Noah finally calmed down from the victorious revelation of his skills. The sheer, game-breaking absurdity of Persistence Protocol and Reconstruct was enough to offset the humiliation of the class name, at least for a moment.
"Although there's no combat skill, it's fine," he reasoned, his mind already working the angles. "The class is literally just for cleaning stuff up. But Persistence Protocol... it basically tells me, 'as long as there's dust—no, Essence—I can't die.' But that also means I have to collect Essence to fuel it. It's just telling me to slave myself away forever."
The trap was elegant. His immortality was tied directly to his job.
He shrugged, a spark of his old defiance returning. "Anyway, maybe I can just ask Dad to make me a bo staff that can turn into a blade-spear. A [Rare] weapon would make up for my F-Rank stats. The System can't stop me from just... holding another weapon, right?"
The moment the thought of "other equipment" crossed his mind, the System popped up a new, unbidden window. It was sharp, clear, and felt chillingly sentient. It was as if it was listening, waiting for him to deviate.
────────────────────────────── 🧹 **[BOUND EQUIPMENT INTERFACE – CLASS LINKED ARMAMENTS]** ────────────────────────────── **Owner:** Noah Chambers **Class:** Janitor (Primordial Rank) **Soul Synchronization:** 87% **Equipment Type:** Class-Bound Set **Set Name:** Janitor's Eternal Duty ────────────────────────────── **Note:** You cannot use other equipment other than your own standard-issue uniform and tools. ──────────────────────────────
Noah stared, deadpan, at the screen in front of him. The System had immediately blocked him from going off the rails of being a janitor.
"You're kidding me, right?" he muttered. He looked at the note, a cold fear setting in. If he couldn't even wear other, cooler equipment, then his joke about being the System's slave was true after all. He was locked into his F-Rank stats with no way to compensate. He also noticed the Set Name. "Janitor's Eternal Duty." He laughed, a fake, hollow sound. "I'm in danger."
Then, the first item appeared, materializing in a flash of black and blue light. A broom.
It wasn't a UNPA mop. This thing was... cool. It had a black metallic shaft with pulsing, blue leylines of energy tracing patterns all over it. Even the bristles were made of some kind of shimmering black fiber.
Noah held it in his hand. Tears nearly flowed through his cheeks, but he held them back. "I wanna cry so bad," he whispered. "You could've just made it into a normal-looking broom and I wouldn't be mad about it. Why? Why did you still make it look cool? Why are you mocking me? It's a gilded cage."
As he mentally focused on the broom, a panel appeared.
──────────────────────────────
1️⃣ [MAIN WEAPON] – "Broom of Restoration"
Rarity: Unique (Upgradeable)
Type: Hybrid Melee / Essence Catalyst
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Abilities:
🌀 Essence Sweep:
Channels physical and mana energy through each swing, collecting residual essence from slain entities.
Damage scales with STR + PER.
Restores minor HP and Stamina per collected fragment.
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💨 Bristle Spin:
Spins the broom rapidly, generating a centrifugal wave that knocks enemies back within a 5-meter radius.
Cleanses the battlefield of blood, ichor, or miasma.
Cooldown: 20 seconds.
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🧽 Auto-Clean (Passive):
Purifies surfaces, weapons, and allies on contact. Removes minor curses or contamination effects.
Gains +1% purification efficiency for every 100 essence stored in the Dustpan.
──────────────────────────────
Noah read the full details. "Rank is Unique?! And Upgradeable?! That's... that's actually top-tier. I'm quite surprised." He blinked. Then he saw the scaling. "Damage scales with STR + PER. So I can fight with it. My F-Rank stats will be the bottleneck, but... it's not zero. And Bristle Spin... a 5-meter knockback. That's my 'oh shit' button. My only one."
He looked at the rest. "And also, it has abilities, too? Three of them? Even most Unique weapons only have one ability, and high chance it's a passive. Damn."
He gripped the broom tighter. "It's making it very convincing to be a slave. Wow. I'm not surprised at all."
Then, another item appeared, clattering to the floor beside the hospital bed. A long-handled dustpan, made of the same black, shiny texture with pulsing blue leylines.
Noah blinked twice. "You're kidding, right? You're really serious with me being a janitor."
He picked it up. His face was a mask of pure happiness, warring with the sheer devastation. "Yay! Yay! I have a full set," he said, mocking himself, his voice cracking. "I'm gonna go crazy at this point. Let's check it."
