Chương 102: Bonus story : More than just colleagues : Part 9 : The Big Cleanup

The next morning, Aldric arrived outside Lucas's building at ten twenty-seven. In one hand, he carried the storage bags he had brought the day before, and in the other, a second bag containing several cleaning products, sponges, cloths, and pairs of gloves. He had spent part of the evening thinking about the most efficient way to put the apartment back in order, but had ultimately decided not to prepare an actual schedule.

Lucas had asked him not to turn the cleanup into a military operation, and Aldric considered it important to respect that request. Patrick was already standing outside the entrance when he arrived. He was wearing an old pair of pants and a T-shirt, with a small bag containing several rolls of garbage bags hanging from his shoulder. When he saw Aldric's two bags, he smiled.

"I thought you weren't planning a military operation. You still brought enough supplies to clean an entire building."

"I do not yet know what cleaning products Lucas owns."

"He probably has dish soap."

"That would be insufficient." Emma and Karim arrived almost at the same time. Emma had tied back her hair and was wearing clothes she wouldn't regret getting dirty. Karim, meanwhile, had brought several plastic boxes.

"They will allow us to separate the different categories of objects," Aldric said.

"That was the idea," Karim replied. Emma turned toward Aldric.

"I already have a feeling you're going to enjoy this way too much."

"Why would I be particularly happy?"

"Because we're giving you a completely disorganized apartment and permission to put it in order."

"I admit the situation does hold a certain appeal." They entered the building and went up to the third floor. When they reached the door, Patrick rang the bell. No sound came from inside.

"He'd better not make us wait after negotiating the time," he muttered. A muffled voice came from behind the door.

"I'm coming!" The door opened, and Lucas appeared with his hair still messy and a cup of coffee in his hand.

"You actually came." Patrick crossed his arms.

"You doubted us?"

"I was hoping you'd come to your senses overnight." Emma smiled.

"Too late." Lucas then looked at Aldric's bags.

"What's in those?"

"The necessary supplies."

"I already had sponges."

"How many?"

"At least one."

"Then I was right to bring more." Lucas looked up at the ceiling before stepping aside.

"Come in, but I have one rule. Nobody throws anything away without asking me first."

"That is reasonable," Aldric replied.

"And no pictures." Karim took out his phone.

"Too late."

"Did you just take a picture?!"

"No."

"Then why did you take out your phone?"

"To check the time." The pizza boxes had disappeared from the table, but they had simply been moved to the kitchen counter. The sofa was once again covered with clothes, and several glasses they had used the previous evening were waiting in the sink with the rest of the dishes. The only real improvement seemed to be the entrance, where Lucas had gathered several pairs of shoes against the wall.

"You started cleaning up."

"Yes."

"Why did you stop after the shoes?"

"I was tired."

"It was still early when we left," Patrick said.

"I got tired very quickly." △ SIDE QUEST IN PROGRESS △ Restore Order Location: Lucas's Apartment △ OBJECTIVES △ □ Clear the main passageways □ Restore access to the living room □ Put misplaced items back where they belong □ Eliminate accumulated waste □ Reclaim the kitchen Progress: 0 / 5 Difficulty: C Recommended Party Size: 4–5"Why are you staring into space?" Lucas asked.

"I was thinking about how to organize the work." Lucas narrowed his eyes.

"You promised."

"I have not prepared a military schedule."

"That wording does not reassure me." Patrick placed his bag on the table.

"Let's keep it simple. If we split up the rooms, it'll go quickly." Patrick took the kitchen, where the sheer amount of dishes already represented a considerable task. Emma chose the bathroom and offered to handle the laundry, since she could determine with Lucas what needed to be washed and what could be put away. Karim took care of the living room and sorting through the boxes. Aldric, finally, would handle the general cleaning as surfaces were cleared.

"So my role is mostly answering questions about my own stuff?" Lucas asked.

"Yes," Patrick replied.

"I thought I'd be doing more…" Emma handed him a T-shirt she had found on the sofa.

"Clean or dirty?"

"I don't know."

