"Congratulations on becoming Rank 3 Apprentice, Ery!" the young man with wavy hair enthusiastically said.
Receiving the complint with a smile, Ery replied, "Thank you, Senior." Then, he rembered Cedric also had his own exam before, "What about you, Senior? Did you pass yours?"
The young man played with his glasses, moving it up and down. He then put on a proud expression and said, "Of course. You are currently looking at a Rank 5, an Artisan of Apothecary." Cedric also did not forget to flash a smug smile.
Ery clasped his hand together and said, "Congrats, Senior!"
"Hahaha! Thank you! But surely, my achievents are nothing compared to this year's Magus Ga champion." Cedric said.
"Thank you, senior, although, in the end, I didn't really make it."
Unexpectedly Cedric completely understood what Ery ant by that. Cedric then approached the downhearted teenager and patted his shoulder, "Who are you kidding, Ery?! You didn't get the reward, sure! But everyone knows you are the winner. Those higher-ups are making a big mistake in not letting you in the privileged class!"
Ery let out a grim smile, "Thank you for your kind words, senior."
Noticing Ery thought his words were just a re consolation, Cedric once again said, "I am completely serious, Ery. I am proud of your achievent and proud of you. Even though it was a rigged competition, you made it through them all. You got through and erged as the winner"
Ery recalled this senior was the one who warned him about the competition, saying it was rigged. It seed Cedric looked even more excited than he was, as the young man continuously talked about the matter.
Realizing he was getting off track with his rambling, Cedric quickly returned to Ery and said, "Anyway, the reason I am here was because our master wants to see you, Ery."
"Our master?" Ery's mind was blank for a second, thinking who his master was, before he rembered the dwarf who brought him here, Master Grom.
Without waiting for Ery's response, Cedric swiftly beckoned, "Let's go! He doesn't like to wait."
Ery quickly followed Cedric, who took him to the second building of the Apothecary Institution. They then took the sa box-like machine that delivered them up to the 15th floor. Looking at the walls around him, Ery still wondered how this machine worked and on what chanisms it was based on.
Alas, his 'observations' were interrupted by Cedric that nudged him, reminding him they had arrived at the place. When the machine's door opened, Ery was greeted by the sight of a lavish room, with a reception desk and a beautiful lady attending on it.
Cedric approached the lady and said, "Master Grom is expecting us."
The lady casted her gaze at Ery, which contained a particular look that made him uncomfortable.
Cedric then took him for a walk through the long hallway. Along the way, Ery could see a vast garden through the glasses on both sides of the hallway. Countless common as well as exotic plants and herbs could be seen there, tended by several acolytes.
Seeing the myriad arrays of flora in this place, Ery was srized. He also could recognize a few of them that were said to be exclusively grown in nature. He was surprised by how the Apothecary Institution managed to cultivate them in such a closed space.
After walking through the herb garden, Ery thought that was the only place where plants were cultivated. So, he was surprised when he passed a few rooms, all with the sa view. Surprisingly, all the acolytes who looked after the garden were beautiful won. Ery suddenly rembers how Master Grom once said about his interest in magus Minerva, probably this is what master Grom really is.
When they arrived at their destination, Cedric proceeded to knock on the door and it was quickly opened from inside by another beautiful lady.
Inside, sitting on the luxurious chair at the end of the room was Master Grom, the dwarf. With his back is the wide view of the golden city behind the glass.
Cedric secretly gave a gesture to Ery, to give a proper respectful greeting to the dwarf, before saying, "Master, the new apprentice, Ery, is here."
"Aah... yes, you are here..." The nonchalant words ca from the dwarf, who replied without looking at him, keeping his attention on the light panel floating in front of him."
"Ery Ambrose… 91%, That's a very bad score just for a simple freezing potion..." The dwarf then sighed and murmured, "Never mind… You are already here now."
Master Grom finally tore his gaze away from the panel and looked at Ery, "Now that you are a Rank 3 apprentice, you may start working as one of my assistances. This will surely increase your knowledge in apothecary and receive remuneration with every successful work. But because of your elite status, you are free to choose your own schedule."
The dwarf then set the panel aside, walked around the table, and stood in front of Ery, looking at him. "I never go back on my word. Therefore, you are now my official apothecary disciple and you are welcod to use the facility here. I will personally teach you when you reach Artisan level. As for now, you can work with Cedric and gather experience."
Hearing such a word surely made Ery nodded in gratitude.
The dwarf kept his gaze on Ery and added, " I know that you are currently so kind of celebrity. But I don't need any trouble in my place. I don't care what kind of success you did outside, but here in the apothecary institutes, If you want my attention, create an original product and I assure you that you'll be a very successful artisan.? Power, money, and won. You will have it all."
After saying that, Master Grom imdiately gestured for the two of them to leave the room.
It was such a short eting, where the dwarf only said what he wanted to say. Ery suddenly wonders if Master Grom would act differently if he's a beautiful female.
...
Cedric took Ery around to see the facilities on the 15th floor. The work station, which shook Ery with how advanced it was; the garden, with its wide arrays of plant and herbs, and the warehouse, where the acolytes were given access to the ingredients.
Looking at how many and diverse the ingredients this place had, Ery's eyes instantly bulged with surprise. Cedric quickly explained, "I really know that look. But unfortunately, you can't just take whatever you want. Hahaha..." Noticing the disappointed look on Ery's face caused Cedric to chuckle.
"Here, most of the common ingredients are available and there are many. anwhile, the more rare ones still co with a price tag."
Ery gave the smiling Cedric a wry smile.
After that, Cedric took him to the Institute Hall, the one he had visited last year. Cedric talked with the person in charge and gave Ery the two scrolls he deserved.
[Universal Flora Knowledge - Rank 2]
[Analyze Flora - Rank 2]
With these two skills, Ery would now be able to analyze the plants up to Rank 4. This would be very useful to his future progress. However, the thing he really needed right now was still his main concern.
Thinking about that, Ery sighed deeply. Realizing it, Cedric beca concerned.
"What's wrong, Ery? Do you have sothing to say? If there is anything I can help with, just ask! I'll definitely help you!"
Ery glanced at the fired-up Cedric and said, "You don't happen to have 100.000 unused spirit stones, don't you, senior?"
Cedric's smile froze.
"..."
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Author Note
Thank you for your support for the novel, at this mont I am asking if you would give support by buying the privileged chapters. Tier one only costs 1 coin while tier 2 would give access to up to 12 chapters. It will reach the end of volu 2.? Thank you
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