Washing the dishes ended up taking a full thirty minutes, partly because there were so many of them.
"...Is this detergent different from what she usually uses?"
I had noticed it while scrubbing the dishes; the dishwashing soap felt distinct from the usual kind.
It lathered up normally, but the suds didn't leave a lingering residue on my skin.
"Whoa, incredible! All those dishes are completely cleared away! You really are amazing, Erik-kun!"
"Marina-san, is the workroom all sorted out now?"
"Yeah. I put away the important stuff, so feel free to clean up the rest. By the way, how was using that dish soap?"
"So it really was a different detergent after all?"
When I asked, Marina-san gave a proud smile.
"A while back, you mentioned that dish soap tends to stick to your hands and dry them out, right, Erik-kun? When I asked Hannah-san about it, she told me that's a common struggle for a lot of homemakers, so I formulated a new one!"
"That's really impressive. Its cleaning power didn't seem any worse than the original, either. Did you use high-grade ingredients?"
"Rather than the ingredients, it's more that making it is just a bit of a hassle, I guess."
I had always known Marina-san was exceptionally skilled, but I never expected her to concoct something so precisely tailored to the problem.
"By the way, I also made another batch with boosted cleaning power. Do you have any ideas on how we could use it, Erik-kun?"
"A high-strength detergent, huh... In that case, how about removing mold in the bathroom? Mold is usually pretty stubborn against regular soap."
"Ah, that might actually be a great idea!"
With that, Marina-san and I headed to the bathroom. Spotting some mold, we applied the detergent directly onto it.
Marina-san suggested it would be best to let it sit for a while.
So, leaving the bathroom for later, we decided to tackle the living room first.
Trash was scattered all over the floor, though most of it consisted of wooden crates and hemp sacks.
They had apparently contained alchemy materials; she had simply taken out the contents and left the packaging behind.
"I'll bag up the trash and gather the clothes to wash all at once later."
Lying amidst the clutter were scattered pieces of Marina-san's clothing.
It looked like she had stripped them off right in the living room and changed on the spot.
There was even some underwear strewn about, but having washed her undergarments multiple times in the past, I wasn't particularly fazed.
Picking up Anna-san's underwear had flustered me back in the day, but that version of me was long gone.
Having washed other people's undergarments countless times on household chore quests, I had grown completely desensitized to it.
"Erik-kun, did you really get this much done while I was upstairs?"
"My cleaning skills have improved even more since the last time I came over, Marina-san."
"They went up again?!"
Marina-san gasped in astonishment as I carried the filled garbage bags outside.
After leaving the bags at the collection spot, I returned inside and decided to tackle the laundry next.
I hauled the massive pile of gathered clothes out into the yard.
"Marina-san, are these the only drying rack and poles you have? There's a lot to wash, so I could use a bit more space to hang everything."
"Hmm, I think there's another set in the workroom. I'll go grab it right now."
"...Why would you have something like that in the workroom?"
"I set it up to hold things during experiments, but I ended up not using it and just shoved it into the corner of the room..."
Hearing that, I went along to help rescue the rack and pole first.
When I stepped into the workroom, it was in a truly dreadful state, with barely enough floor space to stand on.
"...So this is where the final boss was hiding."
"I-Is it really that terrible? There's still room to walk, right?"
"It's weirder that you think having this little room to walk is acceptable."
After teasing Marina-san, I scouted for the drying rack and poles.
Fortunately, despite my apprehension when she had mentioned the corner of the room, they were sitting relatively close to the entrance.
Shifting a few boxes out of the way, I safely retrieved the gear and carried it out to the yard.
"Ah, right. I also whipped up a new laundry detergent. Want to give it a try?"
"Is this one formulated to be gentle on the skin, too?"
"Yep. If you don't mind, Erik-kun, I'd love for you to test it out."
"Understood. I'll give it a shot."
Taking the detergent from Marina-san, I set to work on the laundry.
Just as with the dish soap, this detergent was clearly far gentler on bare skin.
A quick rinse with water washed it away cleanly, leaving no slippery suds behind on my hands.
"This is incredible. The grime comes right out of the fabric, yet my hands aren't irritated at all..."
After scrubbing a few garments, the sheer effectiveness of the detergent became undeniable.
I found myself wanting to keep using it from now on.
"...I'll have to ask Marina-san when she plans to put this on the market. If I don't buy some before word gets out, it's definitely going to sell out instantly."
Musing over that, I continued working through the laundry.