"Then you already have plenty of work to do." The first step was to make the different areas accessible. Karim began by removing everything cluttering the sofa and gathering the objects on the table. Emma collected the clothes and asked Lucas to choose between the laundry basket and the closet. Patrick emptied the sink before loading the dishwasher, while Aldric moved the unnecessary boxes and began cleaning the newly cleared surfaces.

△ OBJECTIVE COMPLETE △ Clear the Main Passageways Progress: 1 / 5"One objective is complete." Lucas looked up.

"There are actually objectives?"

"Five."

"I don't want to know."

"Four remain."

"I literally just said I didn't want to know." Very quickly, the main problem became obvious: Lucas kept an enormous number of objects whose purpose even he no longer knew. Karim picked up a cable from a box.

"What is this for?"

"I don't know."

"Do you need it?"

"Maybe."

"For what?"

"If I knew that, I'd know what it was for. So I'm keeping it," Lucas concluded.

"How long have you owned this object?" Aldric asked.

"No idea."

"Have you used it within the past year?"

"Probably not."

"Do you own a device it can be connected to?" Lucas examined both ends.

"Maybe."

"That answer does not justify keeping it." Lucas took the cable back.

"It's my apartment. I decide."

"Of course."

"You're not going to argue?"

"You established that rule when we arrived."

"Okay. I prefer that."

"We could create a box for objects whose purpose you do not know. If none of them are used within the next six months, you can reassess whether they are necessary."

"You still had a solution." Karim placed an empty box in the middle of the room.

"Box of Unknown Objects." Lucas sighed.

"Fine." △ WARNING △ Accumulation of Unidentified Objects Detected Recommendation Creation of a temporary storage area recommended. Status: Acceptable Solution WARNING: A temporary storage area must not become a permanent storage area. That category filled up much faster than expected.

They placed several cables inside, two adapters, a remote control that did not seem to belong to any device in the apartment, three small metal pieces, and a charger that Lucas claimed might have belonged to a phone he had owned six years earlier. Aldric continued cleaning. The coffee table was soon completely cleared, allowing him to finally clean its surface. He then moved on to the TV stand, followed by the shelves. A layer of dust had accumulated beneath several decorative objects. Lucas walked past him.

"You don't have to clean every inch," Lucas said. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Aldric continued wiping with his cloth.

"What would be the point of leaving part of it dirty?"

"No one looks behind picture frames."

"Dust does not cease to exist simply because it is not visible."

"I never know what to say when you do that." In the bedroom, Emma had formed three separate piles on the bed. The first contained clothes that needed washing, the second those that could be put away, and the third those Lucas needed to decide whether he wanted to keep. Lucas walked in and stopped in front of the third pile.

"Why is it so big?" Emma held up an old sweatshirt.

"Do you still wear this?"

"From time to time."

"When was the last time?"

"Maybe last year." Emma handed him the garment.

"Decide." Lucas took it in his hands.

"I've been through a lot with this sweatshirt." Aldric, who was passing the doorway, slowed down.

"How many campaigns?" Emma burst out laughing.

"Make fun of him. One day, you'll have an old T-shirt you're attached to as well."

"In my world, I kept several pieces of equipment for years." Lucas raised the sweatshirt.

"See?"

"But when they became unusable, I replaced them." Lucas lowered the garment.

"I take back what I just said." Emma was still laughing as she pointed to the basket intended for donations.

"You can put it in there. At least someone will use it."

"Fine. But only that one."

"We'll see." In the living room, Karim had just discovered the first truly unexpected object. While moving one of the boxes that had remained against the wall, he found a lone sock wedged between the box and the baseboard.

"Lucas."

"What now?" Karim held up the sock.

"Ah." Patrick appeared from the kitchen.

"Were you looking for it?"

"No."

"That explains a lot." Emma came out of the bedroom.

"Does it have a partner?"

"Probably somewhere." Karim placed the sock on the table.

"Should we open an investigation?" Aldric approached and examined the object.

"It would be more efficient to wait until we have finished cleaning. If the second sock is somewhere in the apartment, we will eventually find it."

"Thank you for taking this disappearance seriously."

"I do not consider it a disappearance. The object is misplaced."

