Tags: Action, Fantasy, Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life

Sub-Tags: Otome, Bickering Couple

An Apothecary’s Intertwining Past!

The Past and Present Collide

After successfully saving a royal marriage, Carla’s dealings in divorce aren’t over yet. To discover the secret behind Thane’s hatred of witches and the strange death of his father, Carla looks to settle a divorce as a favour to one of her fellow witches, known as Ange, The Foresight Witch.

The past has always been a running theme throughout the series, but the second volume brings the events of the past into the forefront. Fifteen years ago, the Kingdom was under considerable strain, a time when corruption and criminality were rife. Seldom did those escape the clutches of terror, and neither Carla nor Thane were so lucky.

For Thane, these traumas of the past become especially raw when Carla mentions a trip to a lakeside witch’s meeting. Under the impression that a witch known as the Foresight Witch was the reason for his father becoming obsessed with gambling and bankrupting the family, Thane forces his way onto the trip.

Their trip to the lakeside was more successful than not. They get Ange to agree to share the information in return for Carla’s help on a divorce case. What’s truly positive from the trip is the development of the relationship between Carla and Thane. Given Carla’s ongoing trauma surrounding knights, it’s a big step for her to be able to sleep anywhere in Thane’s presence, showing that she trusts him.

The Case of Sleep Paralysis

As for the case that Carla’s been tasked to solve, it involves a rather complicated situation at the homestead of Viscountess Marsden. In a shocking development, the royal knight’s order had also been wary of the family ever since a burglary occurred at the home.

The Viscountess is looking for a divorce as she fears that her husband is poisoning her. Using her transformation abilities and the new additions of Nettie’s magical technology, Carla solves the sinister case by proving it’s something less sinister and more misguided.

Once again, the past plays a big role as two twins look to settle their differences with their father, and whilst Carla believes that she failed as a divorce agent, Ange agrees to the truth behind the incident 15 years ago.

The Foresight Witch

The climax of the volume follows the fuller perspective on what went on between Thane’s father and Ange. Thane’s father was more to blame for the incident than Thane was led to believe. He became obsessed with seeing the future, stalking Ange endlessly to the point he almost killed her. The only part of this mystery left is who ended up killing Thane’s father.

Ange’s visit to the apothecary also sparks new truths behind Carla’s past. Behind the long-winding mysteries of Carla’s mental block lies the potential reason behind her lack of magic power. Yet, this mental block is the only thing keeping her safe from her parent’s murderers. As soon as she remembers, they’ll come after her too.

To conclude, Apothecary Witch’s latest volume continues the high-quality storytelling of the first volume. Moving from an Otome setting, the second volume follows a more murder mystery-esque plot. The author has been clever in which mysteries to unravel and which to keep firmly on the back burner.

Moreover, the sequel in the series has opened up the stage for more witches to get involved in the plot. This volume saw more from both Ange and Nettie and how they can use their abilities. As the series moves forward, it would be interesting to see witches who are more antagonistic and are less likely to cooperate in future.