Well, losing that anime connection with Arisa stung a bit, sure… But what could I do?

  Keep my head down, read my light novel, and pretend I didn’t just fumble the one thing I was semi-qualified to talk about.

  That was the plan...

  Until Nao, the human question cannon, started rapid firing like we were on a dating game show.

  “Do you like cheese?”

  “What’s your favourite colour?”

  “Do you play sports?”

  “Have you ever eaten bugs?”

  “Would you eat bugs?for money?”

  I blinked between pages.

  “...I mean, it depends on how much money we’re talking.”

  She laughed like I was the funniest person alive. Her laugh was… Weirdly contagious. I answered everything with a smile and tried not to give any Yuki-grade deadpan sarcasm.

  We were eventually shooed out of the library because of Nao and her excessive talking. The five of us trickling down the hallway like some dysfunctional anime club.

  Yuki walked ahead of us, alone.

  Straight-backed. Not looking back.

  “She didn’t say anything the whole time, I mean, what did I expect?" I thought to myself, glancing between Yuki's back and the others next to me. I don't think this was a normal thing, not until I started hanging out with them…

  We reached the intersection, where we were all heading in different directions, and, of course, it seemed Yuki was happy to see me go, as she suddenly became talkative, but at least Nao and Reina gave me a quick wave.

  Reina’s was quiet and small. Nao’s was a full-body wiggle like she was sending off a puppy to war.

  Three began to turn around and walk off.

  Yeah, the three…

  Because the fourth Arisa, she stayed behind.

  “Hey Souta~” She said, walking up to me, voice all sing-song. “It was fun having you around today.”

  She leaned in, lowering her voice. Her hair smelled like vanilla and danger.

  “Try to make up with Yuki, okay?”

  As if that would happen in a million years.

  “Then maybe you can spend more time with us~”

  My brow furrowed "But how can I if she- OW!"

  Before I could say anything, she flicked me on the forehead. Harder than necessary. Then, as she turned around to walk away, she glanced back with her ever-so-teasing smile.

  “Make sure you try, you little rascal.”

  I blinked.

  “Rascal, huh…”

  That word.

  Nao had said it earlier. Sounded silly coming from her.

  But from Arisa?

  That sounded… Way hotter than it should’ve been.

  Like way hotter.

  She giggled and twirled away, walking off with that confidence she always displayed. Still, something about the way she’d looked at me, just before the flick, it wasn’t the usual teasing spark. Just for a second, I thought I saw something softer. Or maybe I imagined it.

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Either way, by the time I turned back around, they were gone.

  And I was alone again.

  “I swear if one more girl calls me a rascal, I’m gonna start getting a complex.”

  *

  Eventually, the day ended, and I was back in my natural environment:

  Home.

  Desk.

  Bills.

  And the sweet, melodic screams of my darling sister losing her sanity over a video game.

  “DIE! DIE, YOU SON OF A BITCH, YOU THOUGHT!”

  Saki was going full war goddess on whatever poor NPC dared cross her.

  Meanwhile, I sat staring at my computer screen, job boards open like a buffet of misery, and that cursed rent letter mocking me from the corner of my desk.

  “Jobs… jobs… jobs…”

  It was all I could think about; it honestly shouldn't be the thing a guy like me thinks about. Let's face it, a guy my age is thinking about the women, the cool places he wants to go, and maybe landing his first kiss or something sick like that. But for me… Every scroll felt like swiping left on my future. Each day that went by brought Saki and me closer to becoming homeless.

  I was about to click on a sketchy listing titled “Flexible."

  Personal Assistant – Good at multi-tasking preferred.

  When the house phone rang.

  Saki got to it first. Good. I wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone who wasn’t giving me money. Her conversation lasted maybe ten seconds. Just enough for me to assume it was spam.

  Wrong.

  I heard her footsteps charging down the hallway like a damn earthquake.

  Saki energy detected.

  All systems: PANIC.

  I turned toward the door. It slammed open like a boss battle cutscene.

  “ONIIIIII-CHAAAAANNNNNN!”

  Before I could respond, she sprinted across the room, launched herself off my chair, and performed a Tekken-level double-foot stomp into my chest like she was unlocking a secret ending.

  “WE GOT YOU A JOB!!!”

  My soul evacuated my body on impact.

  “Ughhh, MY RIBS!”

  She bounced off me like it was a trampoline and started dancing on the bed.

  “JOB! MONEY! CLOTHES! ANIME FIGURES! COSPLAAAY!”

