The seeds we plant

Judith's POV:

Roa, who was finally able to sort out the turbulent feelings in her heart, begins to actively approach her butler. She tries to seek him out whenever she feels lonely. She even asks him to help her put on her shoes so she can observe his embarrassed reaction. But nothing seems to work against the iron butler. Roa becomes disheartened believing that Albert is ignoring all her advances, but far from reality Albert is actually already in love with Princess Roa, barely able to contain his feelings for her. However, due to a promise he made to the late queen, he cannot accept those feelings and keeps them locked away deep in his heart while putting up an iron front against Roa's attempts.

Faced with the wonderful story before me, all I can do is sigh. But not out of joy but out of resignation.

"How many times have I read this already?"

No matter how many times I went over this part, I could barely concentrate. From the corner of the room I was in, that strange girl was sitting while holding her knees staring at me relentlessly.

"How many days has it been already? 5?"

Remembering the previous days only gave me a headache. At first I had decided to ignore her and wait for her to go away, but that didn't turn out so well. The first day I had managed relatively well, although her piercing gaze made me uncomfortable, I was able to bear it. The second day would have been the same if I hadn't raised a question in my head.

"This girl hasn't eaten anything since yesterday, right?"

Although we witches can certainly survive without eating, that doesn't mean we can't feel hungry. And despite all that, she still has the exact same expressionless face, without a hint of pain in her expression. That made my repulsion towards her only grow like fear. After that, I couldn't concentrate on anything I did that day. That gaze that seemed to search my soul haunted me all day, I barely got any sleep that day.

On the third day I got angry and ordered my boys to get her out of my sight. Although killing her could also be an option, killing such a small girl would leave a bad taste in my mouth. Besides, I don't know how that weed would react if I killed the new one on a whim.

I was hoping my boys could do it, but… it was in vain. When they approached her they grabbed her by the neck as if she were a puppy and took her out of the room. But she soon found herself fighting with my boys to get back in. At first I didn't worry too much about it and let them fight at their leisure, but the incredible happened. An hour of peace later the girl entered the room while riding one of my boys. My jaw hit the floor in surprise. After that my boys played with her from time to time. Although I somehow managed to get brief moments of peace now, that disturbing look always returned to the back of my head. I couldn't sleep well that night either.

On the fourth day I changed the focus of my problem. I was the one who left the room to find some peace. I looked for other rooms and settled in there so I could read in peace, but it was no use. Even though I thought I had been stealthy enough to not be found, she easily found me while riding one of my wolves.

"Damn traitors!"

Somehow she took it as a game of hide and seek and spent the whole day chasing me. No matter where I hid, with the help of my wolves she found me very easily.

In the end I gave up and left the house on my way to a nearby town where I bought my books. Apparently she didn't follow me outside and that was a huge relief for me. I tried to read there, but I wasn't very good with crowds after all. I didn't find a place I liked to be able to read carefree. There were always too many people around, or the place itself was too uncomfortable. In the end I resigned myself and went back home only to find her still standing at the door waiting with that creepy expression waiting for me. I nearly let out a shriek when I saw her peek through the door.

That brings us to today, the fifth day since that little girl came to my space. With my mind on edge from all the stress of the past few days, I looked back at the little girl who was in the same corner as always. One of my boys had settled down next to her and was sleeping peacefully there. I couldn't help but frown at that traitor standing next to the little girl. His gaze was just as terrifying as ever. Deciding to finish this matter once and for all, I forged a master plan to settle the matter.

- Hey girl, by any chance are you bored of watching me all day?

The little girl, surprised by the sudden approach, seemed confused, but finally nodded.

- Perfect, then don't you want to read something? I have many stories in this place that you might like.

That was my master plan. If I can't get away from her, then I'll just get her busy with something else. If I can get her hooked on some story, it will finally be goodbye to my sleep-deprived days. Despite my confidence in my plan, the girl's eyes didn't show the expected enthusiasm.

- I can't read.

When she let go of those words, I collapsed into a crouch while cursing my lack of foresight.

- But… I can learn if you want.

I immediately stood up upon hearing those words. I stood up and ran to the bookshelf looking for some book that was appropriate for the task. Sadly my bookshelf was filled with complicated romance stories and small print, not appropriate for someone to learn to read.

- Wait here a moment.

With those words, I ran out of the house to the town to buy the necessary materials. About half an hour later I returned with several books to teach the basics of reading.

- Let's get started!

This is how my long journey as a tutor began.