Age didn't matter in the academy of arcane arts Naralad. Of course not, the people who build it knew very well that anybody could gain the power of wielding magic at any point of their lives.
Therefore, it wasn't out of the ordinary, that the classes were divided by a different standard then age, but by the level of knowledge. The beginners, the novices, the apprentices, and the wizards, after the graduation exam they all become masters, using their magic as they see fit.
***
"Where is the teacher?" asked a boy with a blond messy hair his neighbor. By their silver pin, anybody could see that they are novices.
"I dunno, maybe he overslept!" answered his tall classmate.
"Teacher oversleep? Please! Maybe something happened!" said the girl sitting under them both. Her hair was brown and long, she was sitting in the lowest row of tables, closest to the chalkboard.
"He is pretty late, what is this?" another classmate looked at the clock with worry.
"He is new, maybe he just got lost, all the classrooms look the same!"
"You think he is so clumsy? Teaching here is not for anybody!" and with this, a debate arose between half of the classmates.
"Well master Oday often forgets about homework and mistress Mion does a lot of grammatical mistakes when writing! So maybe this one, just comes late!" one girl tried to explain it, but it has been already fifteen minutes into the hour-long lesson.
"Should we wait or come get him?"
"But we might miss him and he would worry about you..."
"Or he is just lazy..." laughed one boy and another one leaned to his seat and closed his eyes saying he will take a nap.
"I am hungry anyway, the period was too short... so don't mind me!" said another student and the discussion turns in to a fee talk.
"I like this, the first lesson of the second semester and we have free time!" smiled boy with the blond hair and the rest enjoyed the time as well.
"So, what are you going to do this weekend?" one girl turned to another.
"Let's go to the lake! I want to swim in cold water... this spring is soooo hot!"
"I feel you, I feel you!" smiled the girl, another female student picked up a book for alchemy, which incidentally wasn't this lesson and read it with interest. It was already half an hour and the clock was still counting slowly without care.
"This really is weird..." said one student with glasses and put his pen next to the drawing of a bridge scenery.
"Oh... your painting is so good,"
"Stop drooling on my stuff! And it is a drawing! See! I only use a pencil!"
"Whatever man...ahhh! I am so bored!"
"Oh!" smiled the boy with glasses and pulls up his note from the bag.
"What are you doing?" asked his neighbor, but he smiled and started to write.
"You sneaky...! That is a great idea! I always forget about our dreams for miss Somnia!" noded the boy and several others do as they, but sudden noise took all their attention.
"S-sorry," said the man in his twenties. He was sitting in the highest row next to several older people. Well, now he was standing, putting his bag over his shoulder.
"Are you going to find the teacher?"
"No, it's too late for that, I am leaving early... this is a waste of time for me..." he said and left twenty-four minutes before the end of the lesson. After a few minutes, everybody in the highest row leaves making the rest a bit cautious.
"It's ending! In the end, he never showed up!" scratched one boy a minute before the bell rings and tries to leave. Yes, he just tried, because the door wouldn't budge.
"What is this?"
"Did I allow you to leave? Geez...have manners kid," the tired voice could be heard in the room.
"What... Where?" the boy looked around the room confused but saw nothing.
"I am here! I was over here the whole time! Are you people blind? Do you really study magic? I even halved the amount of focus put into this reflection spell twenty minutes ago!" the voice belonged to the man sitting in the teacher chair. His attire was different over the simple white shirt and blue pants of the rest of the school since he had gloves, a belt, and a hood. His face was the most generic face for a thirty-year-old man who doesn't care about his appearance. His black beard was cut just enough to not itch and his hair was messy, but combed, so it didn't fall into his eyes.
"What now?" he said looking at the boy, who was still holding the knob of the door. At that moment the bell rung, but nobody moved.
"What now?" he repeated his question and looked at the rest of the class. Getting no answer made him sigh, look on the ground and then stand up.
"I guess I have no other choice, but fail you all this lesson and the bell rung so get out!" he said and came to the boy who looked at him in fear, but then opened the door and left, followed by the teacher.
"What the fuck was that!?" yelled one girl with a red face. Her hair changed color to crimson as well and she quickly grabbed her stuff and runs after the teacher. Everybody else looked like they were just hit by a storm and started to talk even more than before.