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.