Chapter 611: A Letter - 611
Taking a glance at Skymender as he walked past him, the Imperial Scholar left the throne room.
As the door closed behind him, the Emperor spoke. "You heard it. You can keep the pardon badge, but it will only be usable if you fulfill the condition of graduating in the top ten of the Imperial School."
Skymender bowed. "Thank you, your Imperial Majesty."
The Emperor nodded and Skymender left. He turned to leave the way he came, when he saw a familiar face leaning against a wall in the hallway. It was the Imperial Scholar.
Skymender bowed.
The Imperial Scholar looked at Skymender curiously. "Two pardon badges, never seen before in our empire's history. But is it worth it?"
Skymender tilted his head. "Is what worth it?"
The Imperial Scholar responded. "Using the pardon badge. Is it worth it?"
Skymender nodded. "Of course."
The Imperial Scholar glanced at him deeply before turning around and truly leaving this time.
Skymender watched him depart with a serious look.
The Imperial Scholar was asking if using it was worth it because of unintended consequences.
Commiting a crime, then being pardoned for it, does not erase the fact that it happened. You will get into no legal trouble but it is nonsense to expect not to be judged by others.
For nobles, this was basically a death sentence if not handled correctly.
Skymender had answered honestly. After all, he had no intention to become friends with anyone regardless. No matter what he did, it could be resolved in the minds of others. All that was required was paying a price.
There are no eternal friends, nor eternal enemies. Only benefits.
This was the theme of Skymender's favorite book, "The Plot of a Thousand Years."
Skymender returned to his aunt's house and stayed in his room for most of the day, reading. The next day, he returned to the city square and completed what he had initially set out to do.
He walked among the commoners, entered shops, bought things, and even conversed with a few brave people or children.
After this, he returned to his aunt's house and read some more.
This formed a cycle, and he soon became known to the commoners as a kind noble. Since he was so young, their opinions of him were naturally better.
According to what others said, he was extremely intelligent, pointing out flaws in things in just a moment. He was also extremely charming. A few girls his age and a few bold ones in their twenties tried asking him out. Naturally, they were met with a kind rejection.
He was also said to be very caring. Upon finding an injured cat on the road, he found the person who had injured the cat, punished him severely, and took the cat to the temple to be healed at a great price.
As for what punishment the man had suffered, some said that he was killed, some said that a limb was taken, and some thought that he had been sent away, forced to work for years.
Of course, only Skymender knew that he had gotten a servant to execute the man, away from the public eye of course.
Harming a human was one thing, but harming a small and innocent animal was a death sentence in Skymender's book. Such people did not deserve to live in this world.
This sort of behavior continued until there were two days before the noble gathering. As he was preparing himself in his room, his aunt knocked on the door.
"Skymender. A message from your sister has arrived."
Skymender instantly got out of his chair and answered the door. Aunt Skyless handed him the letter, but stood in the doorway with no intention of leaving.
Skymender did not care. He opened the letter and read it.
"Dear Skymender, don't tell me you actually worried about me. You know that I couldn't possibly fail, or do I need to teach you a lesson? Anyways, I'll talk to you in person soon. From, your sister, soon to be Sword Master, Skybelle."
Skymender released a sigh of relief. It seemed that all of his worries were pointless. From the letter, it seemed that his sister was doing well, and was even confident in becoming a Sword Master soon.
His aunt read over his shoulder, relieved as well.
Skymender folded it up and sat it on his desk. His aunt left and Skymender was left to once again prepare himself for the noble gathering in two days.
He did not know when his sister would arrive, but it was very likely to take more than two days.
His preparation consisted of studying proper noble etiquette, both rereading what he knew and learning new things, as well as looking through the information on the personalities of some nobles.
Naturally, some had more hidden personalities and thoughts than others, but there were a few that openly expressed themselves. These people were quite high up and from lengthy lineages, so they had nothing to worry about. The only thing that could bring them down was themselves. As long as they did not overstep the boundaries of a king or an emperor, they would be fine.
As a result, they were quite honest and expressed themselves openly.
Skymender only briefly memorized the information he had. The more information it contained on a noble, the less Skymender worried about them.
However, he also had to try and see through any false fronts.
It took a lot of thinking and time to prepare for the noble gathering. Some simply relaxed beforehand, and some put everything they had into getting the upper hand.
Almost before he knew it, the day had come. The noble gathering would start at noon. After getting an early sleep yesterday, he awoke at 6 am.
He read some fantasy books for a while to calm his mind, and at 8, he began preparations for the noble gathering. These were physical preparations, such as bathing and picking out clothes.
Chapter 612: Chief of the Imperial Guard - 612
He had long been prepared mentally, and all he had to do was clean up his body. He practiced some common gestures in the mirror for a while, and after three total hours of preparation, he set out for the Imperial Palace at 11 am.
