Opening the door with a spare key, Yutsuki and Yoshino entered the entryway of the Itsuka household.
"Shido, is breakfast ready?"
"Excuse us..."
In response to Yutsuki's call, footsteps slowly approached. However, slightly deviating from expectations, the one who greeted them wasn't Shido, but his younger sister Kotori.
"Oh, it's Yutsuki-nee and Yoshino-chan. Sorry, our hands are a bit tied right now. The food is already prepared and on the table in the living room, go ahead and eat."
"Kotori-chan, what are you doing right now?"
Seeing Kotori's current attire, Yutsuki couldn't help but ask curiously.
Unlike her usual outfits, Kotori was currently wearing a rather plain, coarse old shirt and shorts, a bandana on her head, and holding a feather duster for dusting.
"A major cleanup?"
"Mhm, that's exactly it."
Nodding with a bitter smile, Kotori waved the duster in her hand and sighed helplessly.
"Last night, Onii-chan got stimulated by sothing I don't know what, and suddenly said we need to do a major cleanup of the house. He said sothing about how it can also clean our hearts while we're at it, and dragged up early in the morning to clean with him."
"Hoh—Shido actually woke Kotori-chan up? That's quite rare."
Yutsuki couldn't help but feel surprised. In her impression, Shido's ability to sleep in in the mornings was not much less than the Yamai sisters. In most cases, if Kotori didn't jump and dance on Shido's stomach, it was impossible for him to crawl out of bed.
"That's what I'm saying. It's the beginning of the year, wouldn't it be nice to spend it more leisurely? My Onii-chan really likes to use his excess motivation in unnecessary places."
Perhaps affected by the resentnt of being forcefully woken up, even though she was in her white-ribbon little sister state, Kotori still pouted and complained with a dissatisfied face.
Yutsuki resonated a little with Kotori's words.
"Um... I think cleaning seriously... is a good thing..."
Just then, Yoshino said in a weak voice.
"If possible... I also want to help..."
"Is that okay? Yoshino-chan?"
Kotori couldn't help but ask in pleasant surprise.
"Mhm... I... if it's not a bother..."
Hearing Yoshino's words, Kotori hurriedly shook her head.
"Not at all, not at all! Honestly, it's a huge help. It's a bit tough with just and Onii-chan cleaning. Thank you so much, Yoshino-chan, Yutsuki-nee."
"...Eh?"
Hearing Kotori naturally include her in the count, Yutsuki froze for a mont.
"Ah... sorry, I subconsciously..."
Realizing she had subconsciously included the silent Yutsuki as well, Kotori scratched her hair a bit awkwardly.
"It's fine."
Yutsuki shook her head, indicating it was okay.
She couldn't bla Kotori either. After all, if it were her usual self, she definitely would have taken it for granted and helped out.
(What's wrong with today... I have no motivation at all.)
Sighing lightly, after trying hard to adjust her mood, Yutsuki answered with a smile.
"I'll help. But at least let eat breakfast first."
Yoshinon chid in in strong agreent.
"Yutsuki-chan is absolutely right. As the saying goes, a hungry army cannot fight. You only have the strength to work when you're full. Yoshino-chan, if you want to help, go eat breakfast first."
"Mhm... I got it..."
Seeing Yoshino nod, Yutsuki secretly sighed in relief in her heart.
————————————
"Phew..."
After putting the pulled weeds into a garbage bag and tying it up, Itsuka Shido reached out to wipe the sweat beads forming on his face.
"Ah—My back is so sore."
Taking a short break, perhaps because he had been bending over for too long, Shido leaned back, pounding his lower back while letting out an old man groan.
After recovering his energy, Shido lowered his head again. Almost half of the weeds in the courtyard were still unpulled. Realizing that there was still half of the workload waiting for him, the thought of giving up couldn't help but arise in Shido's heart.
No, no, no! He was the one who proposed the major cleanup. What would it look like if he gave up so quickly?
Slapping his cheeks hard, Shido re-energized himself.
