CH5 Cleaning House
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"I really failed there," Alex said to Fufi. "I'm not sure what I did wrong. That bear stared at me and gave me a hug. Everything after that was a blur, and I remember my phone saying 'You have been defeated by friendship.'"

"Well, at least you're still handsome," Fufi said in a soothing tone. "Did that bear have the ability to cast friendship spells?"
Alex replied, "I guess so! He didn't seem very powerful, but it must have been some sort of spell that got me."

Fufi pondered, "It might be some kind of racial ability as well. Succubi use that a lot. Do you know what the bear's name was?"

Alex said, "He didn't say his name or anything, I just thought of him as the bear. The phone said something about a fight starting with a huggle bear. He just said kuma over and over."

 

Fufi had a contemplative look on her face while saying, "Kuma... Kuma... Kuma..." Fufi paused and looked at Alex. "Not sure about the bear but I think I know why the generated dungeon pitted you against an opponent with a strong status ability."

 

"You do? Why?"

 

Fufi said, "Well, getting a friendship status is similar to a really common status affliction in this world called 'charm' ; it is the main ability of a succubus."

 

Alex said, "Ahh I get it, so the bear was similar to a succubus."

 

Fufi nods and states, "That is what I believe.  If someone can make you your friend that isn't too bad.  But if you are charmed then they can force you to do almost anything."

 

Alex looked thoughtful and asked, "What if you could charm people in general?"

 

"That would be awful!" Fufi exclaims, "You would have people doing all sorts of things they would normally never do!  It would be best to be resistant to charms as much as possible for your own safety."

Alex nodded and thought, "I'll have to be careful not to be charmed. How do you guard against that?"

"There are many ways," Fufi paused for a moment then said, "One way is to have someone or something protect you from charms."

Alex looked at her, thinking, "What kind of things can protect you?"

"Well," Fufi said, "there are amulets, talismans, and other magical items that can be worn or carried to ward off evil. You could also try to stay away from people who you think might try to charm you, or you could try to develop your own resistance to charms."

"I see," Alex said. "So, there's no one surefire way to protect yourself?"

"No," Fufi said. "But if you're careful and take precautions, you can make it much harder for someone to charm you."

"Thanks," Alex said. "I'll keep that in mind."

Fufi looked at Alex carefully and said, "If you have someone you love, the love you share can be a shield against status magic in general. Magical items can also be crafted to protect against charm. However, I believe that when the demon queen's army invaded, they targeted anyone with those abilities first, so it is unlikely that anything like that can be found in these ruins."

Alex looked thoughtful and said, "So you mean if I find true love, that will protect me? Sounds... Maybe I can train another way?"

Fufi nodded. "There are skills that can protect against status effects. Some of them are class skills, but it depends on what kind of magical girl you become."

Alex said, "I'm not sure what I'm going to be yet. I am interested in how these kinds of skills are acquired."

 

Fufi paused to think, then said, "There are many ways to acquire skills. The best way is to learn from someone who already has the skill, so you can teach it to others. You could go to a convent, where people pray and meditate to increase their spiritual strength. However, you might only be able to learn that skill if you become a nun-type magical girl. Magical girls with themes of holiness and purity tend to be strong in that regard."

Alex rolled his eyes at Fufi. "First of all, it would be a monastery for me. I haven't given up on being a man, you know. And secondly, I'm not sure I'm comfortable wearing a nun's habit."

Fufi grinned. "We might be able to find someone to help you with that! But I think it would be funny to see you in one of those outfits!" She teased with a wink. "We could even call you Saint Alexa, the magical girl of purity."

Alex shook his head. "You're impossible."

Fufi just laughed.

Alex averted his gaze and said, "Hey, don't just decide things on your own. Do you realize how embarrassing it is for me to wear this pink robe and heart-shaped diamond earrings? I'm not a doll."

Fufi giggled softly and said, "You're so cute when you're embarrassed. Okay, let's talk about something else. Can you pull up your status screen on your phone?"

 

Alex looked at her blankly for a moment and then said, "Oh! You mean like the stuff we saw before? The one where it shows my levels and stats?"

 

Alex put his hand on the back of his head and said sheepishly, "Sorry, this stuff is all so new to me." He opened the app with his character sheet and it displays:

 

Name: Alex Parker

Class: Magical Girl

Sex: Male

Strength: 13

Constitution: 14

Dexterity: 12

Intelligence: 7

Cuteness: 2 (naturally 1, +1 from equipped items)

 

Skills:

Cleaning: 1

 

Alex showed Fufi his screen with a depressed look on his face. "It looks like I got weaker than when I last checked it. My strength went down."

Fufi tried to see the bright side. "You may have gotten weaker, but your cuteness increased."

