In the guild building, Rubella raised an eyebrow, surprised by the price of the vacuum cleaner.
"Only 10 gold coins? That's cheap!"
In this world, even the cheapest magic tools cost a thousand gold coins. However, even if someone had money, they could not access it that easily, for capable artisans and craftsmen never released their products to the public. Only the nobles and the royalty monopolized the magic tools. The only way they could find one was to locate lost magic tools that nobles had abandoned in the wild or to receive them as a gift from their owners.
Thus, 10 gold coins were a bargain!
Rubella fetched her pouch and pulled out ten gold coins. She followed the instructions, dropping the coins into the basket and shouting.
"I'm buying the magic tool! Give it to me!"
After the coins entered the basket, they vanished. In exchange, a modern wireless vacuum cleaner manifested in mid-air and landed in front of Rubella.
The receptionist grabbed it and noticed a pamphlet, which was attached to the machine. She removed the tapes and read the pamphlet. Fortunately, the texts were in the local language.
"Oh… I see."
The pamphlet was the manual of the vacuum cleaner, detailing the machine parts and their functions. Rubella grinned and opened the back part, revealing a socket chamber containing a piece of glowing stone.
Rubella silently closed it, but her smile widened. That was a magic stone, and the manual stated clearly that the machine required one to maintain its functions. She flipped the switch on, and the vacuum cleaner hummed. Air flowed into the nozzle, traveled into the pipe, and entered the filter system. Warm wind was released from the machine, but the impurity entered a thick black bag inside.
Falling in love with the vacuum cleaner, Rubella hugged it. She then glanced at Appendix.
"This is mine."
Appendix smiled wryly. "I know. I'm a mage, not a thief. I don't steal from women."
"So you steal from men?"
"…That's not what I meant."
Rubella smirked and stopped teasing her security guard. She continued playing with the new toy, cleaning the floor.
While doing the chore for the guild, Rubella glanced at the screen, mimicking Parita's movements. She soon mastered the sliding technique and had fun rolling the vacuum nozzle around.
* * *
DING
[You have made a total of ONE sale!]
[20 silver coins have been deposited to your Level 1 Inventory.]
After finishing her sales pitch, Parita resumed working on the mansion. Five minutes later, the result came.
A look of scorn appeared on Parita's face. She looked down at the number and mocked the system.
'You talked big, but you only sold ONE item?'
[Rome wasn't built overnight. The road to stardom takes time.]
'Yeah, right.'
Parita rolled her eyes and stopped talking to the system. However, the system didn't let her focus on the job for long. After 10 minutes of doing the chore, a new vertical screen emerged, replacing the message log.
It was the live chat screen. However, unlike the super chat screen, it didn't show the user levels.
This reminded her of when she used to livestream. She started talking.
"In case you're wondering where this is, don't bother searching for me. I got a new job. Every day, I just have to tidy up this mess, and I earn one gold coin monthly. Not bad, right?"
DING
(Rubella): That is the standard salary of a housekeeper of a noble family.
(Appendix): For a job with no risks, that's good pay.
The number of viewers was displayed in the top right of the screen. The number of viewers remained at six. Parita was used to the low numbers, and she didn't expect to be popular overnight.
And thus, she continued working. When the superficial dust was gone, she mopped the floor.
* * *
Appendix and his comrades couldn't avert their eyes from the screen for some reason. The way the dust vanished into the vacuum cleaner was oddly satisfying. They continued watching in silence.
Meanwhile, Rubella also got addicted to the magic tool in her hands. However, as it was her first time, she quickly targeted small glass shards, and the pieces soon filled the bag. Her vacuum cleaner automatically shut off.
Rubella frowned and flipped the vacuum cleaner around. As she had opened the machine's cover before, she quickly removed the lid and noticed that the bag was packed with random objects. But as she was about to take the trash bag out, the machine glowed. The accumulated dust, wood chips, glass shards, and random objects in the trash bag vanished.
"…Oh. How magical!"
Rubella was overjoyed. However, it also disturbed her. She realized that if she accidentally collected something precious with this machine, she wouldn't be able to retrieve it.