"Ah—Found Shido-kun!"
Hearing soone call his na, Shido looked up and, seeing the people in the hallway, revealed a refreshing smile.
"Good morning, Yoshino, Yoshinon, and Yutsuki."
"Good morning... Shido-san..."
"Well~ Good morning."
Yoshino and Yutsuki also greeted Shido. Shido didn't know if it was an illusion, but he felt that the two of them—especially Yutsuki—were looking at him with an inexplicable smile in their eyes.
"Wh-What's wrong? Is there sothing on my face?"
"Mhm, there is." Yutsuki nodded with a smile and said, "Shido, your face is covered in dirt."
"Ah, this is—"
After being pointed out by Yutsuki, Shido hurriedly tried to wipe the dirt off his face. However, in his panic, he forgot that his hands were covered in mud from pulling weeds. As a result, after wiping, not only did he fail to wipe off the original dirt, but he also sared another handful of mud onto his face.
As a result, sweat and mud mixed together, painting Shido's face into a ssy canvas.
"Pfft—Shido, your face is a masterpiece right now, hahaha."
"Hahaha~ Shido-kun, your face looks just like a tanuki right now."
"..."
Yutsuki and Yoshinon laughed out loud without holding back. Even Yoshino couldn't help but cover her mouth and snicker.
"Ahem—"
Feeling a flush of sha and heat on his face, Shido gave up and kept his appearance as it was. After a dry cough, he continued.
"Um, I've already made breakfast. If you haven't eaten yet, hurry up and eat."
"Mhm, Kotori already told us earlier. We just finished eating."
"It was very delicious... thank you for the al."
Yutsuki and Yoshino answered.
"Next, we're planning to help Shido-kun with the major cleanup together. Shido-kun, you look very tired from pulling weeds, do you want Yoshino and to lend you a hand?"
"Thanks, but I appreciate the thought. I can handle this myself."
Hearing Yoshinon's proposal, Shido smiled bitterly and shook his head. Letting girls do heavy work like pulling weeds was sowhat insensitive. Besides, it would be very inconvenient for Yoshino to do this work with a puppet on one hand.
"In exchange, if you could help clean the rooms, that would be a huge help."
"Understood... leave it to ..."
Hearing Shido's words, Yoshino nodded with full motivation.
"Alright, alright, the cleanup begins. Let's do our best together, Yutsuki-chan."
"Yes, yes, understood."
Since she had already promised, Yutsuki sighed secretly, nodded, and followed Yoshino.
...
Soon, Yutsuki and Yoshino changed into old clothes similar to Kotori's earlier, put on bandanas, and got ready for the major cleanup.
"My, as expected of Yoshino, she looks so cute no matter what she wears."
Yutsuki couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
This wasn't a lie. Wearing this loose coat and a bandana, Yoshino, who already gave off a very healing aura, looked even more healing now. To give an example—it was like a little cleaning fairy.
"Thank you... Yutsuki-san... is also very beautiful..."
Yoshino answered sowhat embarrassedly.
"Ah... thanks a lot..."
She nodded with a bitter smile. Although she understood that Yoshino was complinting her, Yutsuki still couldn't help but feel a bit complicated whenever she heard such words.
"Well then, let's get to work. Let's wipe the glass first."
Seeing the little cleaning fairy, Yutsuki also gained a bit of motivation.
Pouring baking soda, white vinegar, and dish soap into a spray bottle, adding water to dilute and mix them into a cleaning solution.
Yutsuki sprayed the homade cleaning solution on the dirty spots of the window, then gently wiped it with a rag, and the window was instantly refreshed and renewed.
"...Yutsuki-san... you're amazing..."
Seeing Yutsuki's skilled movents, Yoshino couldn't help but look at her with admiring eyes.
"Well, practice makes perfect."
Yutsuki smiled lightly and shrugged. After all, she had lived alone in her past life, so she had to do all the cleaning by herself.
"Do you want to try it too, Yoshino?"
"Mhm... okay..."