Alex glared at her for a moment and then sighed. "Thanks."

Fufi chuckled at Alex's frustration. "I think you may have gained your changes through our bond. I sensed you were in danger, so to save you I had to infuse you with magic power through our bond to pull you out of the dungeon before it collapsed."

Alex nodded in understanding and said, "Does that mean something similar could happen in the future? Your magic could transform me again?"

Fufi nodded and said, "It's possible. It could happen if you had some kind of accident or were seriously hurt and I had to save you in a hurry. I had no idea that you would be affected so much. Also, it takes a lot of magic power to do that, so please don't have another accident for a couple of days."

Alex replied, "It was an accident, so it's not likely to happen again. I just need to be more careful next time."

Fufi said cautiously, "About that, maybe we should hold off on going into the rift again for a while, just to be safe."

Alex thought for a moment before saying, "I suppose you're right. We're in the middle of the ruins, and there doesn't seem to be anywhere else to go. But I have a cleaning skill. I could try cleaning up and see if that levels up the skill. Maybe I should start small."

Fufi agreed, "That's a good idea. But I bet you're hungry. I caught some fish, picked some berries, and filled a couple of bottles with stream water."

Alex smiled at Fufi, "Thanks for thinking of me. Now that you mention it, I am hungry."

Fufi handed him a bottle of water with one of her long legs. "Here you go!"

Alex eagerly drank the entire bottle. "I guess I was really thirsty."

Fufi examined the empty bottle. "You drank it all at once. I didn't think you were that thirsty."  She left the room and brought back one from the basement and set it down in front of him with her beak. "You want the other one as well?"

 

Alex thought about the bottle and agreed, but said they should eat first. Fufi went downstairs to the basement and brought up a tray of food for Alex. It had fruits, berries, and raw fish. If Alex had to make a wish list, a paring knife would be at the top. He was hungry, so he saved the fish for last and prepared it with his trusty screwdriver for them to share. After they ate, Alex asked, "What happened to that treasure chest I shoved through the portal?"

Fufi gestured to the side with a wing. "You mean the treasure chest with the smiling face that appeared right in front of the portal?"

Alex nodded. "Yes, that one. Where is it now? And why did it wink at me?"

Fufi clucked. "I didn't see it wink, but it's still next to the rift if you want to check it out."

Alex replied, "Okay, let's go find it! It'll be our first dungeon treasure box."

Alex and Fufi walked over to the area where the treasure chest had appeared, and Alex squinted his eyes in an attempt to find it. He also added "fix the lighting in this basement" to his mental to-do list. He looked around and saw that he wasn't the only one who was curious about where the chest was, as Fufi followed him closely.

Alex stopped and pointed, saying, "There it is!" He then walked over to the chest and lifted the lid. The lid popped open, and Alex inspected the contents. Fufi stepped up behind him and peered inside as well. The inside of the chest was filled with a mix of clothing and strange toys. Alex did see something that was familiar, though. The treasure chest contained the bunny plushie that the huggle bear had gifted him. It was sitting on top of the pile of stuffed animals, as if it were guarding the rest.

Fufi asked in a concerned voice, "Is something wrong?"

Alex stared into the chest and said, "Well, yes, I guess there is. The chest contains the bunny plushie I got from my stuffed bear friend."

Fufi gave him a worried look. "The stuffed toy you were holding when I summoned you?"

Alex tilted his head. "Sort of? All of the stuffed animals were alive in the rift. I'm not sure if they've turned back to normal or if they're still the same as they were in there out here."

"That's weird," Fufi whispered in a concerned voice. "The rift gave you one of the strangest dungeon challenges I've ever heard of."

Alex nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I think so too. Though I don't really understand how any of this magic stuff works. It seems like it has its own logic, but it doesn't seem to follow any rules."

"Magic is all about things that don't follow the rules," Fufi said. "Don't try to understand it too much. Things are a bit more fluid on Terre."

Alex frowned at Fufi for a moment, then turned back to the bunny plushie. "Okay," he said. "But I'll be honest, I was surprised to see this cute little guy again. I'm glad some parts of that nice place made it out."

Fufi looked up at Alex with a confused expression, then back at the bunny. "You don't mean...you mean this bunny was alive inside the rift?" she asked quietly.

Alex glanced at the bunny as well. "Well, he could dance and sing," he said. "So if that makes him alive, then yes."

Fufi's eyes widened as she looked from the bunny to Alex. "But then...this bunny...it was a monster before?" she asked.

Alex shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "Maybe. But it's not a monster now."

Fufi looked at the bunny for a long moment, then nodded slowly. "Okay," she said. "I guess I can accept that."

