The main reason why Skymender didn't bother to lie was because he knew that if they wanted to find out, they would be able to. It wouldn't be difficult, especially if all they wanted to know was whether or not he was the Skygod.
Just watching him would suffice. Either he would slip up and show that he is Skygod, or the Skygod would suddenly stop taking action while Skymender was being watched, which was enough proof.
Regardless, he had another pardon badge.
The Emperor spoke. "As long as you don't kill a noble or anything, you're good to continue. I'll just act as though I never heard you."
Skymender nodded, thanking him.
"Alright, you can go."
Skymender left the throne room, and began to travel back to the Sky Barony.
As he did so, Sword Master Shang turned to the Emperor. "Is it time?"
The Emperor nodded solemnly. "Just about. Are you sure you don't want to bring Skymender?"
Sword Master Shang nodded. "He may be a powerful asset, but he isn't prepared for the battlefield. Any mistake can lead to death, and his death is something the Empire cannot afford."
The Emperor understood. "Don't die out there."
Sword Master Shang turned around and left through an exit. "I could never lose."
After ten days, Skymender arrived back at the Sky Barony. He had not seen his sister since she stormed out of the throne room.
Skymender sighed. Both of them had grown older, and being away for so long had caused their emotions for each other to grow thin.
This was especially so for Skymender, who had been affected by the Deprivation poison.
He continued as always, studying. Even though his schooling had been interrupted multiple times recently, he had long surpassed anything they could teach.
Without a single word that he could be Skygod, Skymender's life continued steadily.
Soon, summer came. Skymender did not do anything special. He simply studied and assassinated. His pockets had become so deep that he wasn't even sure how much money he had.
All he knew was that the money he used to take from the Sky Barony's reserves were nothing in comparison to the money he had now.
The same went for Western Guardian, Third Moon, and Violet. They had become extremely wealthy, though nobody around them knew it.
They kept most of their money in an underground bank. They would most likely never use it, simply passing it on to their children or someone else after they passed away.
They kept a low profile, staying in the same houses as always.
Skymender had not only changed their lives, but even Sky City in general had been assisted by him.
More than half of the people he assassinated were criminals, and that kept the streets cleaner and safer than before. In fact, seeing the rate at which criminals died, most people avoided committing any crimes, no matter the circumstances.
This made Sky City one of the safest cities in the entire Empire.
That only contributed further to its growth.
Skymender returned home. It had been silent for a long time.
He was the youngest child, and all of his brothers and sisters had either moved out, whether temporarily or permanently, or stayed in their rooms all day. Skymerge had left to join the Imperial School a while ago.
Others had joined the Royal school or left to simply make a life for themselves.
Even during the summer, they only occasionally returned.
Skymender was the last to leave the house, and he only had a year or so left.
As things continued, his last year of school commenced. After this, he could either join the Imperial school, Royal school, some other school, or never join a school again. Naturally, he had long planned to enter the Imperial School.
It wasn't even a question. He would probably be exempt from any test necessary to enter, simply because his intelligence was so high.
He wasn't even excited for the Imperial school. He felt that there was nothing it could possibly teach him. Even the number one graduates of each year may not know as much as him. It would be a formality, but perhaps Charles would be there. If so, then as long as he had also grown, it may be interesting.
The last year of school passed by quickly.
Skymender turned 14, the age required to enter the Imperial school, though he had to finish the school year.
All resistance to his assassination organization was quelled. The police no longer officially worked with him, but he could tell that they occasionally requested tasks.
If he wanted to, he could completely take over the underground of Sky city, and perhaps even the entirety of the city itself. That would never be allowed to happen by the Empire, but if they were to, for some reason, not interfere, then he definitely could.
Around the start of the new year, his brother called him into his office. He seemed a bit exhausted, but his eyes were as bright as ever.
"As you know, my goal is to expand Sky city, and make it even greater than it already is. I cannot do that alone. Therefore, I wanted to ask you to advise me. I know of your intelligence, as you have long surpassed the knowledge of the academy level." Baron Sky said.
Though he said this, Skymender understood what he was really asking. He wanted to work with Skymender, or rather, Skygod, to expand the city.
"I can help you, brother." Skymender said.
Baron Sky nodded.
"Though I want to expand the city, it costs a lot of money. I can tax and tax, but at some point, people get dissatisfied. Therefore, I have considered working with the one known as Skygod to tax the underground. Doing so would benefit everyone. What do you think about this idea?"
Skymender nodded. "It makes sense. I'm sure as long as you could show proof of what the money would be going towards, this Skygod person would be willing to help tax the underground."
Baron Sky nodded. "I will send him a formal letter then. In addition…"
Baron Sky began to talk about many ideas for cooperation with the one known as Skygod.
Some, Skymender advised he did not go through with, and some he suggested he did.