Yoshino nodded excitedly and started to imitate Yutsuki's thod, wiping the glass quite convincingly. However, perhaps because her movents were a bit unfamiliar, she couldn't wipe it as clean as Yutsuki did.
Watching Yoshino next to her struggling seriously against the stains, Yutsuki couldn't help but smile knowingly.
(Well... watching things get clean doesn't feel bad either.)
Through the window glass, Yutsuki happened to see Shido in the courtyard.
Right now, the boy was squatting down, bending his waist, pulling out weeds handful by handful and putting them into the garbage bag.
Although Shido's current appearance couldn't be called handso, and could even be considered quite uncool from all aspects, Yutsuki didn't dislike that focused, head-down working look.
(Do your best.)
After silently murmuring in her heart, Yutsuki continued cleaning while teaching Yoshino so of her little life experiences.
The cleaning ti wasn't long, but it wasn't short either.
Kotori and Shido's bedrooms were naturally cleaned by themselves, so Yoshino and Yutsuki split up and cleaned the public areas like the living room, hallway, and stairs.
After about an hour and a half, Yutsuki finished her assigned tasks.
"Phew... I'm exhausted."
Taking off the old clothes covered in dust, Yutsuki walked into the bathroom and couldn't help but let out an exhausted sigh.
"I feel a bit sorry for Yoshino and Kotori-chan..."
Turning on the showerhead in the bathroom and letting the hot water wash over her body, Yutsuki muttered apologetically.
After finishing the major cleanup, Kotori asked Yutsuki and Yoshino to take a hot bath to relax. Originally, according to Kotori and Yoshino's idea, they were going to invite Yutsuki to bathe together.
Perhaps in their eyes, it was just a very normal thing, but for Yutsuki, it was sowhat awkward. Even though she had grown accustod to her female body, Yutsuki still possessed the self-awareness of having once been male. While bathing with two delicate, cute lolis was an incredibly desirable proposition from an objective standpoint, her heart harbored an indescribable sense of guilt.
Perhaps noticing Yutsuki's sowhat troubled expression, Yoshino and Kotori didn't insist, letting Yutsuki enter the bathroom to wash first.
"Phew... forget it, don't think too much."
Filling a basin with freezing cold water and pouring it over her head, Yutsuki tossed the extra distracting thoughts aside.
After washing her body and hair clean, Yutsuki pinned up her long hair and stepped into the bathtub.
"Ah~ So comfortable~"
Stretching her limbs and lying in the bathtub spread-eagled, Yutsuki couldn't help but let out a satisfied sigh.
The hot water, at just the right temperature, enveloped her entire body, promoting blood circulation. The unique fragrance of bath salts gradually filled the bathroom, causing the fatigue Yutsuki had accumulated from pulling an all-nighter and cleaning to slowly dissipate.
"This is bad... I'm getting a bit sleepy..."
I'll get out after soaking a bit longer. Yutsuki narrowed her eyes slightly, thinking lazily.
Rattle—
Just then, Yutsuki heard the sound of the bathroom's outer door being slid open.
(Ah, co to think of it, I forgot to lock the changing room door.)
"Ah—My back is so sore. Honestly, other chores are fine, but pulling weeds is really strenuous work. I should buy a lawnmower next ti, I wonder if the house budget is enough."
Before Yutsuki could react, the owner of the voice, after a bout of muttering, swiftly took off his clothes and pulled open the main door to the bathing area.
Then, as a matter of course, Yutsuki and Shido's eyes t.
"What's this, it's just Shido."
After seeing clearly who it was, Yutsuki breathed a sigh of relief.
"What's wrong? Standing there looking dumbfounded? Co in if you're going to take a bath."
"...!?"
After a silent pause, Shido seed to finally understand the current situation. His cheeks instantly turned fiery red. Like an innocent little girl, he hurriedly grabbed a towel to cover his body, quickly retreated from the bathroom, and closed the door.
"I-I'm very sorry! Excuse !!!"
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