Von followed the trail created by the library which led to the book he desired. It was on the subject he'd need for tomorrow's lesson with Master Oren in his smithy. While he knew some of the information, He didn't know everything he needed and while the book would be basic, the more he knew, the easier tomorrow would be.
Having reached the end of the trail on the floor, He noticed the fourth shelf had a similar line starting from the left, which the direction from whence he had arrived, going the right and stopping directly under a book with a bellows stamped into the side.
With a sense of anticipation, Von reached out and retrieved the book titled "Melting or Smelting," its cover adorned with intricate runes and symbols hinting at the ancient knowledge contained within its pages. As he flipped through the tome, he marveled at the wealth of information it held on the processes of extracting metals from ores and the precise temperatures required for each type of smelting.
The pages were filled with detailed diagrams, formulae, and instructions, offering insights into the alchemical properties of various metals and the techniques used by master smiths throughout the ages. Von couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement as he absorbed the knowledge contained within the ancient tome, his mind racing with possibilities for his future endeavors in the field of metallurgy.
Master Alden watched with a knowing smile as Von immersed himself in the study of the book, his eyes alight with the spark of discovery. It was a sight that warmed the ancient tortoise's heart, reminding him of the boundless potential that lay within the young archmage.
"Take your time, Von," Alden advised, his voice a gentle rumble that cut through the hushed atmosphere of the library. "From this day on, the secrets of the athenaeum arcane are yours to uncover, and I have no doubt you will do so with diligence and determination."
With a nod of gratitude, Von continued to delve into the pages of the book, his mind ablaze with newfound understanding and insight. "Until just now, I didn't realize there was a difference between melting and smelting. I thought they were pretty much the same, like silver. First, it needs smelted to get rid of the impurities, then melted to be poured into the molds to get pressed into coins. Beast cores don't need smelted, but metals do. Once melted, some of them will only alloy with particular metals."
Alden shrugged. "Now you are in Master Oren's shell, young hatchling. I'm sure he will help you learn more."
Von continued to read through the book and after a few moments, he thought, System, is there any way I can learn everything in here faster without using time magic?
How long will it take?
Do I just flip through the pages?
Can you do it with other books?
With his system's assistance, Von proceeded to skim through several other books in the library, briefly absorbing their contents into the system as he went. With each passing moment, his repository of knowledge expanded, enriched by the collective wisdom of centuries stored within the tomes of the athenaeum arcane and by whoever made the system and imparted its knowledge to it.
As he continued researching the books on smithing, Von felt a sense of exhilaration coursing through him, fueled by the boundless possibilities laying before him. With the power of the system at his disposal, he could unlock the secrets of the universe just by reading books then allowing it to put it into his memory later. This would allow him to forge his path towards mastery in any field he chose.
Master Alden observed with curiosity as Von's flipped through books discovering more and more but not settling on one particular one, yet still, the boy's eyes sparkled with the same fire of discovery which once burned within the ancient tortoise himself. It was a sight which instilled Alden with hope for the future, knowing the legacy of the Ouranos Haven would continue to thrive in the hands of such dedicated and determined individuals.
On the other hand, he seemed to be gleaning through the books for specific information, then moving to the next book on his list. It appeared to the ancient tortoise he had something specific in mind, but he wasn't sure what it might be. He was fairly certain Oren would help him get the skill he needed to create it.
My current intelligence and willpower?
It occurrend to Von that he hadn't checked his stats and skills in what seemed like forever. System, what are all of my stats and skills and everything?
Strength 42, Agility 43, Endurance 142, Willpower 259, Charm 25, Movement 31, Perception 59, Hit Points 1223, Magic Power 1489, You currently have no resistances. You currently have no defensive attributes. You have one willpower specialization available to choose. Your current combat skill levels are: General combat and tactics - novice 1, Ranged combat - untrained, Swordsmanship - novice 1. Your current non-combat skill levels are: Carpentry - untrained, Cobbling - novice 1, Cooking - novice 4, Fishing - novice 2, Herblore - beginner 1, Item Creation - apprentice 2, Leatherworking - untrained, Medicine - novice 1, Merchant - novice 1, Milling - novice 1, Riding - untrained, Smithing - untrained, Hiding/stealth - Novice 1, Survival - untrained, Tanning - novice 1, Tracking - untrained, Weaving - untrained, Woodcutter - novice 4, Woodworking - untrained Your magical skill levels are: Drawing magic - apprentice 5, Shaping Magic - expert, Aeromancy - journeyman 1, Agnomancy - apprentice 5, Aimamancy - unknown, Apotropaic magic - journeyman 6, Arithmancy - unknown, Bibliomancer - journeyman 1, Cartomancy - apprentice 1, Chiromancy - apprentice 1, Choromancy - unknown, Chronomancy - unknown, Cryomancy - beginner 1, Geomancy - journeyman 1, Healing - apprentice 1, Hydromancy - expert, Illusion - beginner 1, Metallomancy - untrained, Myalomancy - unknown, Necromancy - beginner 1, Phosphomancy - journeyman 1, Transformation - apprentice 5, Transmutation - apprentice 2, Tychomancy - apprentice 5 Venomancy - Novice 1. You currently have one hundred unspent resistance experience points. You currently have one hundred thousand unspent magic experience points. You currently have ten million unspent general experience points.> Why do I have so many skills, and why are so many of my skills untrained? So only skills I have any experience in will be on the list. Does this mean there are more skills not on the list? What other skills are there? 'It still won't tell me what I don't know until I know it. This is so frustrating.' Von thought as he growled out loud. Can you tell me if there are skills I know nothing about? Please name a skill which I have no knowledge about. 'Okay, so there are other skills I don't know on top of those I'm untrained in. The list must be huge.' He thought. How do I raise my stats? Why do some of my better skill levels like, blood magic, and spatial magic say unknown, and why do two of them only say 'expert'? What is an average stat level for a person? How much would raising my intelligence to one hundred cost? 'Wow," Von thought. 'I would burn through the ten million experience points quickly if I raised all my stats with experience.' System, are there any other ways of increasing my stats? How many stat points did I gain after the first upgrade? Looking back at his stats, Von noted, so, agility, movement, and hit points can't be raised by upgrading my system, right? This was a lot to think about. He would ponder more about it later, right now, he was going to have his system learn as much as it could about smithing, tanning, medicine, leatherworking, and stealth. During this minute of internal conversation, Alden watched Von intently focused on one page of the book and glanced over his shoulder when he growled. Unable to determine why he growled, he wandered for several minutes following the boy before advising him to return to the council chamber to conclude the proceedings.