[ Bro, do you think reselecting a class and appearance is about freedom? It's not! That stuff costs money, man! You think I don't know your kind? Today it's all, 'I wanna be a tanky meat shield!' and tomorrow it's, 'Waaah, I wanna be a cute healer, somebody please carry me!' You think I've got the server space to handle your whims in a brand-new holographic game like this? ]
Lee Kiwook winced at the raspy rant and relented a bit, offering a compromise. "Then what about paying? I won't change my class, just let me pay to change my appearance, yeah?"
The round AI voice returned, cautious and alert.
[ What kind of appearance do you want to change to? ]
Lee Kiwook replied casually, "Nothing too extreme. Two meters tall, two hundred pounds and eight-pack abs, the rest can be random."
[ Get lost. You're gonna be 170 cm forever. ]
!!!
Lee Kiwook jolted awake from the semi-real nightmare, breathing heavily to calm his racing heart.
Only when he saw the familiar brick ceiling overhead did he remember: he had already entered the game world.
Lee Kiwook closed his eyes for a moment, then immediately sprang out of bed, barefoot on the smooth floor.
No dizziness, no palpitations, no shortness of breath, this was a healthy, 175 cm-tall, still-growing teenage body.
After confirming repeatedly with Bunbun that he would indeed continue to grow taller, Lee Kiwook smiled faintly and looked up.
Standing right in front of him, very close, was Elarion, who stared at him with a complicated expression.
"I... I was just about to come wake you. You sure got up fast today, haha…"
Fast was an understatement! Elarion practically hadn't seen how Lee Kiwook got from the bed to the floor.
He internally screamed—
Just yesterday he was lying there like a half-dead man! Is this what people mean by "mysterious Easterners"? I really don't get what they're thinking!
Lee Kiwook gave a small nod and thanked him calmly, then began putting on his clothes and shoes with practiced ease.
Elarion let out a relieved breath and shoved the earlier surprise to the back of his mind.
He pulled a thick tome from the shared bookshelf and handed it to Lee Kiwook.
"Today we only have class in the morning. It's 'Principles of Magic' with Ms. Roaille. The afternoon is free."
Lee Kiwook accepted the book and noticed Elarion hesitating, so he turned his head slightly, waiting.
"Um… have you prepared your wand?" Elarion hesitated, clearly embarrassed. "Spell training starts tomorrow. Students are expected to prepare their own wands. I haven't had the chance to buy one yet. Can you come with me to Central Street this afternoon?"
Strictly speaking, students were supposed to have all their equipment ready before enrollment, but the days before school had overlapped with a church mission, and Elarion had to follow the priest around for sermons, leaving no time to shop.
Hearing about needing a wand, Lee Kiwook nonchalantly glanced at his backpack.
Good lord, items like Maw of the Damned, Staff of the Lightborn… nothing but legendary artifacts with absurdly long names and glowing orange labels.