"I'm a better maid than you! And I'll prove it!" she shot back, furious.
Sharon snapped her fingers. A massive, thick cloud of red smoke erupted violently from beneath her, swallowing her in an instant. The other girls coughed as the smoke swirled toward them. From the crimson haze, Sharon emerged wearing a flashy, high-end maid uniform.
She began pacing through the house, looking for something to do, but found nothing. Velya had cleaned every single corner.
"Mmph…" the redhead grumbled to herself. "Celes!" she barked at her secretary.
"At your service, Miss Rusthford…" the secretary replied.
Almost instantly, Celes turned toward a small wooden cabinet. A small potted plant sat on top. With a swift flick of her hand, she swiped it off. Soil scattered across the entire floor.
"Hey! It took me forever to clean this house, you bitch!" Velya screamed, livid.
"Oh, looks like you missed a spot…" Sharon countered with smug superiority.
The woman stared at the pile of dirt she'd just created, but instead of cleaning it herself, she turned back to Celes and uttered her name like a command.
"Celes!" the CEO vociferated, snapping her fingers again.
"At your service, Miss Rusthford!" The secretary nodded and blew her whistle once more.
This time, several limousines pulled up to Aoi's house, squeezing into whatever space they could find on the street. An entire army of maids poured out.
"Cleaning! Cleaning! Cleaning!" the army of servants chanted desperately and in unison.
Celes blew her whistle again, directing the army to clean the dirt and the rest of the house all over again. It ended up polished to a diamond-like shine.
"Wow!" Aoi exclaimed, staring at her sparkling home. She even put on dark sunglasses just to admire the maids' handiwork.
"Hey! That's cheating! You didn't clean a thing!" Velya grumbled at the CEO.
"Ha! Ha! Ha! I have enough money to do whatever I want, you know...?" Sharon said, her prepotent tone shifting into something more intimidating. "If the house is shining, that doesn't just make you a second-rate maid... it makes you third-rate. Useless," she added shamelessly.
"Ugh! You daughter of a—!" Velya barked, but Aoi interrupted with a strange, soft tone.
"So… you really have enough money to do anything?" Aoi asked.
"That, and so much more. I have so much money I could even make you do whatever you wanted," Sharon said firmly.
"Whatever I want, whatever I want… Whatever I want! Dammit!" Aoi screamed inside her head, her imagination taking flight. "I could buy a real house! A house just for me! I wouldn't have to pay rent! I'd have food every day! Three times a day! Three times a day! Maybe having a CEO as my personal maid isn't such a dumb idea after all…" Aoi thought, blushing.
"Huh?!" Velya exclaimed, seeing Aoi hallucinating with sweet little "thought bubbles" floating around her.
"Mmh… what's wrong with Miss Amamiya?" Celes asked, looking slightly embarrassed.
"Uh… she must be having one of her 'impure thought' moments…" Velya said, sounding confused.
"Im… impure thoughts?" Celes echoed.
"Yeah… it's something only she understands… he-he… I guess…" Velya replied.
"Fine, fine, fine. It's best if Miss Amamiya decides who to stay with so we stop wasting time," Sharon interrupted firmly.
"Uh… wait a second…" Aoi thought to herself. "Bu-bu-bu… but if I choose Sharon for the money, what happens to Velya? She might be clumsy, stubborn, and… well, 'voluptuous'… but she's a clumsy, stubborn, voluptuous noble… mmh… this is a hard choice. Do I give my soul to a demon for friendship or for money…?" Aoi sighed out loud. "Pufff… tough decision…"
"TOUGH?!" both maids screamed at Aoi, startled.
"Uh… er… that… er…" Aoi stammered, terrified. "I meant to think that! Not say it!" she yelled at the two girls.
"Mmh… I have an idea…" Celes said, adjusting her glasses. The intense glare on the lenses completely hid her eyes.
"An idea?" Aoi repeated, confused.
"Come on! Spit it out! I want to hear it!" Velya exclaimed.
"Mmm… interesting. Celes, tell us. I like it when you come up with something key," Sharon added.
"Miss Rusthford, why not show this 'excuse for a maid' who's really in charge here with superior strength?" Celes said, smiling at Sharon with malice.
"Mmh? Superior strength?" Aoi repeated.
"If she wants to fight, I'll—!" Velya exclaimed, her eyes burning with fury.
"Mmh… No, it won't be a fight… not exactly… but a competition," Celes added to the angry demoness.
"Then speak up, don't keep me in unnecessary suspense…" Velya replied.
"Miss Rusthford," Celes said to Sharon. "I propose something where you can demonstrate your absolute power!"
"Speak, stop wasting time!" Sharon barked.
"I propose an arm-wrestling match!" Celes said excitedly.
"An arm-wrestling match?" Aoi inquired.
"Yes! Both of you will face off in an arm-wrestling battle to see who stays with you. None of the contracts forbid competition between demons, especially when it's for a human soul," she added, her energy never wavering.
"Mmh… interesting, but I don't know. I wouldn't be capable of…" Sharon started, then turned toward Velya with utter contempt. "I wouldn't be capable of touching the hand of such a second-rate maid…"
"Argh!" Velya snapped.