"It's official now," Patrick said. Karim found three different remote controls under the sofa. One controlled the television, the second a media player, and the third no longer seemed to serve any purpose. Lucas tried to put it in the Box of Unknown Objects. Karim shook his head.

"No. We know that one is useless."

"It might be useful later."

"For what?"

"If I buy the device again." Patrick turned around from the kitchen.

"You're going to buy a device again just because you still have the remote?"

"When you put it like that, no." The remote finally joined the pile of things to throw away. The discoveries continued. Behind a stack of magazines, Karim found several bills. Lucas immediately became much more attentive and took them to check whether any important documents needed to be kept. Under the coffee table, Emma found a coin, a pen, and two receipts from several months earlier. Patrick found three open packages of pasta in a cupboard.

"Why three?"

"I forget I already have some." Aldric turned toward him.

"A clear organization of your supplies would solve that problem."

"I was afraid you'd say that." Patrick gathered the three packages together.

"He's right."

"I get it. Everyone's on Aldric's side today." Karim looked up from the living room.

"Not just today." The biggest reaction came when Emma opened the refrigerator to check what needed to be thrown away. She remained silent for a few seconds, then called Lucas over.

"Can you come here?" Emma took out a small container.

"Do you remember this? I didn't notice it yesterday…"

"Hummus?"

"Yes."

"What?" She showed him the date.

"Ah." Patrick leaned closer.

"How long?"

"Long enough for it to start developing its own civilization."

"Does it pose a danger?" Aldric asked.

"Only if someone decides to eat it," Emma replied. Lucas grabbed the garbage bag.

"No one's going to do that." Aldric looked at the other food.

"It would be prudent to check the entire refrigerator." Lucas sighed.

"I knew this day would come." Emma handed him a second container.

"Apparently, so did your yogurts." For nearly twenty minutes, they examined the food one item at a time. Most of it was perfectly safe to eat, but several products forgotten at the back of the refrigerator had to be thrown away. △ OBJECTIVE COMPLETE △ Reclaim the Kitchen Progress: 3 / 5 △ FOOD HAZARD ELIMINATED △ BONUS Risk of food poisoning reduced. Once the kitchen was finished and the clothes had been sorted, the apartment began to look different. The living room floor was visible.

The sofa had regained all three of its seats. The boxes had either been emptied or grouped against a wall. Even the entrance had become clear enough that no one needed to step around a bag or a pair of shoes when coming in.

"This is weird," Lucas said. Emma walked past him carrying a laundry basket.

"What?"

"It feels like my apartment is bigger." Patrick burst out laughing.

"Because you can see the floor." Karim looked around.

"Had you forgotten what color it was?" Lucas threw a cushion at him. Karim caught it before putting it back on the sofa.

"And now I know where this goes."

"You're all becoming unbearable." Once the main surfaces had been cleared, Aldric moved the sofa to access the space behind it. A considerable amount of dust appeared, along with a few coins and a pen. Lucas came over.

"No. Put it back."

"There is still dust."

"It wasn't bothering anyone."

"Its presence serves no purpose." Patrick came in as well.

"Let him do it. Now that he's seen it, he won't be able to stop."

"That is correct."

"You know him too well…" Aldric cleaned behind it. He took the opportunity to clean underneath the sofa as well, then turned his attention to the baseboards.

"I'm starting to understand why your apartment always looks brand new," Lucas said.

"Regular cleaning requires less effort than allowing dirt to accumulate over time." Lucas raised his hands.

"I know. We already had the lecture on procrastination." Aldric climbed onto a chair to clean the top of a shelf. He then cleaned the tops of the doors, the light switches, and even several electrical outlets.

"When you said 'room for improvement,' were you really thinking about all of this?"

"I had not yet examined the apartment closely enough."

"So it was worse than you thought?"

"Now, much less so." △ OBJECTIVE COMPLETE △ Restore Access to the Living Room Progress: 4 / 5 Around one o'clock, Patrick suggested taking a break. This time, Lucas had prepared enough food to avoid placing another order. He brought out bread, ham, cheese, and several drinks. They sat around the table.

"I haven't eaten here in a long time. I admit this is better."

"Only better?" Karim said. Lucas sighed.

"Much better."

"That assessment seems more accurate."