Alex said, "Maybe. Nothing in there was what I expected."

Fufi stared at the bunny, then turned to Alex and whispered, "What else did you see? Did any of the other things in the treasure chest look familiar?"

Alex shrugged. "I was worried about traps, so I didn't open the chest. But the fact that what looked like a painted emoji winked at me freaked me out."

Fufi suppressed a giggle. "I understand." She looked at the chest and said, "Okay, let's sort through the things in this chest."

The chest contained:

 

1x Bunny Friend

2x Stuffed Birds

2x Stuffed Chipmunks

2x Stuffed Cats

2x Teddy Bears

2x Stuffed Trees

1x Feather Duster

1x White Cotton Apron

1x Knee High socks (Which were also tobi socks)

1x White Fleece Cloak (With a cute bear brooch)

1x Hooded Bunny Pajamas (Cute red bunny slippers)

1x Needle and thread (In a small box)

1x Pair of Scissors

1x Toothbrush (With a tube of toothpaste)

1x Towel

1x paring knife (with a pink handle)

 

Alex exclaimed, "Wow, this chest is full of stuff!" as he tried out the duster on a grimy alcove. Surprisingly, it did more than just remove dust. The mildew and dirt caked onto the stone turned to mist and then vanished.

Alex looked at Fufi and asked, "You want me to try all of these and see what I can learn?"

Fufi replied with a beak-open look, "Yeah, that's a good idea."

 

Alex dried himself with the towel, then put on the apron. He took off his sandals and put on knee-high socks. Finally, he draped the cloak around his shoulders and secured it with the bear-shaped brooch. He struck a pose, and Fufi bobbed up and down in appreciation.

Alex giggled at the bouncing bird and said, "You look adorable!"

Fufi glanced down at herself and said, "What are you talking about? You're the one wearing a lovely outfit. That should be my line."

Alex boasted, "I beat you to it this time." He turned away from Fufi to look at the stuffed animals. He arranged them in an attractive manner, with the bunny in front as if it were guarding the rest in the cleaned alcove.

Fufi stood next to Alex as he admired his work and said, "It looks great! Maybe you should take a picture?"

Alex took out his phone and took a picture. He noticed that the battery life was at 50%. He thought to himself, "How do you charge a phone in a world that seems to be stuck in the 1300s?"

Fufi said, "While you have your phone out, can you check your stats?"

Alex glanced down at his phone and saw that he had leveled up his cleaning skill to 5.

[Cleaning: 5 (+4 from equipped items) ]

 

Alex said "Nice!" as he showed the phone to Fufi. 

The flamingo looked at the phone and double-checked the stats. Then she looked back at Alex and smiled. "I think you will be much better at cleaning now," she said. "Why not test it out by cleaning up this basement?" She pointed to an empty corner of the basement, which was filled with debris.

Alex grinned and said, "That sounds good!" He then readied his feather duster for the quest for cleanliness. He took off his hood and walked over to the spot where Fufi indicated. He took a deep breath then walked over to the first pile of debris. He brushed the debris until it came off in a cloud of dust.  He coughed a bit and waved away at the cloud of dust.  Instead of falling to the ground it dissipates into the air.

 

Alex smiled and waved at Fufi, who was watching him. He then moved to the next pile and began brushing away at it. Once again he coughed a bit, but was able to keep going. It took him a few hours to attack all the grime with his cleaning tool. Things that were too decayed vanished into dust, and things that were salvageable were turned into a workable state. By the end of the afternoon, Alex had cleared an entire floor of debris and made a space for new treasures to be placed in the future. He returned to his spot where Fufi was standing and watching him work.

He stood before Fufi with his arms crossed over his chest. He asked, "How did I do?"

 

Fufi smiled and said, "Great! You should feel proud of yourself."

 

His phone rung out: [Cleaning has advanced to level 2]

 

Fufi flapped her wings in encouragement. Alex had mixed feelings. He was still annoyed that the system had given him a cleaning skill, but he was also having fun with his newfound supernatural cleaning abilities. He had learned that his main cleaning weapon was a feather duster, but his skill also worked with other cleaning supplies. He wondered how far he could take this. Could he clean dirty water? If he had a bucket of dirty water, could he use his skill to turn it into clean water somehow? Being able to do something that would normally require filters, chemicals, or a distillation setup with just a mixing spoon or cleaning rag would be a neat trick and very useful in certain situations.

Alex finished cleaning the basement and turned to Fufi. "I'm done here for now," he said.

Fufi giggled. "What should we do next?"

Alex looked at the remaining items that had been restored by his cleaning skill. He could inventory them later. Spending hours in the dim basement was starting to make him feel like a caveman. It was time to go back up to the surface.