"Yes, you know the deal. You're not rich, you're not powerful, and you're not as tall as I am… you're nothing but a—"
"ENOUGH!" Velya shouted flatly. Every girl in the room fell silent. "I, Velya D'moncarft! Challenge you, you low-life redhead with questionable surgical enhancements…" Sharon's face twisted with hatred. "To an arm-wrestling match! And you can't say no! Because the Demon Code doesn't allow you to refuse a challenge like this!" Velya exclaimed, pointing a finger at her.
Sharon gnashed her teeth, baring them in rage at the amethyst-haired girl.
"Fine! If it's a challenge you want! A challenge you'll get!" Sharon screamed without thinking.
The redhead snapped her fingers, and suddenly a tremor began to shake Aoi's house. All the girls were terrified, except for Velya, who remained serious, her eyes locked onto Sharon's.
"Oh, no…" Celes muttered. She grabbed her whistle and blew it hard.
All the maids fled the building, shouting in panicked, uneven tones, "Cleaning, cleaning… CLEANING!" as they scrambled into a limousine to get out of there as fast as possible.
"Aaaahhh, what's happening?!" Aoi cried, confused and afraid.
Suddenly, a black portal of lava and fire opened in the floor, and an imposing figure emerged. As the demon appeared, the fire and lava were sucked back into the portal, leaving the floor with only slight scorch marks.
"You called?" the towering figure inquired. He was obese yet muscular in the arms and legs; his forearms and pectorals were nearly the size of his head.
"Yes, that's right. Let's get straight to the point. I've called you here for a favor," Sharon said in a flirtatious, soft tone to the hulking man.
"Mmh… what is it about?" He acted as if he were uninterested.
Sharon leaned in close to the guy, speaking in a low voice.
"See that brat over there? The one with the violet hair who looks fat in that maid outfit," Sharon said, pointing at Velya without hiding it.
"Hey! I can hear you, you idiot!" Velya roared, a vein throbbing in her forehead.
"Well, her… She has challenged me to an arm-wrestling match!"
"Mmh… I see…" the colossus replied. The great demon looked at all the girls present and said: "Then so be it. An arm-wrestling battle shall be fought right here," he declared.
At that moment, he began to growl, concentrating all his power. Immediately, the ground shook again.
"Aaaahhh! Another earthquake?! You're going to knock my house down! I hope you're paying for whatever you break!" Aoi yelled, annoyed.
The colossus began to scream, and in that same instant, a portal filled with howling souls opened. The portal grew larger, the shaking intensified, and the demon's roar grew even louder.
From the darkness emerged an arm-wrestling table. It was a professional, metallic table with solid support, elbow pads, "touchdown" pads for the opponent's hand, and grip levers, all adorned with gargoyle statues.
"Eh? Are you seriously… going to play arm-wrestling?" Aoi said, a nervous bead of sweat rolling down her face as she watched the colossus set the table.
The two girls took their places and readied their positions.
"I present myself to the public. My name is Grantzú, the demon in charge of arm-wrestling matches. Today we have two competitors fighting for the soul of Aoi Amamiya. You know the rules! You can put your body into it if necessary. Attempt to pin your opponent using the strength of your arm," the big guy spoke.
Meanwhile, Sharon began threatening Velya.
"I'm going to crush you. Once I win, Aoi will be mine, and there's nothing you can do to stop it, you overweight maid," Sharon said.
"We'll see about that, you silicone-filled bitch!" Velya replied, nearly screaming.
"I can't believe they're actually fighting over me… this isn't good, no matter how you look at it…" Aoi thought. "If Sharon wins, I'll be a millionaire. Maybe my soul won't be mine anymore, but I'll be rich! On the other hand, if Velya wins… well, I'll stay poor… that's true. Though I don't know… maybe if Velya wins… if she wins…" Aoi kept thinking.
Celes leaned toward Aoi and whispered in her ear.
"If you don't root for Miss Rusthford, I'll make sure your professional life is a living hell… you'll be the worst secretary in history, and I'll make sure your career is ruined. Do you hear me?"
"Oh… uh…" Aoi stammered. "Go, Sharon! You can do it!" she shouted almost immediately, faking her enthusiasm.
"Hey! Weren't you supposed to be on my side?! You traitor!" Velya shrieked, pissed off.
"Eh?! Sorry… sorry… sorry, sorry… Bu-but… this… she…" Aoi thought, glancing at Celes, who hadn't taken her eyes off her and was growling like a wild animal. "This bitch is for real," she continued in her mind, trying to control her panic.
"Fine!" the demon said, taking the girls' hands and binding them with a leather strap. "The match begins in 3…" he said as the girls locked eyes.
"2…" he mentioned, the tension cranking up.
"Holy shit, holy shit… holy shit… holy shit…" Aoi trembled with fear, waiting for the outcome.
"1…" the demon said. "GO!" he added instantly, letting go of their hands as the struggle began.
The two girls started with immense force. Sharon took a leverage advantage against Velya, being the taller of the two. Velya fought to avoid a quick pin, shifting her weight until she managed to stabilize the match. However, Sharon seemed to be in total control.