Kazuki never thought he'd miss sewer steam.
Standing in the opulent **Council Hall of Viremont**, surrounded by marble pillars and nobles who looked like they'd melt at the sight of soap, he realized something unsettling:
**He was clean—but so was the enemy.**
Queen Elanore IV, regal in violet silk, raised her scepter. The court quieted. Dozens of powdered faces turned toward the unlikely guest in the center of the throne room—a young man in enchanted janitor gear, arms crossed, bleach on his boots.
> "By decree of the crown," the Queen began, "we name Kazuki Tanaka—Slayer of Mold, Purifier of Castle Depths, and Master of the Mop—our Royal Hygiene Advisor."
Murmurs rippled through the gallery.
"A *what* advisor?"
"Did she say... *hygiene*?"
"Gods, is that lemon I smell?"
Kazuki didn't bow. He gave a half-salute with his broom.
"Thanks," he said flatly. "I accept. But I'll need more soap."
---
His new office was smaller than expected—tucked between the Royal Archivist's map room and the royal pest controller's rat storage—but it had a desk, a window, and a stack of sanitation complaints dating back two decades.
It was paradise.
He got to work immediately.
Within a week:
* The royal kitchen staff were retrained in *cross-contamination prevention*.
* The bathhouses received **Cube of Purity (Mk III)** upgrades—now with hair detangling functions.
* The stables were given scented *anti-fly wards*.
* And Kazuki issued a mandatory inspection of **every noble's residence** for mold, mildew, or magical mildew variants.
That last one made enemies.
---
**Lord Halvest of House Grimewell** was the first to protest.
"A *janitor* is not above noble dignity!" he roared during a session of court.
Kazuki unrolled a scroll listing the spores found behind Halvest's dining hall tapestry.
"Your mildew is attempting sentience," Kazuki said. "Your dignity surrendered the moment it grew a mouth."
The court laughed. Halvest turned purple.
Queen Elanore raised an eyebrow.
"Lord Halvest," she said coolly, "shall we rename you Duke of Mold?"
He sat down without another word.
---
But not all in the court were hostile.
**Princess Lysandra**, the Queen's niece and known rebel within the royal ranks, took an instant liking to Kazuki's disregard for pomp.
"Your uniform is hideous," she said one morning, watching him scrub a mural of magical soot. "But your mop work is divine."
"Your perfume is hiding sweat," Kazuki replied, not looking up.
She grinned. "You're going to do fine here."
---
Despite his title, Kazuki soon realized **cleaning the court wasn't about dirt**—it was about what people hid beneath it.
There were backroom deals made over filthy coin. Nobles who kept plague-cursed trinkets locked in cellars. Magic-users who believed rot was a necessary evil.
Kazuki began compiling a blacklist.
Not of people.
Of *places*.
Rooms that *breathed* wrong. Halls that never stayed clean. Carpets that whispered in his sleep.
He called it: **The Hidden Infection.**
---
One night, alone in his office, Kazuki opened a sealed letter slipped under his door. The wax seal bore the symbol of the **Church of Healing**.
Inside: a warning.
> *"You purify the surface.
> But rot runs deeper.
> Even the Queen drinks decay."*
Kazuki frowned.
He placed the letter beside his growing pile of court secrets. Then, he unstrapped his broom and whispered an enchantment.
The bristles flared white with magic.
The war against filth had simply changed locations.