"Don't push it." They resumed after their meal. Most of the work was already finished, but they still had to decide where many objects belonged. Emma helped Lucas organize his closet so that the clothes he wore most often were easy to reach. Karim labeled several boxes. Patrick reorganized a kitchen cupboard so that the food supplies were clearly visible. Aldric approached Lucas while he was filing papers in a binder.

"The organization needs to remain simple."

"I thought you wanted to optimize everything."

"A method that is too complicated for you to use would be less effective than an imperfect method you will actually follow."

"I think that's the most reasonable thing you've said today."

"I have said several reasonable things." They therefore decided not to create too many categories. One box for cables. One for papers that needed to be kept. A basket for dirty laundry. A designated place for keys. Shoes were to remain near the entrance, and clothes were no longer to be left on the sofa. Lucas considered that last rule.

"What if I'm really tired?"

"No," Patrick replied.

"I was asking Aldric."

"The answer remains no," Aldric said. Lucas sighed. After four o'clock, they finally finished. Patrick made one last pass through the kitchen, Emma checked the bathroom, and Karim stacked the last boxes in the corner of the living room. Aldric cleaned one final surface before putting the cleaning products back in his bag. The sofa was completely visible. The coffee table now held only a remote control and a small coaster. The shoes were lined up near the entrance.

The clothes were either in the closet or the appropriate laundry basket. The floor had been vacuumed and mopped, the kitchen was clean, and the refrigerator no longer contained any food old enough to cause concern. Lucas stood in the middle of the living room and slowly turned around.

"This isn't my apartment. It's too clean." Patrick crossed his arms.

"Try keeping it this way for more than three days."

"You really have no faith in me."

"Experience." Emma checked the time on her phone.

"We still spent almost the entire day here."

"Yeah. By the way… thanks." Patrick shrugged.

"No problem." △ SIDE QUEST COMPLETE △ Restore Order ✓ OBJECTIVES ✓ Clear the main passageways ✓ Restore access to the living room ✓ Put misplaced items back where they belong ✓ Eliminate accumulated waste ✓ Reclaim the kitchen Progress: 5 / 5 △ REWARD △ Skill Improved Household Organization Lv. 1 → Lv. 2 New Knowledge Acquired Preventing Household Procrastination △ NOTE △ Maintaining order is now the resident's responsibility. Emma dropped onto the sofa.

"Now I have absolutely no desire to go home right away." Patrick checked the time.

"It's not that late." Karim nodded.

"I can stay a little longer."

"I can order some food," Lucas said.

"We just cleaned your kitchen," Patrick pointed out.

"Exactly. I don't want to make it dirty again." Emma burst out laughing.

"For once, his reasoning seems excellent to me." Lucas unlocked his phone.

"So, pizza?"

"Again?" Karim asked.

"It's become a tradition." Patrick sat down.

"This time, only order what we're actually going to eat. I don't want to find three boxes in your fridge tomorrow." Lucas looked up from his phone.

"You're taking all the artistic freedom out of this evening." Emma looked at the television.

"If you're interested, we could watch a movie tonight."

"Here?" Lucas asked. Emma pointed at the sofa.

"Now that we know it exists, we might as well use it." He opened the delivery app.

"Fine. Movie and pizza." Aldric sat down on the last available chair.

"What movie?" Lucas looked up at him.

"Just pick one before Aldric starts asking questions about every title."

"It would be useful to know what they are about before choosing."

"Too late. He's started." Lucas scrolled through the first few movies. Aldric studied the posters appearing on the screen.

"Why is that man holding a weapon?"

"Action movie," Patrick replied. Lucas moved on to another.

"And this one?"

"Horror movie."

"Why are they voluntarily entering that house if it is dangerous?"

"We haven't even watched it yet!" Emma burst out laughing.

"The poster provides information about the plot." Patrick turned toward Lucas.

"Next one."

"Why are that man and woman standing back-to-back?" Karim held out his hand.

"Give me the remote."

"Absolutely not. Now I want to see how many movies he can eliminate before we choose one." Karim started laughing while Emma settled more comfortably into the armchair.

"We'll never start before the pizzas arrive…" Lucas said.