At this point, the disciples around already took notice of him. They saw which books he took out, so it was evident that Roan was a new alchemist apprentice. There was no doubt that he was memorizing the herbs to gain the right to take the alchemist exam. Still, they refused to believe he memorized all those books' herbs in just five hours. He didn't spend more than a minute and sometimes just a few seconds on each page. It was simply too fast.
"Hey, kid. I know you want to become an alchemist, but you should pay more attention to the herbs. There is no point in simply looking at them if you don't know what they do later."
Roan looked at the guy who talked and then returned his attention to the book. Yes, he simply ignored him.
That guy's expression went dark after it. He was already an Earth Low-Level alchemist, so being ignored by an apprentice like this didn't have a good taste. Still, he didn't do anything and simply sat down. After all, any arguments or fights were prohibited in the Alchemy Repository.
As time passed, other disciples also called Roan over, trying to give him pieces of advice. Still, Roan didn't even look at them anymore, completely treating them as if they were air. Roan continued flipping pages every minute or so, which shouldn't give him enough time to memorize anything... or so they thought.
At some point, one of the alchemists couldn't take it anymore. He stood up and called the old man at the entrance.
"Old Worm, I don't think this kid is here to learn. Shouldn't you stop children from playing around with the books? They are too valuable to be put on such hands."
Old Worm glanced over at the disciple, and the later immediately shut up. No one knew who Old Worm really was. They only knew that he had access to all the alchemy books of all floors, and he could read them as much as he wanted. Old Worm could also ban anyone from ever entering the Alchemy Repository if he wished to, so no one dared to offend him.
Old Worm slowly closed his book and asked in Roan's direction.
"The third book you read after you began your studies. Semi-Water Bed Herbs Descriptions, Page 38. What are the effects of the herb on that page?"
Roan glanced at Old Worm as well, his expression as cold as ever. If anything, he seemed annoyed that Old Worm also interrupted his reading. However, considering Old Worm's position, he still answered the question.
"Moisty Spiritual Herb. It has a hydration effect good for dilution of Earth Element materials of Low-Level. It usually has three or four Dark Green Leaves. Its stem is moisty, just like the name suggests. It grows close to lakes in high altitudes and is relatively easy to obtain."
Old Worm didn't say if it was right or wrong before making another question.
"Seventh Book, Mysteries of Dusk Spiritual Herbs, Page 112."
Roan once again replied.
"Dark Blue Seaside Flower. It's a poisonous flower that blooms only once per month during dusk time. It has, as the name says, Dark Blue coloration. The flower has nine petals and is leafless. The pollen collected during the time it is open is not poisonous, though. It can instead be used in a variety of calming type Low-Level Pills. The most common one is Heart Cooling Pill."
Old Worm then continued to ask.
"First Book, Myriad Herbs of the Kaluta Swamp, Page 67."
"Fourth Book, Secrets of..."
"Thirteenth Book..."
Old Worm only asked about the books he saw Roan taking, none other. Roan answered each of the herbs' appearances and effects perfectly. The disciples around got more and more shocked. Some even felt that Roan had memorized those herbs in the past and was just showing off. However, they couldn't prove it.
Finally, Old Worm glanced at the disciple, who made the request to take Roan out before saying.
"False accusation. You are prohibited from entering the Alchemy Repository for a month. Get out."
Old Worm didn't even look at that disciple again and reopened his book. Roan also returned his attention to the books and continued to read as well.
As for the disciple who opened his mouth, he could only drop his head and leave. He wouldn't dare to go against Old Worm's orders. The other shocked disciples didn't dare to complain again, either.
As Old Worm read his book, he glanced at Roan once more for a second. After that, he completely ignored him.
Time passed, and three days went by. Roan had gone through more than two hundred books. He also counted how many herbs he committed to memory, an astonishing number of over five thousand!
For some reason, Old Worm tested Roan's memories once every two or so hours. He always picked a book that Roan had already gone through. Contrary to the first time, there was one or another herb that Roan couldn't remember correctly.
It's not that he didn't pay attention. It's just that those were herbs utterly different from any type or appearance from those on the other half of the Universe. Obviously, they were a little more challenging to commit to memory. Still, from the herbs that Roan saw for the first time, he remembered the majority when Old Worm asked.
Roan didn't mind forgetting those ones. Roan had a plan when he looked at the books in the repository for the first time. Roan used it to associate the herbs that he already knew and those with similar appearances or effects. The second time Roan looked through them, he would make sure he paid more attention to the new ones instead. Forgetting some of the new ones was already within his expectations.
The disciples who continued inside already threw away any thoughts that Roan might be cheating or that he had read the books in the past. With Old Worm's sudden tests, they understood that Roan's mind was several times better than them. It was as simple as that. Well, there wasn't much of a future trying comparing one's mind with a monster that lived for countless years. They were simply on entirely different leagues.
Fortunately or not, Dalamu Sect was only a sect in a small country of the empire. Although there were many herbs in their books, it was far from the total number that could be found in the world. Thanks to that, Roan was close to finishing read through all the books on the first floor that listed the herbs' appearance and effects.
Of course, the higher floors also had more examples, but he didn't put it to mind since he couldn't read them now.
However, before Roan could finish the first wave, he received a message from Rean.
"I need your help to forge our new Swords. Are you free to come to the Blacksmith Hall now?"
Roan thought about the time. He wouldn't need another three days to recheck the books. He only needed to check the herbs he didn't know about. As long as he stays in here one or two more days, he should be done with it.
"It depends, will it take more than two days?"
Rean shook his head.
"No, half a day should be enough."
Roan nodded.
"Alright, see you in a few minutes."
Roan finally got up, put all the books back on their shelves, and made his way out. But just as he was about to leave, Old Worm called him from behind the counter.
"Wait a minute, I have something for you."