Cleaning Chaos in the Guild Hall
“Wow, this place is no joke, really.”
Even though the first floor was the one Ahin had stayed in, the second floor was in a state that could only be described as utterly neglected.
It was surprising how much dust had accumulated on the first floor, but now it had all migrated upstairs, blanketing the walls in thick black grime and turning every corner into a web of spider silk.
Ahin spotted a few slimy bugs crawling across the floor and his face stiffened like stone.
“Sleeping here would mean I’d be full without even eating breakfast tomorrow.”
“...What does that even mean?”
“I’ll probably swallow dozens of bugs with my mouth all night.”
“Ugh...”
Er made a face of pure disgust, but Ahin looked like he had already steeled himself for something. He scanned the surroundings and said,
“This could be tricky. Er, you sure you’re okay with this?”
“Yes, I’m fine. So... from top to bottom, right?”
“That’s right.”
Gripping their brooms, they immediately launched into sweeping the ceiling and walls, focusing hard on removing the cobwebs and dust.
Every so often, they’d cover their mouths to block the swirling clouds of dust that rose from below, and they’d pull hoods over their heads to protect themselves from whatever was falling from above. It was such a perfect image of actual cleaners.
“Ahin, you seem really familiar with this...?”
“Hah, in the place I used to live, the weakest one always got stuck with cleaning.”
“You didn’t do anything else besides cleaning and cooking, right?”
“...*sniff*.”
Ahin choked up and couldn’t finish his sentence. Er looked at him, helpless, then burst out laughing.
“You worked so hard.”
“If my family hadn’t helped... Wait, no, scratch that! That was nothing! It wasn’t even worth mentioning!”
His expression had flashed across his face in an instant, clear as day even behind his mask.
Er swallowed the question bubbling up her throat and spoke carefully.
“There are a lot of rooms, so it’ll take a while. Let’s just finish cleaning a few rooms on the upper floor first, then we’ll focus on the hallways.”
“I was thinking the same thing.”
They had already gotten directions from Haru on where the rooms suitable for bedrooms were located.
Grabbing a bucket and cleaning supplies scavenged from somewhere, they stood in front of the door, faces set with grim determination.
And then.
Plop!
The moment Ahin looked down, a palm-sized cockroach flew straight at his face, and he collapsed in a heap with foam on his mouth. Er’s scream pierced the air right after.
●
In the heart of Carpe, inside the grand building that was basically the city’s symbol, in a luxurious reception room normally reserved for nobles, a blunt-faced clerk addressed the silver-haired woman sitting there.
“Welcome to the Carpe Adventurer Guild, Grand Inquisitor Veronica.”
“Are you the guild master, young lady?”
“No, the master is away on official business in the capital, but I’ve been entrusted with full authority. If you’re worried, I can show you the delegation letter the master left behind.”
“No, I wasn’t suspecting you at all... and you do seem quite capable.”
“You flatter me.”
Veronica’s gaze sharpened on the name tag pinned to the clerk’s chest—Lise.
“So, tell me why you wanted me to come straight to the guild the moment we arrived in the city. Honestly, I’m busy, you know.”
“Of course. May I ask you to review these documents?”
Lise set the document envelope on the table as she spoke.
Veronica’s eyes narrowed at the seal on the envelope, which looked very familiar to her.
“...If my eyes aren’t deceiving me, this bears the royal seal?”
“Yes, that’s correct. It’s a royal command regarding the black magic disturbances that occurred near Carpe.”
“Why are you handing this to me? Not the temple, not the guild.”
Lise answered with her usual flat expression, noticing the suspicion in Veronica’s eyes.
“I don’t believe there’s any need to question that.”
“...Oh? You’re telling an interesting story.”
“With so many people around, the guild naturally gathers a lot of information.”
Lise let out a tiny sigh, composed herself, and continued.
“The royal family hopes this information never reaches the church’s prayer meetings. That’s why the secret command came to the guild, and it’s our duty to carry it out.”
“So you’re dumping this headache on me, huh? You tell the story, I do the hard work, and the guild gets the reward?”
“That kind of contract isn’t something the guild aims for. Our Carpe Adventurer Guild always pursues mutual benefit. The reason we’re delivering this to you, Veronica-nim, is because our goals align.”
“Aligned goals?”
“Yes.”
Lise paused briefly as if organizing her thoughts.
“This information hasn’t been made public yet, but a necromancer has appeared near Carpe.”
“...A necromancer.”
“Yes, not just any black magician. At the very least, a mid-level necromancer from the Black Tower.”
Veronica’s face hardened when she heard the name.
“...Any leads?”
“It’s all in that envelope.”
Veronica stared at the royal-sealed document pouch, as if she already knew what was inside.