Each person attending was able to bring one servant along with them. Naturally, Skymender brought Li Youcai.
Although Li Youcai was stunningly handsome, like he had normally been in the Sky Barony, he looked like a normal servant. He seemed to be good at disguising his looks.
Skymender was glad he did not have to bother making himself look worse, and could focus on making himself presentable.
Skymender rode in the same carriage as the rest of his aunt's family. Luckily, they were able to bring a slightly larger carriage than usual considering the situation.
Plus, the roads in the noble section of the empire were much larger than those in the commoner section.
The journey was not long. Skymender had taken it multiple times before.
In just a short amount of time, they arrived.
"You three stay with me. Skymender, you are free to join us or do your own thing." Aunt Skyless said.
"Thank you. I will go off on my own."
Aunt Skyless nodded and left the carriage with her two children. Skymender looked at Li Youcai, and Li Youcai looked at him.
They both nodded and stepped out of the carriage.
Their carriage, along with many others, had been parked outside the gates of the Imperial Palace.
Ahead was a lit up path, though the sun was still so high that it was hard to notice.
There were servants everywhere, both of other nobles and of the Imperial Palace.
Decorations were strung up, and riches seemed to be thrown around.
Beautiful men and women dressed in elegant clothes walked around. Some families did not bring their children, but some, such as aunt Skyless, had.
Skymender, a young child attended only by a servant, was a rare sight.
However, in such a gathering place, he did not stand out much.
He began to walk along the path towards the Imperial Palace. It was much more welcoming than the previous times.
The door was wide open and inside was a true banquet.
Red carpet, lights, people, it was a beautiful scene. Even Skymender was momentarily astonished.
If he did not know anyone, he would most likely have to sit in the corner and watch from afar, or at least join his aunt.
However, he had prepared for a reason.
Just moments after entering a room, a familiar mother and daughter, dressed in incredibly expensive clothes, walked up to him with a warm smile.
"It is good to see you again, Skymender." Duchess Vass said.
Her daughter smiled brightly, clearly happy to see Skymender.
Skymender put on his best smile and spoke. "Likewise. How are you both doing?"
Val, the daughter of Duchess Vass, giggled and spoke. "We've been well. I suppose you've been great as well."
Skymender nodded.
Although Skymender himself would not normally draw much attention, even as a child attending alone, the Duchess was a different story.
After all, she was a Duchess, a noble at the top. Above her were only royals and imperials.
Of course, this was only if put on black and white paper, but in general, the title roughly determined the status of a noble.
Skymender and Duchess Vass, as well as her daughter, received many glances. Some people seemed to even speak about them.
"Did you hear what that child of the Sky Barony did?"
"Of course, who hasn't? An admirable young hero indeed. If only my son was as brave as him."
Such conversations were rare, but present.
Skymender spoke with Duchess Vass and her daughter. Eventually, they took a seat at one of the large round tables in the room.
Although the Duchess needed to meet and greet more people, the event had not even officially started yet.
As they spoke while sitting, someone came up. He was a middle aged man, with a deep look in his eyes.
Duchess Vass stood up to greet him. "Chief of the imperial guard, Sword Master Deyr. It is an honor to meet you."
The middle aged man raised his hand. "No need for formalities on such an occasion. I just came over to say hello."
Skymender was shocked. He had never expected this man to be a Sword Master, as well as the Chief of the imperial guard.
There were only five Sword Masters in the entire Empire. That included Sword Master Shang and the Chief of the imperial guard, Deyr.
It also consisted of two of Master Shang's disciples and another Sword Master.
Suddenly, Sword Master Deyr looked at Skymender. "I've heard of young hero Skymender's achievements. Even if you are not talented in the way of the sword, intelligence is just as important. When you get older, consider joining the imperial guard."
Skymender nodded seriously, not daring to show the slightest disrespect.
The imperial guard was the highest level of policing in the entire Empire. In the past, they even used to serve as the personal guards of the Emperor. However, the existence of Sword Master Shang changed that. Now, they only protected him when Sword Master Shang was not around.
This occasionally happened throughout the empire's history whenever an especially strong Sword Master was born.
"I will consider it. It would be my honor, Sword Master Deyr."
Sword Master Deyr smiled and, after a moment of conversation, took his leave.
Val turned to him and spoke. "It seems that even Sword Masters have become interested in you."
Skymender laughed and brushed it off, but it seemed true. Not just Sword Masters, but everyone's gaze at him seemed slightly different than before.
There were a few exceptions, such as the Emperor, Sword Master Shang, and Li Youcai, who had known all along that it was false.
Even the Fatty could no longer look at him without some sort of respect.
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