The Seed Thief

“…….”

“Hmm…”

“…….”

“Uhm.”

The witch tossed and turned several times but never opened her eyes. Ervandas was dumbfounded.

The sun had already risen high in the sky, unmistakably beyond lunchtime. Yet the witch showed no signs of waking up?

“Did she stay awake all night?”

Either that, or she’s incredibly lazy.

Still, could a human sleep until this hour?

Throughout his life, nobody, except the sick or collapsed ones, had ever slept so late.

Nevertheless, the witch seemed like she would sleep much longer. Ervandas pondered whether he should continue waiting and glanced at the book he had placed beneath his feet before sitting down.

Due to his haste, the books had gathered haphazardly. Ervandas bent down to neatly stacked them. He didn’t want to turn his head toward the witch, but the books were innocent.

After tidying the books, he hesitated briefly, rose from his seat, gathered books, and set them on the desk, sorting them according to size.

“This will do.”

Just as he was about to settle back into the chair after organizing the books, Ervandas spotted another stack of books near the desk. He paused briefly, then reached out toward them.

Since leaving this place was impossible anyway, and with no other tasks at hand, it seemed better to engage in physical activity and accept reality. Above all, it was unbearably dirty, even disgustingly so.

Tak tak tak.

Wherever Ervandas’s hands passed by, the books were neatly arranged by size.

Once the books were in order, Ervandas’s attention turned to feather pens, dried inkwells, crumpled old paper, and bundled charcoal sticks—apparently stuff the witch used for writing. Ervandas looked at them for a moment and reached out again.

‘Aren’t there any organizers?’

As he opened the desk drawer, he found an old wooden tray. He intended to put things in it, but upon wiping the piled dust with his fingertips, he sighed.

Putting stuff in such a thing was no different from throwing trash into a garbage bin.

While desperately ignoring Lulu, who was still sprawled out snoring loudly, Ervandas looked for something suitable for cleaning. Luckily, he found a cloth nearby that seemed slightly less dirty than what he had slept on, along with a metal bucket containing water.

Splash.

Dipping the cloth into the metal bucket and wringing it out, he set items aside and began to wipe the desk surface.

“Goodness…”

Where the mop had passed, the desk unveiled an entirely distinct hue. A rich, deep shade—a luxurious tint intrinsic to aged wood. To treat such furniture so nonchalantly. Ervandas clicked his tongue and kept working with his hands.

How much time had passed? Ervandas stopped his hand and surveyed the living room.

A dilapidated, warehouse-like house crammed with an abundance of belongings. Despite hours of effort, he only managed to clean roughly half of the living room.

The house, which was more chaotic than a pigsty, had transformed into a somewhat decent-looking home under his touch.

Properly arranged books on the bookshelf. The spacious desk with only a pen tray on top. Even the junk that littered the floor regained their identities as the dust was wiped off and placed in their proper places.

The folded carpet was neatly spread under the chair, and the cloth that seemed to have been hung up to block the cold was folded and placed on the floor, as it seemed better to wash it once.

Observing the living room that had undergone a complete transformation compared to a few hours ago, he felt a sense of accomplishment like never before.

The places he had lived until now were always well-organized. In the palace with numerous possessions, the servants cleaned and organized everything meticulously, leaving no speck of dust. When he was a temple knight, his room had no more than five simple and minimalist furniture pieces, and his belongings did not exceed ten.

They remained so spotless that any change after cleaning was hardly noticeable. So cleaning Lulu’s house brought him immense satisfaction beyond his expectations.

‘Somehow I feel proud…no, what am I thinking?’

To enjoy cleaning in this situation…He vigorously shook his head, suspecting that the witch’s curse had paralyzed his sanity.

After looking at the organized living room several times, Ervandas instinctively walked toward the door, wanting to wash himself.

“Hmm?”

When he opened the front door, he realized there was no issue with leaving the house, unlike in the morning.

“So, if I have no intention to escape, I can move freely.”

Ervandas clicked his tongue, attuned to his surroundings. The distant sound of flowing water reached him. It was unmistakably the sound of the stream that he had passed by on the way to this house.

He headed toward the stream, holding an old cloth in his arms. For now, the witch or what, he just wanted to wash away the sweat and dust that clung to his body. He also needed to wash the mop he had used to clean inside the house and discard the dirty water.

When Ervandas reached that point, his face turned serious.

Wasn’t the witch’s curse meant to enslave him and manipulate his mind? How could he even consider cleaning in this situation?

“I need to clear my mind.”

With that determination, Ervandas picked up the mop and water bucket and walked away.

***

“Haaaaah….”

Lulu let out a long yawn, stretching herself awake. The warm afternoon sunlight, almost bordering on hot, bathed her back.

She had definitely felt a sense of satisfaction as if sleeping wrapped in a warm blanket all night, but now she felt empty. Why was that?

Rubbing her puffy eyes, Lulu looked around, searching for the source of her unease. Suddenly, her sleepy eyes widened.

“W-What’s happening?”

Shivering like someone who had witnessed the most horrifying sight in the world, Lulu quickly rose from her spot.

Where was she? The ceiling and windows were undoubtedly those of her long-lived home, yet the living room looked utterly unfamiliar.

