Volume 15 Chapter 2 The Mysterious Photo
"...I heard it's an emergency situation."
"Is that true?"
"Hmm..."
I entered the grand holy castle and was led to Holy King's room.
What I saw there was, in one word...
'...a mess.'
"Yeah..."
Miss Fuuko's room was, well... a total disaster.
It was spotless when I came by a little while ago, but now there's no room to step with all the dolls and stuffed animals scattered around.
Miss Fuuko was buried under the mountain of dolls and stuffed animals, only her face visible.
"Do you want a hug?"
Miss Fuuko stretched out both arms.
"Can't you get out by yourself?"
"If I could, I wouldn't have called you, would I?"
"What about Miss Miimo?"
"She ran away."
"Did she really run away?"
I pulled Miss Fuuko out from under the mess, and she plopped down on top of the mountain of dolls and stuffed animals.
"What happened, anyway?"
'Was a hurricane going through here or something?'
"It's a long story, but... I customized the cleaning dolls for battle, and then the person in charge of cleaning disappeared."
"Hmm..."
"Then the room got messy?"
"......"
"That's it?"
"Is that all, Miss Fuuko?"
"Do you need another reason for the room to be this messy?"
"No, it wouldn't get this bad just because of that."
"Did it, though?"
"Yeah, it did..."
'This person is really hopeless, isn't she?'
"I've been thinking the same thing, Juju."
I had a feeling something was off while we were talking, but... there's no way someone like this exists.
If I get involved, it'll only lead to trouble.
"Well, it seems like the job is done, so I'll just..."
I tried to make a quick exit, but...
"Hey, wait a minute," she said, tugging on my clothes.
"Clean up the room?"
"......"
I knew she'd say that.
I'm too soft-hearted.
I sighed and started picking up the scattered dolls and stuffed animals.
"For now, let's line up the dolls and stuff by type along the wall, okay?"
"Got it? Poii?"
"...Why are you scattering them from the organized side?"
"It's a mystery, isn't it?"
"...Are you unaware of it?"
For now, I can't do it alone.
It's time for my equipment to shine.
"Sui, Ram, let's work together!"
"Roger!" "...Yeah, yeah, yeah!"
I called out the twins to increase our manpower.
And then...
"Little Mimi, can you 'swallow' this mountain and 'puha' it against the wall?"
"Grrrr!"
I used the Gluttony Mimic Bag to move everything at once.
'So, what my job? Hey, what my job?'
"Juju, I want to give you the most important job."
'...What should I do?'
"Just stay out of everyone's way and hold your breath."
'Got it!'
Thanks to my equipment's efforts, the efficiency of cleaning up increased significantly.
Before I knew it, the floor of the room became visible (what an amazing feat).
I never thought I'd use cursed equipment for cleaning, but...anyway, I'll do my best not to lose to my equipment.
"Ah, uh...?"
"What is it?"
"It looks like it's just scattered around, but it's perfectly arranged it in its own way. Please don't mess it up too much."
"Hmm, that's true."
"A...ah...?"
I'll just clean up without asking any questions.
"Ah, uh...?"
"This time, why...?!"
"There's a wire trap, so be careful!"
"...It's too late."
When I realized it, I was hanging upside down from the ceiling.
"...Why is there a trap in the room?"
"It's a mystery, isn't it?"
"......"
I knew it from the start, but...this is on a whole different level of ridiculousness.
"Master!" "...I'll rescue you!"
"...Thanks."
The twins helped me out, and I somehow managed to restart the cleaning.
After that, I got caught in about 7 more traps, but there were no major problems, and the cleaning progressed.
And then...what can I say?
The dirty room that was completely chaotic just a while ago had transformed.
It had become so clean that I could call it a normal dirty room.
"Is this okay? If we clean up to this point, you can barely move around in a wheelchair..."
"Fuuh..."
Miss Fuuko elegantly brought the teacup to her mouth, then said one word.
"Are you satisfied with this much?"
"...You're pretty harsh on others, aren't you?"
As she said that, she slumped her shoulders and continued to tidy up the scattered items on the floor.
Among the dolls and stuffed animals, clothes and books were revealed. She set the clothes aside to be sent for cleaning later, and carelessly shoved the books onto the bookshelf.
"...Hmm?"
And then, as I picked up one book, a single photo slipped out from between the pages.
The old, faded photo had lost most of its color.
I thought I'd put it back in the book, but as I tried to pick it up, my eyes were drawn to the photo for some reason...
It seemed to be a photo of some facility.
In the background, there were several adults and... 7 kids.
Most of the faces were too faded to recognize, but... one face was clear. It was a face I knew all too well. There was no mistaking it.
That face was...
"......Juju?"
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