It began with a stick, some straw, and a dream.
Kazuki Tanaka stood in the center of the village square, sweat dripping down his brow as he tied the final knot on his prototype. Around him, curious peasants gathered, whispering.
"Is he… binding straw to wood?"
"What sorcery is this?"
"A demon's weapon?"
Kazuki raised the object high into the air like a sword of destiny. "Behold!" he declared, eyes glinting with purpose. "The *broom!*"
Silence.
Then someone coughed.
Kazuki held his ground. "With this tool, you no longer need to kick filth out of your homes or sweep with your bare hands. This—" he gave it a firm, satisfying *swish* across the ground, lifting a cloud of dust "—*consolidates dirt displacement efficiency by over 300%.*"
One child clapped. An old man gasped as a rat ran out of his cottage, chased by Kazuki's expertly handled swipes.
And just like that, the first murmurs of revolution began.
---
The next few weeks were a whirlwind.
Kazuki commandeered an abandoned barn and converted it into what he proudly called the **Sanitation Forge**, complete with labeled storage shelves, cleaning reagents made from local herbs, and a handmade sign that read:
> *"Cleansing the Realm, One Broom at a Time."*
Villagers came from miles around, at first out of curiosity, then desperation. With a little convincing (and some minor magical flair), Kazuki taught them how to:
* **Boil water before drinking it**
* **Use latrines *not* the river**
* **Wash hands with soap (which he crafted from animal fat and lye, then blessed with \[Sanitize Aura])**
* **Keep food covered and off the floor**
He introduced basic cleaning tools:
* Cloth rags enchanted with \[Purify Touch]
* Chamber pots that glowed softly when clean
* Soapstones that fizzed and smelled like pine when wet
But his most important creation—the one that would send shockwaves across the region—was the **Self-Animating Cleaning Broom**.
Infused with minor elemental magic and Kazuki's relentless obsession with cleanliness, the broom could sweep a designated area on its own. Not flawlessly, but impressively enough to make jaws drop.
"*Sweep, Sentry Model One!*" Kazuki commanded.
The broom vibrated, twitched… and then started gliding across the floor with purpose. Dust swirled. Debris scattered. The children screamed with delight. A chicken fainted.
> **New Spell Acquired: \[Enchant Tool – Minor]**
> Temporarily grants mundane objects limited autonomous function.
Kazuki grinned. "Now we're making progress."
---
Word spread.
First to neighboring villages, then to the outer towns.
The effects were immediate:
* Disease rates dropped.
* Marketplaces stopped smelling like death.
* People stopped flinging garbage into the streets with reckless abandon.
And with that success came *attention.*
---
Two weeks later, as Kazuki stood admiring a crowd of peasants learning to mop, a rider in dark leather arrived at the village gate. He bore the crest of the **Alchemist Guild of Westmere**, a powerful organization with influence stretching across multiple regions.
The rider dismounted and unfurled a scroll.
"To the so-called *Sanitation Prophet*—"
Kazuki blinked. "That's new."
"—You are hereby summoned to appear before the Council of Guildmasters for unauthorized magical invention, disruption of guild-sponsored medical services, and incitement of peasant uprising through enchanted cleaning instruments."
The crowd murmured.
Kazuki narrowed his eyes. "Oh. So *now* I'm a threat."
---
That night, Kazuki sat in his forge, staring at the broom he'd been working on: Model Six. Sleeker. Smarter. With a built-in dirt detection charm.
He knew what the summons meant. His "revolution" wasn't just scrubbing dirt anymore. It was shaking systems. Weakening noble power. Empowering peasants with the radical idea that they didn't have to live in filth.
And that made him dangerous.
He picked up the broom and whispered to himself, "Let them come. I have mops."
He turned to Gerald the Rat, now his oddly loyal lab assistant.
"Gerald, update the contingency plans. We may have to clean *under pressure.*"
The rat squeaked in agreement.
And thus, with enchanted bristles, purifying spells, and the sheer unbreakable will of a germaphobe, the *Broom Revolution* began sweeping not just homes—but history itself.