“Hmmm…. Hmmmm….” I looked at the selection of jewelry in front of me, but nothing caught my eye.

I, Yi Zen, was the youngest combat instructor at the Royal Academy and one of the top warriors in the nation. And yet I was completely stumped on something so simple. I was never good at buying gifts, but this was very important.

Tomorrow was Mother’s Day, and since I had been off training for several years I missed the last two, so I had to make it up to her, but the more I searched the less sure I was on what to get her. Oh, did I mention my mother was also born on the same day, so it was her birthday on top of it all?

My lover and also wife, Xinyi, stood behind me begging me to buy her something. As did my sister Meixian (and 2nd wife) and the eastern swordswoman Tatsuko (wife 3).

“Would you three be quiet already, it’s mother’s day, not wife day.” I sighed. “And last time I checked, none of you are mothers yet.”

“Moou~ stop being so semantic.” Yinxi whined like a child. She put her hand on her slightly rounded stomach and pouted at me. “I’ll be one soon enough and you know that.”

“Yes, I’m sure your child will grow up to be a fine warrior like their parents, just like mine.” tatsuko smiled softly, lightly rubbing her own belly.

“No fair, how come I’m the only one left out!” Meixian complained, looking at her perfectly flat, toned midriff. “It’s not like there’s been a lack of trying or anything.”

This was far from the peaceful, ordinary life I had wanted, but at this point I was too used to it to even muster up a complaint. The three girls continued to argue with each other and I slipped away into a back alley of the bazaar.

There, in the corner, was a small stall. I decided to check it out on a whim. The shop was run by a westerner, a pretty woman a few years older than I was. She wore a black dress and a large hat with a floppy brim and a huge pointed middle.

“I uhh, I don’t suppose you have anything suitable for a mother’s day present?” I asked her, and she chuckled softly.

“But of course, I have the perfect item for such a day.” she reached under the stall and retrieved a wooden box, and then handed it over to me. “A normal present is fine, but why not give her something more valuable than jewels or flowers?”

I looked into the box and my confusion grew.

“Uhh, this is a…”

“Do not question it, just trust me.” she smiled, but I couldn’t help but feel she wasn’t being genuine. “Wear the contents of this box and wait on her all day, give her the day off a mother rarely receives… I’m sure she’ll be pleased.”

“I don’t know why I need this to do tha-”

“Just take it, in fact, take it for free, really.” the peddler forced the box into my hands and shooed me away before I could refuse. Well, I had no other ideas, so why not give it a try?

I woke up early in the morning, even earlier than my mother Xuan Yan would normally awaken, and opened the box I was given. I couldn’t help but feel this was a foolish idea, but perhaps she would at least find it amusing?

I took the item out of the box and stared at it. Yep, that was exactly what I thought it was. A black and white, frilly, western maid’s uniform. I already regretted this, but I stripped off my pajamas and began to don the uniform.

It even had stockings and garters, was I meant to wear those as well? As soon as I had that thought I noticed a note in the box, which read ‘make sure to wear the entire outfit, including the undergarments. Lest the spell not activate.’ what the hell, it’s not like anyone was going to see them.

Throwing away my pride as a man, I donned the female underwear included with the uniform. Suddenly, I felt strange, my body was burning up, and I nearly fell over. My vision went black for a moment, and then everything passed.

I stood up straight and took a deep breath, not sure what had just happened.

“Well, that was weird.” I said, walking over to a mirror. Before I did, I paused… Why did my voice sound like I was 8 years younger and not into puberty?

And then I saw myself in the mirror. I nearly fainted at the sight. My hair had grown longer, my body slimmed down, and my chest stuck out quite noticeably… I had transformed into a woman.

“W-Why… why!” I fell to my knees, crying. My emotions, normally strongly under lock and key, felt uncontrollable against the wave of female hormones invading my body. “How is this what I wanted, you stupid witch!”

Just then, my mother burst into my room with a grave expression on her face. Her senses were honed to notice when I was distraught, and she always came running.

“Zen, what’s wrong?!” she looked at me, then got a puzzled look on her face. “Zen?”

“I… I just wanted to give you a memorable mother's day…” I cried, holding my face in my hands. “But I got fooled by a witch… and now look at me!”

“I am, Zen, you’re… adorable!” she rushed to my side, hugging my tear stained face against her ample chest. “It’s alright, mommy loves you no matter what your hobbies are…”

“It’s not a hobby! I’m not crossdressing, I’ve really turned into a girl!”

“Wait, really?” she asked, looked at me more closely. “The kind of magic to do that would be extremely advanced…”

Xuan Yan, my mother, reached down and put her hand somewhere she really shouldn’t have to confirm my words were true. Her fingers slipping below the fluffy maid’s skirt.

“Wow~ it’s really gone.”

“M-Mom, don’t touch me there!” I blushed as her hand brushed up against my inner thigh.

“Sorry, I got carried away…” she apologized, releasing me from her hold. “In any case, such powerful magic… did you try taking the outfit off?”

I tried to remove it, but it was like it was glued to my skin. And then I realized something.

