The Silver Dwarf (Royal Institute of Magic, Book 4) by Victor Kloss Page A

could be useful. The German kobold, as it turned out, was as elusive in
textbooks as it was in the real world, and it took Ben some time before he came upon a passage of use.
    “ While the common kobold is generally considered less dangerous and intelligent than the goblin, the German variety is a noted exception. Similar in
appearance to their goblin cousins, they are tricky, devious and take apparent pleasure in causing mischief. The German kobolds are particularly adept
at this. They are noted for their ability to turn almost invisible for extensive periods of time and can climb like monkeys. Unlike goblins, they have
little intention of mingling among humankind. Their only redeeming feature is that they are not truly evil. The German kobolds are magic-resistant, but
are vulnerable to fire and silver.”
    It was the best Ben could find, but he needed more. How do you find these German kobolds if they are so elusive? And once found, how do you convince them
to stop causing mayhem? Ben decided to give himself until lunchtime to solve these mysteries. But by twelve o’clock, he still didn’t have the answers, and
was left staring at the textbooks with growing frustration, unable to discover anything further that might help. What he really needed now was Charlie.
    Ben slapped his hands down on the table. He couldn’t afford to waste any more time. He ran up to the lunch room, grabbed a sandwich, and then headed out of
the Institute, munching on a chicken baguette and making a beeline for the local spell market. Stuffed in his pocket was the collar and lead, along with
the money he had to spend.
    An hour later, Ben felt he had fully worked off the chicken baguette he had eaten, negotiating with some of the toughest traders to get the most out of his
two hundred pounds for spells he might just need against the German kobold. Hopefully that took care of the Scholar and Trade departments. It was now two
o’clock, which gave him a couple of hours to track down the kobold. Ben picked up the pace.
    Ben knew the neighbourhood of Igloor fairly well, having passed through it regularly to get to one of his favourite restaurant districts. It was an
uninspiring area, known primarily for housing people who couldn’t afford to live in the nicer areas of Taecia. Its only redeeming feature was a quaint
bridge that ran over a bubbling stream and led to a pleasant green area. Next to it was a small woodland, famous for its apple trees, according to Charlie.
    But on this occasion, the aromas coming from the restaurants could be a problem. Ben had read that the German kobold emitted a very specific smell from the
household it chose to domesticate, and the smell of food from the nearby restaurants would only complicate matters. Ben was still debating the issue when
he came upon Igloor Street. He stopped, hands on hips, examining the houses and the small stream that ran alongside them, already testing his sense of
smell to see what he could detect.
    “Ben?”
    A familiar voice made him turn. To his great surprise, he saw Aaron strolling down the street towards him. He was looking at each of the houses with great
interest.
    “Well, that’s good timing,” Aaron said, with one of his easy smiles. “The question is – are we here to look for the same thing? Because if so, one of us is
going to be disappointed and, frankly, I’d rather that wasn’t me.”
    Ben didn’t take the bait. “What are you looking for?”
    Aaron gave a soft laugh. “Come on, Ben, don’t be ridiculous. I’m not going to tell you that. We’re not on the same team, remember?”
    “So you keep reminding me,” Ben said. “What do you want to do? I’m not leaving this street.”
    Aaron clearly wasn’t happy about that, but Ben couldn’t care less. He couldn’t imagine the Institute having them look for the same creature, for it would
mean one of them would have to fail. But Aaron looked worried, and Ben wasn’t about to reassure him.
    “If you won’t do me