002: New Clothes, Full Stomach, and a Broom

With slow and steady steps, I began to head towards the town in the distance. As I walked, I could see a sign illuminated by the lights of the town, the words "Purus" barely eligible on it. And as I read, I felt something I had never felt in a long time, something that I had neglected to realize in the time that I was living as "Theophilus"... "..It's quite chilly." I had no clothes. None. Strangely, it made me feel... rather upset, for some reason. From birth, I was swaddled in a warm blanket. From my teenage years, I always wore fine clothes, to make me feel more like a Noble. And now, I had nothing.

It seemed quite absurd to be mad about, but this was genuinely the longest time I had spent without any warmth, even the bathroom was warm enough with magic that I'd never even notice the existence of the cold. It was unnerving, bringing back memories of walking through the snow until I was embraced by it. I couldn't stand it. Continuing to walk, my eyes began to dart around until I eventually saw something that made my eyes go wide. "..Ah." A slight gasp exited my mouth.

One might say it was hypocritical to the original point I had made, but I did not care at that moment. Under the cover of darkness, illuminated only by the lights of a tavern and a few torches to light the dark night, I snuck towards a drying rack behind one of the buildings and... plucked a few clothes. Some baggy leggings, a tunic, and a black and brown shawl that covered my torso. The clothes were basically dry, but it seemed that the person who had left them out had forgotten to bring them in, so I might as well have taken it for myself. 

"Haaah.. much better." I let out an exasperated sigh, gripping my sides in a sort of self-hug to warm myself up. They weren't warm, but they kept the cold air from slashing my flesh, which was all I needed really. I decided to stop hugging myself after a few seconds, however, out of fear someone would see me and deem me some new breed of monster... Although I rated that at a lower chance of happening now, as my stitched together body was covered up by my new clothes.

However, now that the issue of the cold was solved, the issue of hunger became much more prevalent. My baser instincts seemed much more prevalent than before, but considering my own thoughts and those instincts matched up that was fine by me. The mission was simple, and that was to acquire food, and I had no issue in doing that. Sneaking out of the backyard of the person I had just borrowed from, I assessed the situation and found that the only thing open at this moment was a tavern. Naturally, I began to walk towards it at a more than brisk pace.

Opening the door in a slightly hurried manner, I entered the tavern and.. "Urk-" A disgusting feeling ran over me as I looked into the tavern. It was quite a lively place, full of people singing and dancing their merry tunes, one man with a missing eye and a body covered in scars telling a group of women about his adventures in a dungeon, and another man getting ready to get into a fight on behalf of his lady's honor. However, I couldn't give a damn about any of that, the first thing my eyes noticed was...

The place was filthy. I might've thought it was fine had I simply walked in there as a normal person, but it seemed the passive skill of "Janitor" was acting up- I could feel my eyes twitching as my hands clenched. A spilled mug of beer was leaking through the cracks, the 'cheers' of a nearby party celebrating their victory spilled tiny droplets against the wall that had formed a slight film from the number of times it had happened- and the DUST, MY LORD THE DUST- It was barely cleaned to be unnoticeable, but it was there- Every corner and inch had some dust- 

My hands clenched again, needing to grab something- anything... Wait, ah, I could use this- Couldn't I? With pensive steps as I debated what I was about to say, so as to not insult the man running the Tavern for my survival, I brought my hand down onto the table to draw the attention of the man running the Bar. "Greetings! I'm a wandering Cleaner, and I've noticed that this place is in need of my services." I slightly gestured to the establishment around me, thinking carefully. "I'm willing to clean this place for you... for free, but in exchange, if the change is noticeable... I'd like some food." 

The Bartender looked at me with a cautious glare, his arms crossed as he looked down at me- Not really trusting me for obvious reasons (I did have a disheveled look in my eye) but shrugged- Perhaps not really believing in my skills, or if I could actually manage anything with the bar bustling like this. "Knock yaself out, Kid." He said, pointing over to a raggedy broom in the corner that hadn't been treated well. However, I could feel it, a calling in my left arm- the more toned arm that was covered by my shawl.

Reaching across to it, my hands gripped it like an old friend as I felt at peace. My panic faded into the back of my mind as I felt the wisdom of the Broom flow into me, running my hand along the worn handle, understanding the ways it had been used and the ways it could be used. "..Broom Proficiency." I whispered the name of the skill to myself, beginning a few practice strokes across the floor beneath me, in moments kicking up an unnatural amount of dust than the stroke should have brought. 

