MMORPG: Rise of the Primordial Godsmith

Chapter 1825: Turning Point

"...Whew."

Finally returning to her apartment after spending most of the day outside, Veradine could not help but let out a wide sigh of relief the moment she laid down on her couch.

"I should really limit myself from blabbering on too much," she muttered to herself, a slightly amused smile appearing on her face. "If not for the fact that I brought up the topic of variable energy mechanics, I would have probably gotten here at least a couple of hours earlier."

As the only person to receive the Thymesion Grand Scholar Award during the award ceremony, it went without saying that she was the very last person to receive an award from the Grand Sage.

Though, rather than be met with a sparse crowd that remained after most of the Scholars had obtained their own awards, the crowd that greeted her the moment she stepped up on stage was at least 20% beyond what the venue could handle.

Yet, even with that many people at the venue, the entire place was quiet while she gave her speech, talking about the hardships and obstacles she faced along the way on her path to getting to where she was.

By the time she was done, a deafening applause echoed throughout the entire venue, with many of them even chanting the words ’Heaven and Earth Scholar’ after she received her award.

"Having that many people look at me is nerve-wracking," said Veradine to herself with a slight chuckle. "But the feeling..."

"It’s definitely something I want to experience again."

As she continued reminiscing over the events that happened at the award ceremony earlier, she eventually took out something from her pocket that caused her expression to turn solemn.

At first glance, the item’s shape made it look like a fusion between an apple and a lemon.

Though, unlike either of the two fruits, it was around a third of the size, with its skin taking on an unnatural purple hue.

"Hmm..." Moving the item closer to her face, Veradine took a good whiff of it.

"Faintly sweet... but mostly sour note," she murmured, a hint of suspicion appearing on her face. "Though I don’t know if the taste reflects the scent, it looks more like an artificial fruit to me than a Heavenly Fruit."

"...Would this fruit really allow me to reach the peak of Sage-to-be without lifting a finger?"

After the Grand Sage was done with his closing remarks for the ceremony, Veradine took the event as an opportunity to talk with other like-minded Scholars about their respective topics.

Considering that all of them had received awards just like her, it went without saying that the topics they tackled during their talks were broad in scope and application, allowing everyone there to further deepen their understanding about the world’s inner workings to varying degrees.

Though, just as she had begun to discuss the topic she planned on tackling next with the other Scholars, the Grand Sage had appeared in front of them, stopping their conversation in its tracks.

After apologizing to the group for interrupting their fruitful conversation, the Grand Sage then apologized to Veradine for taking so long, only to then ask her if they could have the private discussion that he promised now.

Of course, with her already receiving a heads-up that she’d be given the opportunity to talk with the Grand Sage face-to-face, Veradine went ahead and agreed, apologizing to the Scholars that their conversation would have to be cut short.

Then again, with everyone there idolizing both the Grand Sage and Veradine in some way, none of them really complained about it.

In fact, a lot of them had even thanked Veradine for sharing her time and knowledge with them during their conversation.

In return, Veradine promised with the other Scholars that they’d continue their conversation some other time before leaving with the Grand Sage.

After the two arrived at a more private space, the Grand Sage initiated the conversation by apologizing to Veradine once more for taking a while to get to her, to which the latter responded that it was fine.

Discussing about how the Grand Sage was a busy person and all that, the two eventually became engrossed in their own conversation, which involved the various topics Veradine had tackled as a Scholar.

From her focus on nature to her gradual shift to topics involving magic, both Veradine and the Grand Sage discussed it in detail, with the latter even giving the former ideas on some topics that would greatly support her prior articles.

Unsurprisingly, with how the Grand Sage was open to sharing information with her, Veradine took it as an opportunity to ask him some questions that would greatly aid her in her future research.

Then again, she also used the Grand Sage’s willingness to share information with her as an opportunity to ask a couple of questions related to the verdict she had received on her aptitude in the past.

After all, her current identity as a Four-star Scholar wouldn’t have been possible if it weren’t for the verdict the Grand Sage gave her.

Yet, surprisingly enough, the Grand Sage remained willing to share information even when she brought up her verdict from the past, showing great regret towards his past decisions throughout that part of the conversation.

By the time their conversation neared its end, the Grand Sage gave her a Heavenly Fruit called the Purple Star Citron, which was a fruit that would elevate her realm to the pinnacle of Sage-to-be once consumed.

Not expecting to obtain such a fruit from the Grand Sage, it went without saying that Veradine asked him why he was giving her such a precious fruit.

In response, he told her that it was his personal reward to a person whose abilities had greatly changed the world.

"...Or so he says," muttered Veradine to herself as the memory came to mind. "The fact that he gave me a Heavenly Fruit already tells me that there really is more to the verdict I got back when I was a teenager."

Thinking about how her life could have gone on a different path if she hadn’t followed the verdict the Grand Sage gave her, Veradine could not help but let out a sigh filled with lament.

"...Well, there’s no point crying over spilled milk."

Spending a bit of time in silence after that, she then shook her head as she took in a deep breath.

Staring at the Purple Star Citron with a hint of anticipation, she then consumed the fruit in one go, only to then get hit with a circus of flavors in her mouth that eventually mellowed out to a slightly sweet aftertaste.

’At least my wish of becoming a Sage is finally being fulfilled somehow,’ she thought to herself as she felt the fruit settle in her stomach.

Though, not even a few seconds later, a strong wave of heat erupted from the fruit and swept across her entire body, causing her to cry out in pain as she fell unconscious not long after.