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"Congratulations on becoming Rank 3 Apprentice, Emery!" the young man with wavy hair enthusiastically said.

Receiving the compliment with a smile, Emery replied, "Thank you, Senior." Then, he remembered 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.

Emery clasped his hand together and said, "Congrats, Senior!"

"Hahaha! Thank you! But surely, my achievements are nothing compared to this year's Magus Game champion." Cedric said.

"Thank you, senior, although, in the end, I didn't really make it."

Unexpectedly Cedric completely understood what Emery meant by that. Cedric then approached the downhearted teenager and patted his shoulder, "Who are you kidding, Emery?! 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!"

Emery let out a grim smile, "Thank you for your kind words, senior."

Noticing Emery thought his words were just a mere consolation, Cedric once again said, "I am completely serious, Emery. I am proud of your achievement and proud of you. Even though it was a rigged competition, you made it through them all. You got through and emerged as the winner"

Emery recalled this senior was the one who warned him about the competition, saying it was rigged. It seemed 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 Emery and said, "Anyway, the reason I am here was because our master wants to see you, Emery."

"Our master?" Emery's mind was blank for a second, thinking who his master was, before he remembered the dwarf who brought him here, Master Grom.

Without waiting for Emery's response, Cedric swiftly beckoned, "Let's go! He doesn't like to wait."

Emery quickly followed Cedric, who took him to the second building of the Apothecary Institution. They then took the same box-like machine that delivered them up to the 15th floor. Looking at the walls around him, Emery still wondered how this machine worked and on what mechanisms 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, Emery 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 Emery, which contained a particular look that made him uncomfortable.

Cedric then took him for a walk through the long hallway. Along the way, Emery 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, Emery was mesmerized. 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, Emery thought that was the only place where plants were cultivated. So, he was surprised when he passed a few rooms, all with the same view. Surprisingly, all the acolytes who looked after the garden were beautiful women. Emery suddenly remembers 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 Emery, to give a proper respectful greeting to the dwarf, before saying, "Master, the new apprentice, Emery, is here."

"Aah... yes, you are here..." The nonchalant words came from the dwarf, who replied without looking at him, keeping his attention on the light panel floating in front of him."

"Emery 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 Emery, "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 Emery, looking at him. "I never go back on my word. Therefore, you are now my official apothecary disciple and you are welcomed 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 Emery nodded in gratitude.

The dwarf kept his gaze on Emery and added, " I know that you are currently some 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 women. You will have it all."

After saying that, Master Grom immediately gestured for the two of them to leave the room.

It was such a short meeting, where the dwarf only said what he wanted to say. Emery suddenly wonders if Master Grom would act differently if he's a beautiful female.

Cedric took Emery around to see the facilities on the 15th floor. The work station, which shook Emery 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, Emery'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 Emery's face caused Cedric to chuckle.

"Here, most of the common ingredients are available and there are many. Meanwhile, the more rare ones still come with a price tag."

Emery 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 Emery the two scrolls he deserved.

[Universal Flora Knowledge - Rank 2]

[Analyze Flora - Rank 2]

With these two skills, Emery 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, Emery sighed deeply. Realizing it, Cedric became concerned.

"What's wrong, Emery? Do you have something to say? If there is anything I can help with, just ask! I'll definitely help you!"

Emery 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.

To be continued