“Why the…Huh? He’s gone?”

Lulu stumbled backward, screaming upon realizing that Ervandas, whom she had slept next to last night, had disappeared. Just then, a shadow fell on the window. As the golem peered in, Lulu hastily checked if Er’s blood was smeared on the golem’s fist. Fortunately, the golem’s fist was clean.

But there was no reason to feel relieved.

“Golem! Where is Er!”

The golem pointed toward a section of the forest and mimicked wiping its body with its hand.

He is washing himself.

At the golem’s actions, Lulu pressed her pounding heart.

“I was scared, thinking he had left.”

Lulu thought her magic had worn off quickly, causing him to flee. But if he had gone to bathe…She exhaled and looked at the living room again.

The forest witch who raised Lulu wasn’t good at organizing either—her usual excuse was, “I used to do it when I was young, but now that I’ve grown old, it’s bothersome.” Hence, Lulu had never seen the house in such meticulous order.

“This is what my house looks like.”

Lulu constantly bumped into piles of books as she walked. Were it not for the creaking sound underfoot, she wouldn’t even know whether the floor was wood or stone.

Lulu stood dumbfounded, staring at the living room that looked completely different. She knew who had done this without even asking. Er.

“Amazing!”

Lulu puffed out her chest as if she had cleaned the house herself, making her body even more pronounced beneath the thin clothes. Of course, Lulu paid no mind at all.

“I caught him after all…No no, the human I brought!”

The stone golem shrugged its shoulders at Lulu’s exclamation.

Yes, yes, of course.

Lulu had merely thought Er was just tall and pretty, but to possess such incredible skills. If Er were here in front of her, she wanted to kiss his face all over, just like the forest witch used to do to her.

Filled with excitement, Lulu, who was about to go find Er, suddenly stopped and glanced down at herself. Despite the warmth of his embrace last night, she had sweated. Furthermore, there were drool marks around her mouth.

After a moment’s thought, Lulu rushed back to her room and grabbed the soap she had found yesterday. Ignoring the golem’s questioning gaze, she dashed toward the direction the golem had pointed, her thin clothes fluttering in the wind.

I need to wash! And wash Er too!

***

“Hoo…”

Ervandas released a satisfied sigh as he sat slightly deep in the stream, shaded by big trees. The clear and cold water washed away the dirt and sweat from his body, leaving a refreshing sensation. With each splash, his tangled mind also seemed to regain clarity.

Scooping up the flowing water to wash his face, he gazed at the shimmering ripples on the water’s surface and thought.

‘How beautiful.’

While studying doctrine in the temple, the high priest often told the knights to imagine the paradise that would await them one day. Each time, Ervandas envisioned a particular landscape—a deep forest untouched by human presence.

The scenery before him now resembled the paradise he had always envisioned. Birds singing melodiously from perched branches, and squirrels busily gathering nuts nearby.

It truly was a perfect paradise, except for one thing.

“Haa…….”

That one thing…A sigh resembled a lament escaping his lips.

“The witch.”

Breaking the witch’s curse and determining her fate afterward were pressing matters. More importantly, why had she brought him here?

‘Whatever the reason, last night’s events cannot happen again.’

As Ervandas recalled the previous night, a chill ran down his spine. The carnal indulgence of the night before had left his mind foggy. However, what bothered him further was the unsettling feeling he experienced after the witch’s behavior, which went beyond mere discomfort.

‘Why…….’

Ervandas’s hand unconsciously moved downward. Unlike the previous night, it had returned its usual form, gently swaying in the clear water.

He stared at it for a long time. What did the witch say? Big and beautiful…….

Just then, from afar, the voice he least wanted to hear reached his ears.

“Er!”

“……!”

Alarmed, Ervandas lifted his head. And there, he saw Lulu running through the forest, her thin clothes fluttering in the wind.

“That witch?!”

What frightened him more than her approaching was the fact that she wore nothing but her undergarments!

“I’ll wash you!”

He wanted to yell to get rid of that filthy body.

“Thank you, master.”

But he replied courteously, uttering words contrary to his thoughts due to the witch’s curse.

‘What is there to be grateful for! And she said she’ll wash me?!’ While Ervandas bewildered,

splash!

Water sprayed with a loud sound. Lulu, who had jumped into the deep water, approached Ervandas with a big smile.

The sight of her approaching him froze him in place. He had thought her attire in the morning was far from proper. However, now, the wet thin fabric clung to Lulu’s body tightly, leaving Ervandas breathless.

In the morning, only the contours of her body were faintly visible. Now, every detail appeared vivid.

Splash. Splash.

He couldn’t take his eyes off Lulu as she energetically cut through the water.

Her slender figure, along with her ample bosom, extended down to the triangle between her thighs. The form concealed beneath the damp fabric, though obscured, ignited one’s imagination even more than complete nudity.

Ervandas’s face flushed instantaneously. Since when had he become so imaginative? As if he possessed the ability to see beneath her undergarments, Lulu’s approaching form danced vividly in his mind.

During my summertime, one month and a half, I just noticed that I've translated 13 chapters. Never did I expect I could do this much 🤣

Anyway, 2 more chapters and we'll be moving to Chapter 4, which is the end of Vol.1