Optic Mage

Lesson 01 - Don't Accept Drinks from Strangers

He stood, dumbfounded by what was going on, just like the rest of the class. He had a shoddy, wooden staff clutched in his hand. The peering eyes of everyone in the class made his knees buckle.

What am I doing here? he asked myself.

"Well? We're waiting, Aiken," the instructor impatiently tapped her foot. Her annoyance could be felt in her tone of voice alone.

Aiken took a deep breath in attempts to try and understand the ludicrous situation. Just a minute ago, he was having a drink with his co-worker. A couple girls approached them and offered to buy them drinks. The minute Aiken had a sip, he suddenly found himself in a classroom setting, with a bunch of students who all had staffs. They all were green robes, as if they were scholars.

Nothing made sense.

Perhaps, what was the most bizarre phenomenon of whatever just happened was the dizzying illustrations that kept popping up in his sight. Everything that he looked at had a strange doodle next to it.

"I-I'm sorry, where am I?" Aiken finally asked.

The instructor let out a loud groan, "I don't know why the kingdom wastes money on useless kids like you. Just go back to your seat."

The class laughed at him, but he couldn't care less. His identity, location, and the weird symbols he saw everywhere was all he could think about. That is, until another student went to the front of the class and raised her staff. A perfect sphere of water formed out of thin air above her staff.

Aiken's jaw dropped. He pinched himself. Was he dreaming? Oi, isn't this magic? This is magic, right? What the hell's going on here? And is it just me, or am I younger? He inspected his scrawny arms.

A girl next to him was infatuated with herself, and constantly checked herself in the mirror. "Excuses me," Aiken spoke to the girl, "mind if I borrow your mirror for a bit?"

She looked at him with disgust, but eventually obliged. Aiken finally laid eyes on himself. He hadn't even grown a stubble yet. It made him panic. He stood up and backed away in reflex. What's happening right now?

"What is it, Aiken? Feel like embarrassing yourself again?" the instructor teased.

He shook his head and quietly sat down until the class finished. He went over to the teacher once the students were gone. "Listen, um, I need help."

"Yes," she stacked her documents, "you do. Now get out of my sight."

"Wait, you don't understand. I do–"

"I don't need to understand. Get out of my sign, lowborn."

What's her problem? Aiken gave up on her and left class as well. He was aimless, not even knowing where he lived in this strange world.

The minute he stepped out the classroom, a sphere of water dropped on his head, soaking him. A bunch of students laughed at his pitiful state. Wait, am I being bullied? Ah, kids, still the same even in an unknown world. He glared at the girl who seemed the haughtiest. "Did you do that?"

The slender girl turned around, almost in disbelief that Aiken would even utter a word to her. "Yeah. So what? What are you going to do about it, lowborn?"

Hmm, there's that word again. So, I guess this world has a class system too. Aiken, being twenty-five years of age in the body of a boy around fifteen years, was a bit more experienced on the life front. He smiled at her, "That was amazing! I'm sure it must come natural to you. You'll be an awesome woman one day! Keep it up, okay? Later," he said coolly, then made his exit from the school grounds.