Complex sentence: Majo Rika later gains more witch apprentices, each a bit of a handful for her, thus leading her to call them (especially Doremi), but in reality, she does care for them and thinks of them as her daughters.
Split into simpler sentences: Majo Rika later gains more witch apprentices, each a bit of a handful for her, thus leading her to call them (especially Doremi). In reality, she does care for them and thinks of them as her daughters.