The adventurers guild was still in ruins, with debris everywhere. Only the thick stone walls had survived the passage of time.

"Let's go outside," Alex said.

Alex went up the stairs and took a deep breath of fresh air. "I've been thinking," he said. "We could move into the basement here. We spent half of today cleaning it up, and it's a lot less drafty than the shack we were in before. It's only a few blocks away, but it would be easier to move if we had a cart."

Fufi nodded in agreement. "I saw the remains of what might have been a stable behind the guild," she said. "It's a wooden building, but it's mostly rotted away. Maybe we could fix it up."

Alex smiled. "That's a great idea," he said. "We can start working on it tomorrow."

 

Alex walked to the ruined structure. "Okay.  Let's go check it out."  It went a bit quicker than doing it by hand this time.  He used the feather duster to vaporize the rotten wood.  At one point there were carriages and carts in this place.  This was evidenced by the steel wheel tires covered with rust that he cleaned up into nice shining metal.  There were also a few rusted axles.  These too were repaired by his cleaning skill.  

 

Alex sighed as he piled the wagon parts next to the stone wall of the adventurer's guild. "I guess hoping to find an intact one was too much to ask for," he said. "I would give anything for a lathe right now."

"What's a lathe?" Fufi asked.

Alex thought for a moment. "It's a machine that uses a spinning wheel to cut things," he explained. "It would have been really helpful because I could have used it to make wooden wheels. Then we could just nail the steel tires on the outside. Lathes are also very useful for making round things out of wood. You just put a log in there and with some carving tools, you can make bowls, plates, or cups."

"That sounds amazing," Fufi said. "I wish we had one."

"Me too," Alex said. "But for now, we'll just have to make do with what we have."

Fufi excitedly asked, "So it is a kind of magical tool? Is it like a runesmith's hammer used for enchanting weapons and armor?"

Alex replied, "It is similar in a way. However, it is not for enchanting purposes. It may seem magical compared to how fast it is compared to a hammer and chisel, but it is just a machine."

Fufi tilted her head. "I think I understand. If it is something from your world, I don't think we'll find it here."

Alex shook his head. "It is very much from my world. Though it is not something super complex. Do they have potter's wheels in this world?"

Fufi nodded. "That's where potters put clay on a spinning base and make things out of it?"

Alex smiled. "Exactly. A lathe is like a potter's wheel, but for harder things. It spins and can cut through metal or wood very quickly. It's very useful for making things like tools and machines."

Fufi's eyes widened. "That sounds amazing! I can't wait to see it."

Alex chuckled, though with a hint of sadness. "I'm sure you'll be amazed if we can ever make that happen."
"I bet if there were people here they would be awed by your lathe," Fufi said.

"In a way, a potter's wheel is a type of lathe," Alex said. "It's used for clay instead of wood. On Earth, they've been around for thousands of years. Old mills used to be powered by water wheels that were put into streams or rivers. The water wheel would turn gears and belts, which would spin things. It would be a really major project, but we could build a building for the water wheel by the stream. It works like a windmill. They look like giant outdoor fans. Do they have those in this world?"

Fufi thought for a moment. "Windmills? Water wheels? I think I saw some of those in your world before my accident. They use them here to crush grain. Someone who has advanced their class from carpenter to millwright makes them. It's hard to get that class, so only rich people have enough money to pay to be educated enough to get the class."

Alex agreed. "I see. Well, maybe one day we can change that."
“I wish that I could show you how it used to work. Millwrights and wainwrights have skills that complement those of carpenters and blacksmiths. If I remember correctly, this town was once the seat of a prosperous barony, but it is now in ruins.”

Alex shrugged. "Well, let's just say that can be a long-term project. For now I'll just have to put stuff in crates and carry them back here."

"Okay," Fufi said, taking to the skies and leading the way. They arrived at the old place in no time.

Alex thought he could carry everything in one crate, but he overestimated his strength and had to use two crates in two trips. They finished the day by foraging for food and eating fish and berries for dinner. That night, Alex felt a little safer after altering the trap door to the basement so it could be barred from the inside. He fell asleep thinking he was building his life in this new world step by step.

As he lay in bed in the dark basement, Alex thought about his new life. Some rays of light came through the trap door at the top of the stairs, so he knew it was morning. The days were still long and filled with hard physical labor, but he was used to that from his old life as a lumberjack. He considered some of the projects he had brainstormed the day before and decided that building a carriage or a water wheel might be too ambitious for now. "I should do something simpler that I can do in a day," he thought.

Alex unbarred the trap door and opened it to let in some light. He was bothered that there was no way to secure it from the outside, but there wasn't much he could do about that unless he found a locksmith.

Edited 7-18-2023

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