The next morning he felt better. Valkyrie Cain and Skulduggery Pleasant were going to take care of things. They were going to stop the Apocalypse Kings and life would return to normal, and nothing bad that happened would be his fault. Adedayo could go back to focusing on the debates.

“Argue with me,” said his dad at breakfast. He held up a slice of toast. “Convince me to give this piece of toast to you.”

Adedayo frowned. “But that’s your toast.”

“This is practice. Training. Come on now. Convince me.”

Adedayo nodded, frowned at the piece of toast, his mind working to come up with persuasive arguments. “Please can I have that toast?” he asked.

“No,” his dad said, sighing.

“Aw,” said Adedayo, “please?”

“Ade, this is not an argument. When you debate, you have to convince. That’s the whole point of debating. Convince me to give you my toast.”

“Dad?”

“Yes?”

“Give me your toast.”

“Dear God,” said his dad, “you are dreadful at this.”

“I told you,” Adedayo said, slurping his orange juice. “I told you I was really bad at debating. But everyone said I should do it.”

“He’s too nice,” Adedayo’s mum said to her husband. “That’s his problem.”

“Thank you, Mum,” said Adedayo, “even though it sounded like an insult, the way you said it.”

His mum grinned. “You’re going to be late for school.”

“But I haven’t finished breakfast.”

She took the slice of toast from her husband’s hand and gave it to him. “There you go.”

“Hey,” his dad said.

Adedayo took a big bite. “Victory.”

He was halfway to school when the big black car pulled up beside him, and Valkyrie hopped out, still wearing the school uniform, and held the door open. Adedayo didn’t know what else to do, so he got in.

“What’s going on?” he asked, once they started driving.

“Our psychic friends,” Skulduggery said, “they tracked these Apocalypse Kings to your school.”

“What?” Adedayo said, his eyes widening. “Why? Why would they go there?”

“They scanned your mind,” said Valkyrie, “and your school is somewhere you know well, with plenty of people walking around, each one fitted with a juicy little soul, ready for plucking. It makes sense that they’d choose it for a hunting ground.”

Adedayo stared. “They’re going after the people in my school?”

“Don’t worry,” Skulduggery said as they approached the school gates, “we’ll be here to search for them, stop them, and keep everyone else safe.” He pressed his collarbones and a new face flowed up, one with a hooked nose and a moustache. “How’s this? Is this one OK?”

“It’s fine,” said Valkyrie.

“Fine, but not great?”

“It’ll do.”

“I need it to be great. I’ll be wearing it for hours.”

“Then it’s great.”

“OK. I believe you.”

They drove slowly into the school, the crowds of students parting, staring at the car as it passed.

“What, um, what’s happening?” Adedayo asked. “What’s going on?”

“We’re going undercover,” said Valkyrie. “I’ll be a student, obviously, and he’ll be a teacher.”

“No,” said Adedayo. “What? No. That’s not a good idea.”

“Nonsense. It’s a wonderful idea,” Skulduggery said, stopping in the far corner of the staff car park. Safely away from prying eyes, they got out and Skulduggery opened the boot. He placed his hat on the carved wooden box that had started this whole mess, and took out a teacher’s black robe. He put it on, completing the look with a six-sided hat sporting a golden tassel. He stood there with his hands on his hips and said, “Am I not magnificent?”

Valkyrie frowned at the hat. “What’s that?”

“It’s called a tam, Valkyrie.”

“You’re not wearing that.”

“I am, as it turns out.”

“No, you’re not.”

“May I remind you that I’m a teacher and you’re a student? Therefore, you will do as I command.”

Valkyrie flicked her hand and the six-sided hat flew into her grip. She clicked the fingers of her other hand and suddenly she was holding a ball of flame. She set fire to the tam, then dropped it.

“I see,” Skulduggery said slowly.

“But I don’t think any of this is a good idea,” said Adedayo. “I think you might, like, raise suspicions or something.”

“Why would we do that?” Skulduggery asked, taking another six-sided hat from the boot and putting it on.

“Because you don’t seem to be very good at keeping a low profile.”

Shadows leaped from Valkyrie’s ring and slashed the tam from Skulduggery’s head.

“We are excellent at keeping a low profile,” she muttered. “Skulduggery, don’t you dare put on another—”

He put on another, the tassel dangling in front of his face.

Valkyrie glared. “How many of those do you have?”

“Eight,” he said.

“And you’re aware that they’re ridiculous and they make you look stupid?”

“I am aware that they are amazing and they make me look like a teacher.”

“No teacher wears any of that stuff any more.”

“Then I will usher in a revival of the trend.”

She glowered. “Fine. You want to look stupid, you go ahead and look stupid.”

“Thank you, I will.”

“Will you even be allowed into the school building?” Adedayo asked.

Skulduggery shut the boot and locked the car. “Don’t you worry, Adedayo. As far as the faculty is aware, I am a substitute teacher filling in for an absent member of staff, and Valkyrie has just transferred here. Most of the necessary paperwork has already been forged.”

“Most?”

Skulduggery adjusted his tassel, and grinned. “Quite. Most is all you need, most of the time. And, for those times when most isn’t enough, unswerving confidence is bound to see you through. Come now. We have a world to save.”