Why Are You So Tall?

Morning came with the usual bustling noise of the town waking up. The scent of fresh bread and sizzling meat drifted through the inn, mixing with the muffled voices of adventurers already swapping tales of last night's drunken escapades.

Arlan stood in front of the small mirror in his room, still adjusting to what he was seeing.

His reflection had changed.

He was taller now, standing with a natural straightness he wasn't used to. His muscles had filled out—not overly bulky, but enough that his cloak sat differently on his shoulders. His hair looked darker, richer.

And then there were his eyes.

Emerald green. Faintly glowing.

Arlan swallowed hard.

This is fine. This is totally fine.

If he just acted normal, no one would question it.

Right?

He sighed, pulling his hood up over his head as a last-ditch effort to feel less like a completely different person. With one final deep breath, he stepped out into the hall.

Breakfast and Unwanted Attention

The inn's dining hall was already filled with the usual morning chaos—clinking plates, loud conversations, and adventurers recovering from their various self-inflicted hangovers.

Arlan spotted his party at their usual table, already halfway through their food.

Trying to act casual, he strode over and pulled out a chair.

Tomas was the first to look up. His chewing slowed. His eyebrows furrowed.

Leila, mid-bite, blinked rapidly like she wasn't sure if she was still asleep.

Beren simply squinted.

Mira had been about to take a sip of her drink. Instead, she froze, cup halfway to her lips, staring at him like he had just sprouted a second head.

"…What?" Arlan asked, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.

Tomas swallowed his food dramatically, then pointed at him.

"You're taller."

Beren grunted. "And… bigger?"

Leila tilted her head. "And your eyes."

Mira still hadn't said anything.

Arlan felt sweat forming at the back of his neck. He needed a good excuse. Fast.

"Uh. Growth spurt."

Tomas snorted. "A growth spurt?"

Leila raised an eyebrow. "Overnight?"

Beren muttered. "I thought you were done growing."

Arlan forced a shrug. "Guess not?"

Mira finally set her cup down and spoke. "That's not how bodies work."

Arlan avoided eye contact. "Maybe it is, and we just don't know it."

Leila leaned on the table. "Your entire face is different."

Tomas nodded. "Yeah, you actually look… I don't know. Not like someone who slept in a gutter last week."

"Thanks?" Arlan muttered.

Beren exhaled. "So this is from your class change?"

Arlan nodded quickly. "Yep! Totally normal. Happens all the time."

Mira frowned. "Then why didn't any of us change that dramatically?"

Arlan panicked. "Uh—well, I mean—different classes do different things, right? Maybe mine just, you know… reshaped some stuff?"

They all stared at him.

Leila shrugged first. "I mean, I guess that could happen?"

Tomas leaned back. "Yeah, whatever. As long as you're not turning into some kind of monster."

Haha. if they only knew…

Beren grunted. "Fine. But if you get even taller, I'm making you carry all our supplies."

Arlan forced a laugh. "Deal."

Crisis averted.

Except—

Mira was still watching him.

Her stare wasn't suspicious.

It was… different.

Arlan didn't know how to describe it.

And frankly, he didn't have time to figure it out because she quickly looked away and acted like nothing had happened.

After breakfast, the group made their way toward the market district, restocking on supplies. The conversation had already moved on, Tomas grumbling about prices, Leila picking out arrows, and Beren looking at a new axe.

Mira walked beside Arlan, unusually quiet.

Arlan noticed when she kept glancing at him.

Then looking away, Then glancing again.

Finally, after a few minutes of this, he snapped.

"…Okay, what?"

Mira flinched, nearly dropping the bundle of herbs she was carrying. "What?"

"You keep staring at me."

Mira blinked rapidly. "No, I don't."

"Yes, you do."

"No, I DONT" 

Arlan narrowed his eyes. "Did my class change mess up my face or something?"

Mira opened her mouth. Closed it.

Then—she turned away so fast it looked painful.

Mira never acted like this. Mira was always the one who had sharp comebacks, who made fun of him when he was being dumb. She was always confident, always annoyed at him for doing stupid things.

Now she looked flustered.

Arlan's brain stopped working.

Neither of them said another word.

New Priorities—Training and Dungeons

By the time the group made it back to the inn, everyone had agreed on one thing:

They needed to train.

"We got stronger," Tomas said, leaning back in his chair, "but we still barely made it out of that basilisk fight in one piece."

Beren grunted. "We need to hit the dungeon. Soon."

Mira, finally speaking up, nodded. "We havent adjusted to our class changes"

Leila tapped her fingers on the table. "And if we're pushing into an E-rank dungeon, we can't afford to be sloppy."

Arlan leaned forward. "So, what's the plan? Dungeon first, or do we take some more quest from the guild?"

Mira answered immediately. "Dungeon. We need the real combat experience, and we need to see if the monsters there are manageable."

Beren cracked his knuckles. "Finally."

Leila smirked. "Excited?"

"Better than waiting around." Beren grinned 

Tomas stretched. "Fine by me. But if we're going, we better be prepared."

Mira nodded. "We rest tonight. Tomorrow, we hit the dungeon."

The decision was made.

And for the first time since arriving in this town, Arlan felt like they were moving forward.