“I won’t bother telling you this, but the moment you open it, you must assist with confidentiality. And the target is...”
“The Grand Temple in Arcadia, including the prayer meetings’ elders, right? I hope those old fossils don’t find out about this.”
“The excuse is meant to curb the temple’s growing influence.”
Lise added, locking eyes with Veronica’s soft purple irises.
“...The Inquisition Committee operates outwardly as a subordinate of the church, but in reality, it’s just as independent. Especially if it’s you, Veronica-nim, you move even more independently.”
“How interesting. Where did you hear that kind of information?”
Veronica’s eyes flashed.
“Were our troublesome disciples behind this?”
“...Ahin-nim and Jina-nim are only Bronze-rank adventurers at best. That level isn’t even high enough to qualify as informants. It’s not them, though. Please refrain from interrogating the informants.”
“Heh, sorry. Occupational hazard.”
Veronica’s sharp gaze faded as she tilted the now-cold teacup.
“Well, since it’s not my disciples, fine. Don’t ask more. But you should be careful. If you reveal too many of your cards, some people might try to flip the board.”
“...I’ll keep that in mind.”
Ding! As Veronica set the teacup down, her hand reached for the document pouch.
“Alright, I accept. But there’s a condition.”
“...Condition?”
Lise’s face stiffened even further.
“Yes. Where are our cute little disciples right now?”
●
“...Done. Finally.”
Ahin beamed with satisfaction as he gazed at the gleaming hallway.
In the past few hours, the drama he had endured was so intense that it was impossible to watch without tears.
“I did it! I actually did it!”
“Ahin, I’m sorry to interrupt your moment, but could you take this? It’s way too heavy.”
“Ah, right.”
Er pointed to the sack overflowing with all sorts of junk left behind after cleaning the rooms and hallways.
She had already tried lifting it a few times, but her arms gave out and she pouted.
Ahin reached over and gripped the edge of the sack.
“I didn’t hear anything about this from Haru.”
“If I had seen it, I probably wouldn’t have known either. She doesn’t pay attention to anything.”
“That’s true... Ack.”
Ahin casually picked up the sack with zero thought, only to feel his waist suddenly give way. He panicked.
“...Er, this is the one you carried?”
“Yes, I put everything valuable inside.”
“Like what?”
“Table decorations, ceremonial swords... or statues?”
“...They’re not fake or cheap, are they?”
“I’m sure they’re real. I’m confident.”
“Really?”
Ahin’s eyes widened in surprise at Er’s words.
“Adventurers don’t usually do things like this. That’s surprising.”
“Hehe, it just happened...”
Ahin stared silently at Er, whose words trailed off.
“Anyway, first let’s show it to Haru and decide. The landlord is Haru, right? We’re... tenants?”
“Something like that.”
“...Somehow, it feels like something else is waiting for us besides being tenants, but I don’t want to talk about it.”
Ahin slung the heavy sack over his shoulder and headed downstairs.
“The first floor is supposed to be for Haru and Jina, so we’ll wrap this up and get something to eat...”
Crash!
Ahin’s sweet dreams were shattered by a brutally honest sound that echoed through the room.
He had only taken a few steps down the stairs.
The second floor, which he and Er had polished until it sparkled, was nothing compared to the scene on the first floor—one that looked like a garbage dump.
Ahin dropped the sack he was carrying with a loud thud.
“Ahin, what was that sound just now...”
“Ah, Ahin?! I-It’s already over?!”
Er called out to Ahin as she descended the stairs, and Jina, who had been squatting in a corner of the first floor, leapt up and turned around.
“Ah, Ahin, you finished faster than I thought. So... this means...”
“...You were cleaning?”
“I-I was! Look, the dust is gone, right?”
Jina proudly pointed to the nearby windowsill, where a broken glass window stood out conspicuously.
Once cloudy and covered in dust, the windowsill now gleamed with its true color. She declared,
“I-I was going to do the rest! So...!”
“...That makes sense.”
Despite Jina’s frantic attempt to clean up the mess, Ahin’s eyes—already smiling bitterly as if he had foreseen the situation—filled with tears.
“In the end, I was the one who had to do everything...!”
“Jina, where did Haru go?”
“Haru went to the basement to organize everything...”
“...No choice. Ahin, you two clean the first floor. I’ll take this to Haru and help with the basement.”
“O-okay...”
Ahin replied, but as Er lifted the sack with a flourish,
he felt something was off, though he couldn’t quite figure out what.
Ahin had just been carrying the sack.
A trivial thought had crossed his mind: a woman didn’t want to show someone she liked that she was stronger than the guy she was into.
Ahin tilted his head, puzzled, as if he didn’t understand.
What remained was the now-ruined cleaning area.