“It’s gone… it’s gone!”

“Yes honey, we just went over that.” My mother blushed a bit at her own words.

“No, not that! I no longer have Zero!” I explained.

“..!” she gasped silently.

Looks like things were more serious than we first assumed.

“So that’s the deal.” Xuan Yan explained to the other girls.

“Zen’s gender’s been reversed… and he lost his Skill?” Xinyi gasped, shocked at the news.

I listened to their conversation from the kitchen. This stupid outfit filled me with an intense desire to do housework, so I was currently chopping potatoes. My unique Skill, Zero, had been replaced by a Skill called “Ultimate Housekeeper - Unbreakable Maid.” which gave me mastery over both cooking and cleaning.

In other words, it was completely useless!

“We should attempt to track down the witch who sold him this item, yes?” Tatsuko asked, her arms crossed. “Mother, do you possess any Skills to track magical energy?”

“Of course.” she replied, “I’ve already cast the spell, she’s still in the city.”

And then the four women in my life headed out into the city, intending to leave me behind. I didn’t like it, so I ended up following them. With my current body, I was unable to even lift my father’s sword, so I ended up leaving it behind.

Four warrior women rushed down the busy city streets, an uncommon sight already. But the lone maid, running behind them with a broom in hand, surely made this a one of a kind spectacle even in the capital.

I caught up with them at a crossroads.

“Wait, Xinyi, Tatsuko… should you two be fighting in your current state?” I asked them, looking at their bellies.

“Wait, are you two…” my mother looked at them, shocked. I then realized she hadn’t been told yet, and began to panic, would she be angry I hadn’t told her? “Congratulations!”

“Ara ara, unhappy with my present, Yan?” the voice of the witch fluttered by, and she floated down into view atop a broom. She wasn’t sitting on it, rather, she stood on the handle with her hands on her hips.

“Undo this curse on my poor Zen, mother!” she replied with a growl.

“Ehh?!” The rest of us shouted in unison.

But, she looked so young, even younger than my mother did. I knew witches could do some strange things, but to only look thirty as a grandmother…

“Mom, are you serious? You told me grandma was dead.”

“Well, she was dead to me, at least!” Yan replied, drawing her sword. “I don’t want to fight you, but I will if I have to!”

“Calm down, you were always so rash.” the witch who was apparently my grandmother replied. From within one of her large sleeves she produced a black wand, and flicked it in our direction.

Several barriers that looked like glass appeared around my mother and other girls. Yan tried to break it, but it wouldn’t budge.

For some reason, I was spared this imprisonment, probably because I had no combat skills at the moment.

The witch vanished, reappearing behind me. She put her hands on my body, caressing me inappropriately, why did this behavior have to run in the family?

“Ara, I knew you’d make a fine young woman, my lovely grandson. How is it, are you enjoying your new body?” she asked, her hand clasping around one of my breasts. “But I must say, I impress even myself! To be able to transform you so completely, I’ve outdone myself this time!”

Getting annoyed, I smacked her with my broom. She crumpled to the floor, but then her body vanished into smoke. Great, it was just a fake double, I hate magic users.

From within the maid uniform’s skirt, I drew out several kitchen knives using the power of Unbreakable Maid. it seemed that it didn’t just make me skilled with maid abilities, but rather gave me absolute domain over them.

I threw the knives at the witch, who hopped back and forth between them. She landed back on her broom and began to ascend, which gave me an idea.

Putting one foot on my broom, I used the other to kick off the ground. I flew upward, using the broom in the same way my grandmother was. It wasn’t exactly maid related, but it used a broom, so I guess this was ok!

If I recall correctly, my grandmother’s name was Xuan Jia, not that it matters, it just came to me at that moment.

“You sure are persistent, aren’t you?” Jia scowled, firing a few bolts of magic at me. I somehow managed to dodge them, controlling the broom like a surfboard.

I got closer to her, pulling a large wok out of the maid dress despite there being no room for it in there, and smacked my stupid grandmother in the head with it. She was knocked out instantly and began to fall, but I caught her. Lowering us to the ground, the magical trap around my companions was lifted thanks to the caster losing consciousness.

Unfortunately, cursed items like what I was wearing didn’t have that effect, so I was still a girl.

Back at our home, Xuan Jia was bound with antimagic ropes, sitting on the floor between us all.

“Look, I’m really sorry, it was just like, a little prank?” she laughed, acting incredibly immature for a grandmother, not that she looked like one. The more I looked at her, the more I should have realized she was related to mom, though I’d have probably assumed she was a sister or cousin, not…

“Grandma, please, turn me back!” I begged her.

“Sorry kiddo, you’ll just have to wait for the spell to run out.”

“Hey hey, is it like, really gone?” Xinyi started to life up the maid’s skirt, and I was too weak to stop her, especially with the other two joining in.

“Oi, can you move out of the way so I can see too?” Jia asked, “I want to check how my spell worked out.”

“P-Please, don’t do it.” I begged, but the ferocious women that surrounded me seemed to not be listening.

Why me…