Indeed, this would work. Channeling my heart into my Weapon, I began to sweep. Broad strokes wrought the very dirt and filth that was tracked into the place from the hard wood, more precise strokes aided me in avoiding the customers while removing very hard to remove stains, and raising my broom high allowed me to sweep the old cobwebs and stains off the wall. Things that'd need a mop in my past life were easily handled, and as I swept, I felt my soul become cleaner as I made the place around me cleaner. Indeed, this was...

The Power of a Janitor-

"OI-! Kid, ya done, you can stop!" I was brought back to consciousness by my body being jostled, the Bartender having come from the table to tell me I was done. And indeed, looking around the place looked infinitely better than before. The windows were pristine and clear, allowing a clear view outside. The walls and floors were as if they were brand new, rather than aged with history. And even the tables were shining despite being made of common wood, clean enough to eat off of (Ah, that must've scared the guests.) "You.. You can stop now, ya've done enough." The man's voice was filled with respect and, yet... pity.

"Ah, is that so. Then.." My body felt light, my hands beginning to let go of the broom as I spoke. Indeed, it seems I had pushed my body to the limit in this brief moment, I... Was hungry as hell. "I'd.. like my meal now." I slumped forward, barely able to position myself upright against a table. Luckily, the man had prepared the meal, so I was able to receive it quickly. If it wasn't prepared by now, I would likely have died, judging from the pain in my stomach... and in my joints, for some reason.

"Bon apple teeth." I muttered to myself as I looked down at the bowl set in front of me, a stew of beef chunks roughly cut up, peppers, onions and potatoes, the very scent enough to make my mouth water. I couldn't describe it well, I've never been one to appreciate the smell of things, but it made me think of the food my mother used to make for me.. My first mother, carefully and kindly, being mindful of my constitution to make sure I was getting everything I needed. With a shaky hand, I took a spoon and dipped it below the liquid, scooping up a nice amount of everything.

And then I took a bite, and my heart soared. They say you appreciate food better on an empty stomach, and that was something I neglected in both of my previous lives. It tasted salty, but not so salty that I needed water. It had spice, it had oomph, and most of all... I felt tears rush to my eyes. "Ish deliciush." I could barely speak with my mouth full, too preoccupied in chewing. Indeed, I had to eat, I had no choice but to eat- My hand was already dipping the wooden spoon back into the bowl, transferring it from one container to the other (my face).

My entire body was being rejuvenated, my unfortunate flesh restored to its prime condition- If this was a show, my clothes probably would've flown off of me in joy. However, this is life, I am simply stuffing my face with beef stew and crying tears of joy instead. Eventually the bowl went empty, and I put it down on the table. My life would continue, I would survive. I rested my hands on my stomach and slumped back in my seat. "Wonderful. 10/10." I could feel my lips curving to a smile as I stood up, prepping to leave as I picked my broom back up off the ground. "...May I keep this?"  I asked, somewhat pensively.

"Knock ya'self out, Little 'Wandering Cleaner'." He chuckled at me and waved his hand with confidence, and I laughed back.. wait. Little? Excuse me? I felt my eye twitch as I heard that, holding back the urge to strike him with a broom as I heard that before remembering... Indeed, I didn't look as tall and regale as I did before. In his eyes, I was likely just some weird kid considering how short I was compared to him. Actually, I was quite short- Not so much that I was dwarfed by him but by the standards of this world- Which were already medieval standards- I was short.

I was short. 

My elevational superiority, which I prided myself for as a Noble, had long since faded in this body. I didn't notice it surrounded by the corpses, nor walking through those bleak stone hallways, or even as I exited the cave that laid at the end of that tunnel. But I was short."T-Tsah.." I let out a choked groan as I felt my hand press against my face, realizing that the reason he pitied me wasn't because of my immaculate skills- It was because it probably looked bad for him to be making some kid clean the place spotless. Truly, this... was not the first impression I wanted.

I stepped backwards, and then that turned into a backpedal, which then turned into a sprint as I turned around and ran out the door. I didn't even notice that the sun had risen, or any other things- I just ran into the forest with my broom in hand, feeling the strong urge to disappear forever.

And then-