Maddies Manga

This was the first time I read the light novel before a manga in Japanese! I collected the manga while living in Japan (I was able to buy all but 1 second-hand!) in anticipation of reading them after I finished the book, and that’s exactly what I did!

There are 5 volumes total (so far…?), and they follow the entirety of the first light novel. The novel is available in both English and Japanese for those interested, and you can read more about them here!

---

Plot Summary

The Good Witch of the Lake’s four-year crush ended in heartbreak with a single request from the object of her affections! Wanting to increase what little time she has with Royal Knight Harij, Rose sends him on a wild-goose chase for the ingredients but gets more than she bargained for when the grumbling knight starts visiting her every day…to feed her?

What Happens in Volume 1?

This volume, as the first volume of all manga do, introduces us to out main characters, as well as the world of the manga. We learn that in this world witches and magic do exists, but only to a certain degree. Rather than create spells, witches are gifted with the ability to make extraordinary potions. This gift comes with a price, however – they are unable to tell lies.

Our main character, Rose, has had a secret crush on an elite knight, Harij, for the past four years. One day, he appears out of blue demanding a commission for a love potion. Rose, having no choice but to accept, stretches out the time it takes the potion as much as possible to have a little more time with him.

Harij, appalled at how the reclusive Rose has been living, begins to come to her house to help/force her to clean, and get proper meals while she’s still creating his potion.

---

Character Motivations

Rose

Rose was born a witch, and grew up in seclusion with her grandma. When her grandma passed, she was alone. Except for the odd customer, and talking with merchants when visiting town. During one excursion into town, she overhears a knight defending her recently departed grandmothers honour, and from there, she was in love.

---

Harij

Harij’s motivations have not been explained as of volume 1! We know he’s from a renowned family, and that he was raised to protect women especially.

---

Maddie’s Ratings

I’ll be honest, when I first started reading this I really didn’t love the art. Maybe it’s because I read the novel first, but a lot, especially Harij’s facial expressions, were drawn different from how I originally imagined them. The art style did grow on me quickly however!

I love everyone who appeared in volume 1! There were really only 3 notable characters, but I think the chemistry between them works very well. I also believe that their personalities and quirks are incredibly believable given their circumstances. They both have good and bad attributes, which adds to the believability.

I think the premise is very cute! I also liked learning about the lore behind the witches, especially the “witches can be neither good nor bad” part. As the story has only followed Rose so far, I’m excited to see more about Harij’s side.

There’s been a lot of awkward scenes, but nothing romantic (yet).

---

Final Thoughts

While not all that much happened in this volume, I think it set the stage for the series very well! As there’s a total of 5 volumes, were only 1/5th of the way to the end.