Changing her approach, she cleared the small objects first with a broom. When no more visible objects remained on the floor except dirt and dust, she swiped the floor with the vacuum cleaner.
She felt satisfied with her performance and observed Parita, evaluating her methods. Surprisingly, Parita did the same, except she collected all items with her hand. Some junk in the room seemed to be old talismans and books, left behind by one of the elves. Rubella also noticed that Parita spotted a few earrings and rings in the process, and she separated the big junk into different baskets.
Rubella smiled wryly. She thought she was qualified to be a housewife, but she still had a lot to learn.
Meanwhile, the men were impressed. Appendix talked to his friend.
"When my wife cleans our house, she always mistakes my wands for tree branches and throws them out. I wish she collected them and waited for me to deal with them myself… like that pink elf does."
His friend smirked. "But your wands indeed look like random branches."
"They're enchanted, fool!"
"Nobody can differentiate an enchanted wand from a twig apart, man. Attach it with a fake gem or something."
"…I used to, but my wife removed the gems and sold them."
Appendix's friends burst into laughter. Being wide awake and in a good mood, they asked Rubella.
"Ruby! Is the kitchen open yet? Can we order food?"
Rubella rolled her eyes. "The cook's shift starts at sunrise. The sky is still dark."
"But we're hungry! We need breakfast!"
"Cook them yourself. You dork."
The security guard team booed, but they secretly laughed at their comrades. Everybody returned their attention to Parita's housework session.
Parita suddenly talked as though she knew they were looking at her.
"In case you're wondering where this is, don't bother searching for me. I got a new job. Every day, I just have to tidy up this mess, and I earn one gold coin monthly. Not bad, right?"
Rubella and the Night Watcher party were slightly taken aback. A second later, they remembered that she had just sold Rubella a magic tool.
Rubella nodded in approval and answered as if Parita were in the same hall. "That is the standard salary of a housekeeper of a noble family."
Appendix shrugged as he could earn a gold coin in a week by completing a slightly dangerous quest. It didn't impress him. "For a job with no risks, that's good pay."
On the screen, Parita paused and mumbled to herself. She shrugged and continued working. Soon, she whipped out a mop, a bucket of water, and a transparent jerrycan full of floor detergent.
At that moment, Rubella and the crowd froze. They understood that Parita planned to mop the floor, but she brought out a mysterious transparent bottle containing brown liquid.
"What's that?" Rubella got curious.
"Floor detergent. Oh, wait…" Parita instantly replied and flinched. The next moment, her tone shifted as though she had become a different person. "Actually, we also have another promotion. We're currently experimenting with a new product, Floor Potion! Mix this potion with water, and then mop the floor with it! It cleans your wood floors and smells like flowers, perfect for places like taverns and wooden homes. Well, since you're my first customer, how about I give you some samples?"
A small bottle containing brown liquid manifested in mid-air in front of Rubella and fell to the floor. She picked it up, opened the lid, and sniffed it.
It did, in fact, have the scent of lavender.
Rubella was overjoyed. She rushed to the storeroom, fetched a water bucket, and tested it right away. After mixing the detergent with water, the odor thickened and spread throughout the hall.
Rubella snickered. She pictured the guild hall with a fresh, clean smell and a spotless floor instead of the usual odor and filth left by the adventurers who hadn't bathed in months. Making her decision for the guild on the spot, Rubella turned to the screen and asked.
"HOW MUCH! I NEED MORE OF THESE!"
Parita made the OK gesture, but it referred to money. "Usual price. 10 gold coins per 100cc."
Rubella instantly poured all the coins from her pouch and fetched a hundred gold coins. She dumped the coins into the basket and placed an order.
"Give me 100 gold coins' worth of these potions, please!"
Parita didn't reply, but ten transparent bottles full of brown detergent appeared. Rubella snatched everything and rushed to the storeroom, where the staff stored all cleaning tools. The receptionist couldn't stop grinning.
The time was approaching when she could breathe clean air within the guild. She was fed up with tolerating the disgusting body odor of the adventurers.