The Shadowseeker - Victor Kloss Page 0,24

sitting next to them, spoke carefully. “We forgot to search for the other things.”

Guardians and Shadowseekers, Ben realised. How could they have forgotten? He consoled himself with the knowledge that there would be ample opportunity to research them in the future.

Ben glanced down at the book, Introduction to Spellswords, in front of him, and he was gripped with a rare eagerness to start reading. He opened the book and flicked to the first page.

“Spellsword was the first department to be established by Queen Elizabeth, only months after she discovered the Unseen Kingdoms. Initially they were soldiers, skilled in both spellshooting and weaponry, but their role quickly expanded, thanks largely to Michael James, the first Spellsword Director, whose contribution to the department remains unparalleled. Today they are senior and superior to the armed forces of most Unseen Kingdoms. Many battles can be avoided simply by their presence. However, should force be required, it is common knowledge that one Spellsword is the equivalent to a fully armed military squad.”

Ben paused, trying to digest what he'd just read. He was learning about his ancestor in the founding years of the Institute. It was crazy. How many times would Michael be mentioned during their studies? Ben had to resist the urge to see what else he could find, and continued reading. The rest of the chapter read like an enthralling fantasy novel. When Ben finished, he looked up, eager to discuss the chapter with Charlie.

But Charlie had disappeared.

“He's gone back into the library to search for another book. He seemed pretty excited about it,” Jimmy said, seeing Ben's confusion.

Ben had been so engrossed in the book he hadn't heard Charlie leave.

“Your friend is a really fast student,” Jimmy said. “He completed all the questions and left about ten minutes ago.”

“Questions?”

“You know, the questions you answer after studying the theory.”

Ben referred back to his handbook and to the Spellsword checklist. Jimmy was right; beneath the step detailing what to read was a set of questions to answer. It took Ben another twenty minutes to answer everything, occasionally having to refer back to the chapter he read. By the time he had finished, Charlie had returned and was watching Ben intently, his chubby fingers tapping against each other.

“Finally,” Charlie said, with an air of impatience.

“Where have you been?”

“Researching,” Charlie said, a smile creasing his face. He made a subtle nod towards Jimmy. “I'll explain on the way. Let's go.”

By the time they left the library, Charlie was bubbling with excitement. “I finished about thirty minutes ago. I didn't want to keep going as I thought it would be better if we were at the same point on the checklist.”

“How did you finish so fast?”

“I'm a quick reader,” Charlie said, waving a dismissive hand. “Anyway, while you were finishing, I thought I'd try to find what I could about Guardians and Shadowseekers.”

Suddenly, he had Ben's undivided attention. “What did you find?”

Charlie raised a chubby finger. “I know this is going to sound annoying, but I want to wait until we meet up with Natalie because I really don't like explaining things twice.”

Ben ran a hand through his hair. “That is annoying. When are we going to see her?”

“By the entrance at 3pm, remember? That's less than ten minutes away. I suggest we drop our handbooks off with the examiner and head over.”

“The examiner?”

“Oh yeah, Jimmy told me about him while you were glued to the book,” Charlie said, with a smile. “He's the guy who checks our answers. Look.”

Charlie was pointing to a door they had stopped by. Examiner’s Room. Knock Before Entering.

“Maybe I should double-check what I wrote,” Ben said, looking at his handbook with concern. His face lit up hopefully. “Could I compare my answers with yours?”

“Absolutely not,” Charlie said. “I'm sure you did fine.”

Ben knew better than to argue the point. There were some rules Charlie would never break.

With a little sigh, Ben knocked on the door.

“Come in, come in. By that I mean both of you.”

Ben exchanged a surprised look with Charlie.

“How did he know there are two of us?” Charlie asked.

“I don't know, but I have a feeling this could be interesting.”

Ben opened the door into a small office, dominated by one big desk in the middle. On the left side of the desk was a basket, piled halfway to the ceiling with Institute Handbooks. On the right was another basket with a smaller collection of handbooks. In the middle was a man, for lack of a better word, sitting on a