A 29-year-old office worker named Chise has always loved animals but could never touch them due to severe allergies. After dying while trying to save a cat, a god takes notice of her selfless act and grants her reincarnation into another world. As a reward, Chise requests a life surrounded by the fluffy creatures she was never able to pet in her previous existence. She is reborn as a cat-eared girl in a fantasy world and immediately begins building her ideal peaceful slow life in a forest atelier, where she works as an herbalist.

Her desire for a quiet existence is quickly complicated. The medicines she brews turn out to be extraordinarily powerful, and when a goblin attack threatens a nearby village, her actions inadvertently save the entire community, drawing unwanted attention. Her peaceful days become further entangled when she encounters a dragon-boy named Al, the second prince of the Beastman Kingdom. Al struggles with deep insecurities about his mixed heritage, as he was born to the Red Dragon King and a human saint, and he feels both physically and magically inferior compared to other dragons.

Chise begins gathering a small family of companions. She first tames a slime she calls Sla-chan, who becomes her constant advisor on the rules of this new world. She then befriends Socks, a calico-patterned Cait Sith who was separated from his group, and later takes in Maple, a young Forest Bear who arrives at the atelier fleeing from bees. Through Chise's taming abilities, Maple gains the power to take human form.

As the story progresses, Chise finds that her requested slow life repeatedly veers off course. Her extraordinary powers are misinterpreted by those around her, leading to rumors that she might be a saint or other legendary figure. Her growing relationship with Al, the troubled dragon prince, pulls her further from the simple woodland existence she wanted. The narrative arcs follow Chise as she navigates the gap between her modest expectations and the epic adventures she keeps stumbling into, all while trying to protect the warm, domestic life with her fluffy companions that she fought so hard to obtain.