CHAPTER 02……………………………
“Our daughter’s favorite apple cake has been made. Eat some and cheer up.”
“No… I think I’d rather just go to my room and rest.”
“Of course. You must be tired from the journey. Go on, get some rest.”
Rosennelly Ferdi gave a faint smile and slowly trudged up the stairs. The duke and duchess watched her retreating figure with worried expressions. She looked fragile… exhausted… almost like a completely different person.
The Duke of Ferdi even wiped away tears.
“My dear… our only daughter has withered away like this…”
As he spoke, he hurriedly stopped the maid following behind Rosennelly.
“Natasha. Tell me at once about Rosennelly’s life in the imperial palace. What on earth happened to our daughter for her to become like that?”
“Could it be that the Crown Prince mistreated her? Did he run around with concubines or something—!”
“That is absolutely not the case, my lord. As for the reason for the divorce… even we do not know. Only His Highness the Crown Prince and Lady Rosennelly know the reason. In truth, even the ministers in the palace are unaware.”
The divorce between the Crown Prince and Crown Princess had been so secretive that even the Duke and Duchess of Ferdi didn’t know why their own daughter had returned divorced.
It seemed even the Emperor didn’t know the exact reason.
Well, to be fair, the Emperor wasn’t particularly interested in either state affairs or the Crown Prince’s marriage—but still, the truth was that only the two involved knew the reason.
When she first transmigrated into Rosennelly Ferdi, she had actually been happy.
Me? I transmigrated into Rosennelly Ferdi?
She was the Crown Princess of the empire, married to a man who was one of the two most handsome male leads in the original story.
Of course, she had her own tragic backstory.
Her husband, Crown Prince Leonhardt, was extremely handsome but suffered from an unknown illness that made him very sensitive. He also neglected his wife, making Rosennelly quite a lonely character in the original novel.
But aside from being lonely, she never got caught up in dangerous situations, nor did she fall victim to palace schemes. She just existed quietly, later becoming a minor helper to the protagonist before fading out.
In short—if she just stayed still, she’d be fine.
She already had power, a gentle personality, a stable life, and a handsome husband—just a bit lonely.
Wasn’t that basically the best possible outcome?
…Or so she thought.
That illusion shattered within days.
The reason was simple.
No one in this world freaking bathed.
In this romance-fantasy world—people. did. not. wash.
Only then did Rosennelly realize that the hygiene standards were basically equivalent to the era of Louis XIV.
Showers? Bidets? Forget that—this was practically an era where people thought bathing would kill them.
During the Black Death, people believed warm water opened pores and allowed disease in. Some even claimed that dirt acted as a protective barrier.
Even Louis XIV’s physician had claimed bathing caused illness.
So naturally—no one washed.
And since people didn’t wash, sanitation systems never developed either.
The streets were full of waste, and high heels were invented to avoid stepping in it. Wide skirts were designed to keep it off clothes.
And that wasn’t all.
There were no proper toilets in the palace.
None.
Just chamber pots or primitive setups.
Even the imperial palace—huge as it was—lacked proper restrooms for the sake of aesthetics.
Because of that, Rosennelly had started refusing food.
“Your Highness, does the food not suit your taste? Why aren’t you eating…?”
“Why? Because if I eat, I have to go.”
“W-What?! What are you talking about? Eating and… going is natural!”
“If I eat… I have to deal with the consequences.”
To others, Rosennelly must have seemed completely insane.
A young Crown Princess, married at fourteen, neglected by her husband… had she finally lost her mind?
Yes.
Rosennelly genuinely felt she might go insane at this rate.
Forget the novel—she couldn’t live like this.
So, one month after transmigrating, she stormed off to find her husband.
It was the first time she properly saw Crown Prince Leonhardt in person.
In the novel, he was described as extraordinarily beautiful—soft, gentle-looking, like sunlight.
Jet-black hair like a lion’s mane, sculpted features, but always wrapped in bandages below the neck due to his illness.
In reality—
He was even more handsome than she imagined.
For a moment, Rosennelly completely forgot why she had come.
Even his voice was pleasant.
“You said you had something important to tell me.”
Honestly… with that face, she thought she could live with him forever—even if he ignored her.
“I hope it’s worth my time.”
…Though his personality was terrible.
Still, she tried to understand. He handled state affairs from a young age and suffered from illness—of course he’d be irritable.
“…I want you to build a bathhouse in the palace.”
“A bathhouse?”
“Yes.”
“I’ve heard you’ve been acting strangely lately. It must be true. Stop talking nonsense and leave.”
“No, that’s not what I—”
“Or is this your way of getting my attention?”
“No, seriously—”
“Rosennelly. Didn’t I tell you I would never love you? You married me knowing that. If you want an heir, I can provide one—but don’t expect affection. That’s unpleasant.”
His tone was cold and cutting.
“And if you have nothing else to say, leave.”
He didn’t even look at her—his attention remained on his documents.
That was the breaking point.
“…Wow. You’re not even twenty and your attitude is already trash. Do you have any idea what it’s like to not eat properly, not relieve yourself properly, and not wash for a whole month? You’ve got all this money and can’t even build a bathhouse for your wife? You think heirs just drop from the sky? I don’t want to have children with someone who doesn’t even wash!”
“…What did you just say?”
“That thing under your bandages? That’s from not washing. It’s probably eczema! You think being handsome makes you sweet? Sorry, but I reject you. I reject you! Let’s just get divorced—I can’t live here anymore!”
And that was how Rosennelly’s divorce happened.
Of course, Leonhardt didn’t agree immediately—but that was the reason.
When the Duke and Duchess of Ferdi heard it, they were speechless.
“So… you divorced because there’s no bathhouse in the palace?”
“Yes.”
“…Then what do you plan to do now, Rosennelly?”
The duke asked, pressing his forehead.
Rosennelly quietly looked at a large map of the empire on the wall—then pointed at one location.
“I’m going to build a hot spring. For a clean and hygienic world.”
Her finger pointed precisely to Voltamir—a remote volcanic region, far from the capital, known as cursed land.
“My dear… that area is dangerous.”
“Is it still active?”
“No, but the ground is hot. People call it the Devil’s Mountain.”
“No, Father. It’s not a devil’s mountain.”
Her eyes sparkled.
“It’s a gift of nature—a place where hot springs flow.”
While her eyes shone with excitement, the duke looked at her with deep concern.
Has my daughter… gone completely mad?
He quickly looked to his wife for help.
