Just as Skymender was about to leave, he remembered something. The Ruler of the Scholar Region had mentioned that, upon retreating to the island, they found nothing but skeletons.
If that was the case, then how did it happen? Presumably, it had not been long since they died. How could they have become skeletons so quickly? It took years for a human body to decompose into a skeleton. There was something suspicious about that.
He could do no research into the subject, but the question of how it could have happened lingered in his mind.
Skymender continued on with his life in the capital of the Scholar Region. After another week or so, he told Mora that he was about to leave the capital for a while.
"Why?" Mora couldn't help but ask.
"I have business elsewhere. I will come back at some point, but I must go." Skymender said.
"Is it possible for me to go with you?" Mora asked.
Mora valued Skymender. Skymender was the most intelligent person he had ever met besides his father, and his father would not teach him.
It was similar to how Skymender had initially viewed the Imperial Scholar.
Skymender thought about it for a while. Although the Empire was the enemy of the Mainland and would most likely end up going to war, especially considering the Emperor's plans for world domination, it was not impossible to take Mora with him.
The Ruler of the Scholar Region already knew about the camp of the Continent of Wu.
However, thinking about it from another angle, there was really no benefit involved for Skymender bringing along Mora. It would be charity.
Skymender shook his head. "There really isn't a reason for me to bring you."
He was not completely explicit, but Mora understood his meaning. Skymender began to walk away, when Mora spoke up. "What if I promise to tell you a secret about my father?"
Skymender paused and looked back. "What sort of secret?"
"Something about his origins. Although he never tells me anything, I was able to understand some things he never intended for me to understand. It relates to the blood that flows through his and my veins" Mora explained.
"So you would betray your father?" Skymender asked.
"I don't consider this a betrayal. It is just a bit of information. It may not even help you, but you will surely find it interesting." Mora said.
Skymender nodded. "Fine. Let's go."
He found his horse at the stable he had left it at. He got on, and Mora rode behind him.
He left the capital at a normal speed, prompting Mora to question him.
"You know that there are plenty of fast horses and carriages in the capital, right? If you need, I can even buy one."
Skymender shook his head. "No. My horse is special."
Mora was surprised. "I didn't take you for the emotional type, teacher."
Skymender once again shook his head. At this point, they were outside of the capital and far enough away that nobody could see them.
"He's not special in an emotional way." As he finished his sentence, he gave the horse the signal to run.
Without wasting a second, the horse shot off so fast that Mora nearly fell off. He quickly grabbed hold and used all of his strength to not fall off.
"Wait! Wait!" He shouted.
It seemed that Mora was really far too weak. If Skymender didn't stop, he would have fallen off and been injured.
Skymender thought for a few seconds before taking a rope out of the pouch on the horse.
In just a few seconds, he tied Mora down tightly. It would be hard to fall off the horse even if he wanted to.
Mora felt a little humiliated, but on second thought, it was better than falling off and being severely injured.
He held his tongue as the horse shot off again.
It took a few days before they saw the large walls in the distance. Mora was clearly surprised.
"I've studied all the maps of the Scholar Region, but there was never anything here. I've also not heard any news. What is this?" He asked Skymender.
"This is a secret organization. To be honest, I should kill you just for seeing it, but I assume you can keep your mouth shut, right?" Skymender said.
Mora nodded, not daring to disagree.
As they neared the walls, Skymender asked a question.
"What was your father's secret?"
Mora spoke. "He is not from the Scholar Region. He is from an island off of the Mainland that few people know about. The only residents there are from a group known as the Seekers. To put it simply, they have to hide because they worship the god of knowledge. To those of the Temple, this is the greatest sin. Worshipping other gods has caused countless people to be killed. There is a reason why only one god is worshipped all over the world."
Skymender truly was surprised by this information.
"I was hesitant to tell you because I feared you might use this information to threaten my father. Releasing it to the Temple would be disastrous. However, I decided to trust you and the fact that you don't seem like an ally of the Temple." Mora said.
"Don't worry. Nobody from the Temple will hear about this. To be honest, I can almost be considered to be the enemy of the Temple." Skymender said.
The Emperor was someone the Temple would surely be willing to kill as soon as the opportunity arrived.
Skymender finally entered the city walls. Nobody stopped him for even a moment.
Mora was surprised to see people bow at Skymender and welcome him as the "Imperial Scholar".
"Since I'm keeping your fathers secret, you might as well keep mine." Skymender said.
Mora nodded, deciding not to speak a word of this to anyone, besides perhaps his father.
Skymender soon reached the palace in the center of the makeshift city, where he left Mora and his horse with the guards.