The witch and the poisonous apple

Before, Roze has told Harij that her grandmother was a witch, and also her teacher.

Putting the cup on the table, Harij muttered, "Yes, yes…"

"That the Great Witch—your grandmother—has passed away, I'm worried about you."

"Huh?"

Unable to comprehend his meaning, Roze can only listen.

They were talking about the herbs growing in the field—when did it switch to being about my well-being?

"You have no other relatives?"

"No. My mother seems to have died when I was young, that's all I know about her, really. I don't even know if I have a father, much else relatives…"

"At least you should've known something about your father…"

Of course, Roze knows how a child is actually conceived—only that she hasn't really talked much about it.

Roze doesn't know a thing about her father. It could be that he doesn't even know Roze exists.

"Your late grandmother must've been greatly worried about you, Witch-sama. Not only are you alone, it's as if you've never had a proper meal."

"…I do eat my lettuce properly, you know."

"I'm not sure if it's fine to eat lettuce and lettuce alone…—even so, I'm sure it must have been your grandmother's idea."

"Eh?"

"Your grandmother took good care of the field. You promised her to take care of the field, didn't you? She trusted you. That's why she also included the lettuce, in case you had nothing else to eat."

She never thought of it that way before.

That time, when Roze stood in front of the furnace, about to cook alone for the first time after her grandmother passed—

—she didn't think the rice she cooked was delicious, or basically any other food, really. She just wasn't in the mood to eat. Then, she started to pass on her meals. That was probably when her poor eating habit developed. To the point she started making 'Potion For Removing Appetite' and had that as a 'meal', instead. Back then, she truly had eating trouble.

In addition, she had to take care of the field. The field had to be watered early in the morning, and after she was done, it would be high noon. She was exposed to sunlight.

It was unthinkable to wake up after the sun rose, and laze around after the sun fell, because the herbs would wither. Some were more delicate than others and had to be given extra care.