With a new housekeeping cart, Veronica decided it was a good time to invest in a proper set of cleaning supplies to use. Thankfully, she had plenty of dungeon points saved up! Over the last few days she had received 49 DP from repeat tributes, 115 DP from new tributes, and 390 DP from room rentals. There weren't very many new tributes, but she did manage to get some straw, a waterskin, a hairbrush, and some smoked salmon. It was a rather random assortment, but there had been some useful [Base Resources] among them and she was now sitting at 7,398 dungeon points.
As she didn't want to start walking around to clean until she had all the research done and her cart stocked, just in case her system access got cut off, Veronica decided to get started on the research work.
Would you like to spend 10 DP to research brooms using the [Base Resources] wood, twine, and straw?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 10 DP to research upright dust pans using the [Base Resource] wood?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 20 DP to research mop buckets with wringer using the [Base Resources] wood and steel?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 10 DP to research mops using the [Base Resources] wood, undyed thread, and undyed cotton?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 10 DP to research wet floor signs using the [Base Resources] wood, yellow paint, and black paint?
Yes
No
Thanks to the dungeon having absorbed something with similar technology, her own lacking knowledge regarding wheels and how they attach to things didn't prevent her from having them as part of her new mop bucket. The bucket would mostly remain on the cart, very rarely being removed, but it was still nice to have the same convenience she'd have enjoyed with the modern version. While she could, technically, create water for mana when she had access to the system, it was much more economically sensible to just fill the bucket with water from one of the many sinks and tubs throughout her inn before adding in some soap solution. Since that would result in a heavy bucket, it was good to have the ability to roll around the bucket, just in case.
The broom handle and dustpan handle slotted into one side of her cart near the top, allowing it to hang just barely off the ground when she wasn't using them. They were located on the opposite side from the middle cubby section where she had stored extra toilet paper, feminine pads, and soap for restocking the bathrooms with. As for the mop and bucket, they went in the front and sat just barely off the floor, making it easy to access them whenever she was in need of them. The painted wooden 'wet floor' signs were hanging from a peg just behind the mop bucket. She doubted the adventurers would be familiar with the concept of the wet floor signs, but it still made her feel better to have them since she was used to using them for safety purposes.
Would you like to spend 10 DP to research leather laundry bags using the [Base Resources] leather and undyed thread?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 6 DP to research scrub brushes using the [Base Resources] wood and boar fur?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 12 DP to research a toilet brush set using the [Base Resources] wood and boar fur?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 6 DP to research feather dusters using the [Base Resources] wood, undyed thread, and duck feathers?
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
Yes
No
The boar fur for the new cleaning brushes had actually come from the hairbrush she had recently received as a tribute. The brush wasn't like the common hairbrushes that had well-spaced bristles, but was more like the 'soft' smoothing hairbrushes that were meant to hurt less when brushing tangled hair, but took longer to complete the process. It felt a bit weird to use boar fur to make the cleaning brushes, but the end results weren't nearly as bad as she had been expecting.
The laundry bag went in the front-most compartment on the cart that functioned similarly to the way a trash can might, holding the bag open with a lid that had to be lifted to access it. Veronica planned to use it to hold dirty cleaning gloves, wash cloths, and anything else she would have to wait to dispose of until she was finished cleaning and had access to her system. For that matter, she had materialized a few extra pairs of leather cleaning gloves that she was keeping on the cart so she didn't have to use the same pair for bathroom cleaning as she did everything else. Since she could absorb them and create new ones each day, it was fine to treat them as disposable.
The two brushes went on the bottom most shelf in the center portion of the cart. That would ensure she wouldn't have to smell any unpleasant smells while also keeping them within reach. Meanwhile, the feather duster went right next to the broom and dustpan on one side of the cart. The inn rooms likely didn't need dusting and weren't truly dirty, but it still seemed right to do the basic maintenance to keep all the rooms clean and pleasant smelling for her guests.
Would you like to spend 30 DP to research blue luxury washcloths using the [Base Resources] undyed cotton, undyed thread, and blue dye?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 10 DP to research a bottle of sanitizing solution using the [Base Resources] glass bottle, cork, water, alcohol, lemon, and rosemary?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 10 DP to research a bottle of glass cleaner using the [Base Resources] glass bottle, cork, water, vinegar, lemon, and rosemary?
Yes
No
While she had previously unlocked a set of green wash cloths to use for cleaning, Veronica decided to make a second set with a different color just so she could use one color exclusively for bathrooms and the other for general cleaning. That would help keep things more sanitary as well as give her guests peace of mind that there wasn't cross-contamination going on. No one wanted to eat off of a toilet, after all, so it was best to avoid spreading such germs to the kitchen counters and such. In fact, this was a trick she had picked up while she was working for her parents in their bed and breakfast. It felt good to retain such high standards in her new life.
The cleaning solutions were all very similar to one another. The main differences were that the all-purpose cleaner, she had previously made, used lye soap while the sanitizing solution used alcohol to kill germs. Meanwhile, the glass cleaner used vinegar to help give the glass an extra nice shine. She didn't exactly have bathroom mirrors yet, now that she thought about it, but that could be left for another day. For now, she just wanted to ensure she had everything she needed for cleaning so she wouldn't have to keep researching new things for it.
The blue and green washcloths sat in an indent immediately at the top center-most portion of the cart. Meanwhile, the glass bottles of cleaner sat in front of that so that they were immediately in front of her whenever she went to push the cart. It was still a shame she didn't have a spray bottle to use, preferably something not made from glass, but she had to make do with what she had. At least the inn floors were nice and smooth so there was no worry of the glass bottles falling off the cart and breaking unless she, or her guests, were being reckless and clumsy.
Would you like to spend 6 DP to research black bandanas using the [Base Resources] undyed cotton, undyed thread, and black dye?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 6 DP to research black face masks using the [Base Resources] undyed cotton, undyed thread, and black dye?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 10 DP to research black aprons using the [Base Resources] undyed cotton, undyed thread, and black dye?
Yes
No
Would you like to spend 20 DP to research safety goggles using the [Base Resources] glass, undyed cotton, and undyed thread?
Yes
No
This was the last of the research she needed to do before she began cleaning. As she used to enjoy reading manga and watching anime, she had seen Japanese characters dressed in a similar getup for cleaning plenty of times. The bandana would go in their hair to help keep it clean and out of the way, the face mask and safety goggles would keep cleaners from getting in their face, and the apron would protect their clothing. Combined with the leather gloves, it, honestly, made Veronica feel a lot less grossed out and bothered by cleaning bathrooms every morning. Cleaning had never been her favorite part about helping her parents run their bed and breakfast, so it was unsurprising that she didn't enjoy it now either.
She had spent 186 DP on researching new cleaning supplies, which brought her total down to 7,212 dungeon points. It really wasn't too bad for the value she was getting and the mana costs were pretty decent as well. The DP cost to research something was always twice that of the mana cost to create the [Item], so it took her very little time to get the cart stocked. This was good news since she still needed to add more kitchenware to the kitchens in her large inn rooms, which she likely wouldn't finish today either. It was simply too expensive and more people would show up to her inn sooner or later.