me: I had been reborn. Back to the very day I suggested Lydia get a second opinion. My entire past life’s tragedy had begun on this exact day. I would not repeat that nightmare.

Swallowing the inferno of rage in my chest, I covered my stinging face, forcing a placating smile. “Mother, if you don’t want to go, then we won’t. Why get so upset? You’ll only harm yourself. I merely made a suggestion; whether to go or not is entirely your decision.”

Lydia, hovering nearby, fanned the flames. “Now you’re worried about upsetting Mother? I say it’s just your own infertility, your burning envy that I’m carrying triplets. You, my dear sister-in-law, are nothing but a black-hearted wretch.”

As expected, Mother’s dwindling anger flared anew. Her hand shot up, ready to strike me again. I knew Lydia’s nature. Unless I showed her some ‘blood’ today, this would never end. I feigned protest, truly surrendering. “Lydia, how can you say such a thing about me? Alright, then. To prove I’m not a black-hearted sister-in-law, I’ll transfer two thousand credits to you for the nephews’ nutritional expenses.”

The words barely left my lips before I swiftly transferred two thousand credits to Lydia via my comm-device. Compared to my life, two thousand credits were a paltry sum.

Lydia instantly accepted, her face blooming into a wide grin. “Oh, look at me, chattering nonsense! Our dear sister-in-law is certainly not black-hearted. You care for your nephews the most! From now on, their food, drink, and everything else will depend entirely on you.”

Mother lowered her arm, nodding vigorously. “You’re about to be an aunt! You’ll need to spend generously on your nephews.”

My sole desire was to put this behind me. Without another word, I just nodded and smiled, finding an excuse to leave. Stepping out the door, I overheard Lydia calling my brother, Marcus. She was excitedly planning a seafood lunch, mentioning rare Comb-Claw Crabs and Obsidian Dragon-Lobsters, and craving Black Ink Broth. Marcus asked if she’d won the lottery. She replied, “No, I just fleeced your soft-hearted sister.” Marcus roared with laughter on the other end, praising her cleverness and efficiency, and not forgetting to add two bowls of Sea Cucumber Porridge to the order.

Truly, my wonderful brother and sister-in-law!

In my previous life, even after that slap, I had insisted on taking Lydia to the hospital for a check-up. I promised that if Mother agreed, I would cover all of Lydia’s pregnancy expenses. That’s what finally made Mother relent and Lydia’s heart waver. At the hospital, the specialist’s diagnosis was a rare triple womb. “This is a severe uterine malformation. You cannot sustain a pregnancy to term. Even if you conceive, you won’t be able to deliver, and it will endanger your life. You must undergo surgery immediately to save yourself.”

Lydia was terrified, trembling. “Then… can it be done today?” The specialist, intrigued by such a rare case, made an exception and scheduled the termination for her.

But who knew? When she recovered and returned home, she shifted all the blame onto me. “Mother, it was all Clara! She can’t conceive herself, and she was jealous I was carrying three, so she dragged me into that operating room! How could I, a pregnant woman, fight her?”

“Oh, my poor sons, boo hoo hoo… The doctor said this termination has damaged my womb, and I may never conceive again.”

Mother, hearing this, went utterly insane. Her eyes blazing, she lunged at me, grabbing a pillow and pressing it over my mouth. “A triple womb, so many would kill for! You insisted it would lead to deformities! I say you’re the deformity! I’ll smother you to death, you abomination!”

“The Vance family legacy is severed by your hand! How dare you still draw breath?!” Lydia also helped press down the pillow. “What uterine malformation? It’s just your own barren jealousy, because you can’t bear children, and you envied my miraculous triple blessing.” Together, the mother and daughter-in-law smothered me until I drew my last breath.

This time, I wouldn't meddle in my birth family’s affairs. I would watch with cold detachment. Let’s see if Lydia’s triple womb can truly produce the heirs the Vance family so desperately craves.