──────────────────────────────
2️⃣ [OFF-HAND ARTIFACT] – "Dustpan of Containment"
Rarity: Unique (Upgradeable)
Type: Soul Vessel / Essence Container
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🧩 Essence Storage:
Automatically captures soul and mana fragments gathered by the Broom of Restoration.
Linked directly to Essence Sweep.
──────────────────────────────
💧 Recycle Brew:
Refines stored essence into consumable items:
• Aether Fluid (restores Mana)
• Soul Draught (restores HP/Stamina)
• Corruption Solvent (removes curses or negative status effects)
Conversion efficiency: 1% of stored essence.
──────────────────────────────
🔁 Respawn Reservoir:
When Persistence Protocol activates, consumes 10 stored essence per reconstruction cycle.
If Dustpan is full, the user gains a bonus Invulnerability buff for 30 seconds upon revival.
──────────────────────────────
Noah read it, his mind clicking. "Huh? So, it's basically just a tool to store all the essence. And the Recycle Brew skill... it's like a Mana and HP brewing station, using Essence as fuel." His eyes scanned the details. "Conversion efficiency... 1%." His smile faltered. "A one percent conversion rate? That's... that's just insulting. That's a gacha-level scam. I'd have to sweep an entire battlefield just to make one potion."
He looked at the last ability. "But Respawn Reservoir... a 30-second invulnerability buff if the dustpan is full. That's a massive bonus, but it conflicts with Recycle Brew. Do I keep it full for the safety net, or do I spend the essence to make potions?" He shook his head. "Still, this is actually cool. Maybe I can become a support after all."
He smiled, genuinely for the first time, realizing his class was more than just cleaning. He was starting to see it, positively.
Then, a third item appeared. It landed softly on Noah's lap. It was a folded, gray uniform.
He exhaled. "I'm surprised that I'm starting to get used to it now." He summoned the item's details.
──────────────────────────────
3️⃣ [ARMOR / UNIFORM] – "Janitor's Regulation Outfit"
Rarity: Unique (Upgradeable)
Type: Light Armor / Utility Garment
──────────────────────────────
Defensive Stats:
Defense: +25% vs. Physical Damage
Resistance: +30% vs. Corruption and Toxin
Mobility: +25% (lightweight fabric)
──────────────────────────────
🧴 "Work Clean, Think Clean" (Passive):
Increases focus and stamina regeneration when cleaning or purifying areas.
──────────────────────────────
⚙ "Field Maintenance" (Active):
Repairs nearby allied equipment using essence from Dustpan.
Essence cost varies with the gear's ranks.
──────────────────────────────
Noah whistled. "This is not bad at all. Although I've seen Dad's works, this is a decent stat block. Usually, gear stats are a numerical value, like '+50 Defense.' But this... this scales with my own stats. It's percentage-based!"
This was the part that made his brain buzz. "That means... even with my crap F-Rank stats, I'm getting a 25% boost. If I ever do find a way to raise my stats—maybe those 'stat fragments' from Essence Sweep—this gear will always be relevant. I won't have to keep buying new gear to match my current level. This is... this is quite amazing!"
He looked at the active skill. "And Field Maintenance... it matches my Reconstruct skill. This set is... perfect. A one-man logistics and repair crew."
He touched the folded fabric, and it instantly equipped, his flimsy hospital gown dissolving in a shimmer of light. He was now wearing a sleek, dark-gray utility outfit that fit him perfectly. It was lightweight, durable, and... comfortable.
"Hoho! Why do I feel better wearing this?" he said, rolling his shoulders. "This is weirdly good!"
Then, a final panel appeared in front of him.
──────────────────────────────
🧰 [SET BONUS: "Custodian's Oath"]
──────────────────────────────
Effect (3/3 Equipped):
Every act of cleaning, purifying, or restoring grants +0.01% permanent Affinity with Essence.
At 100% Affinity, unlocks hidden evolution route: "Sanitation Authority" (???).
──────────────────────────────
Noah smiled wide. "Custodian's Oath... but what's this? 'Sanitation Authority'?" He did the math. 100 divided by 0.01. "That's... ten thousand. Ten thousand 'acts' of cleaning just to get... a promotion?" He shook his head. "Oh well. It's a long-term goal."
He stood up, gripping the Broom of Restoration in one hand and the Dustpan of Containment in the other. He felt his old janitor job coming back to him, but this time, it felt... different.
"I look good in this."