  I lay there gasping like a man stabbed by rent and family responsibility.

  “Saki… Why?!” I moaned, clutching my stomach.

  Eventually, after I mentally applied first aid and iced my pride, we sat down and talked. She explained it with that smug look she always had when she was right:

  “Friend of a friend’s older sister knows a girl who needs someone to help keep her apartment clean. Like a… Maid. Or something close.”

  My spidy senses tingled danger, so naturally, I asked the essentials:

  “Is this even local?”

  “How much does it pay?”

  “Why does this sound like the opening of a hentai?”

  “Am I losing a kidney?”

  But the details checked out, shockingly. And to prove it, she pulled up the listing on the job board.

  “Private Residence Assistant – Quiet, Respectful. Bonus for experience with cleaning, food prep, and dealing with difficult personalities.”

  I paused as I read the last part.

  “Difficult personalities?” I repeated out loud, the worry in my voice was obvious. I looked at Saki. She didn't reply, ohhh no she didn't, but what she did do was just wink.

  “You’ll fit right in.”

  "Not very convincing…" I sighed.

  But desperate and broke, and I'd rather have a difficult job than be homeless, so I clicked apply.

  Not five minutes later, my phone buzzed.

  Unknown number:

  “We’ve received your application. Report to apartment 7C on Wednesday at 6 PM sharp. Ring once.”

  We stared at the message together.

  “That was… fast.”

  “Too fast,” I muttered. “Feels like the start of a Netflix horror series.”

  “Or an ecchi rom-com~!” Saki chimed in, grinning.

  I glanced at the rent letter again.

  “Yeah, well… either way, I’m getting paid. Whether selling a body part or not.”

  *

  Two uneventful days passed, and for once in my life, I was grateful for the peace. Thankfully, I hadn't seen the girls in a while; they weren't in class or anything, so to say peaceful was an understatement. But that peace was shattered the second I stepped off the bus. Towering in front of me was an apartment building so massive, so spotless, it looked like the kind of place a prime minister or underground yakuza boss would call home.

  The kind of building that had its own time zone and gravity. I tried not to gawk too long; no use looking like a lost puppy, and made my way toward the front entrance.

  That’s when I saw him.

  A tall man stood by the door, suited up in a tailored black outfit so sharp it could cut glass. Not a single crease on him. His long, silver hair was tied into a neat ponytail, and he had this aura of silent power. The kind of guy who could karate-chop a man into another dimension for mispronouncing his name.

  As I approached, his eyes met mine, and then he smiled.

  “Oh no. I'm about to get Taken.”

  To my surprise, he bowed lightly.

  “Good evening, sir. Are you here for the job?”

  His voice was so smooth it sounded like it came with a glass of aged whiskey.

  “Y-Yessir. I am,” My words came out as stutters, now suddenly forgetting how to function in front of this Final Boss butler.

  He nodded and motioned me inside without another word. The moment I stepped into the lobby, I felt like I was trespassing into another world.

  "This is how Subaru felt…" I muttered.

  Everything was polished marble, gold trim, and silence that made your thoughts echo. We took the elevator in silence. My brain? Not so silent.

  “What the hell did Saki sign me up for? A maid for the long purple-haired emperor's son? Am I gonna have to dust statues of gods and mop diamond floors?!”

  I glanced at the old man; he gave me a soft smile before turning to the door.

  "I pray that these people don't have a war zone for an apartment…"

  The elevator dinged. We stepped into a hallway that looked more like a luxury hotel. Each door whispered money with gold-plated numerals and designer welcome mats. The old man glanced at me, noticing my death-grip on my backpack straps.

  “No need to worry, sir,” he said. “The young ladies you’ll be assisting are wonderfully respectful and polite.”

  “Ladies?”

  “...”

  I blinked. “Wait, ladies? Plural?”

  A slight smirk grew on his face “Yes. Four, to be precise.”

  “Huh, wait, FOUR?!”

  But before I could demand clarification, he stopped in front of a sleek black door, knocked once, and opened it without warning.

  “Please, enter.”

  And that’s when my soul left my body.

  Because sitting casually in the living room, surrounded by pillows, tea, and enough tension to cut with a katana.

  Were the four horsewomen of my awkward apocalypse.

  Yuki. Nao. Arisa. Reina.

  And just like me, their eyes widened.

  Everyone stared.

  No one blinked.

  No one breathed.

  Oh. My. God.

  I’m the maid for the girls who think I’m a pervert.