A few months later, Otherworlder Training Centre at Lehrbeck Castle…

From her tower window in Lehrbeck castle, Kim Hae-Won, better known by most as Elizabeth watched as a new caravan entered the castle courtyard, even as she bit the end of her quill. She was hoping that this caravan was bearing her friends.

Lehrbeck Castle, near the Temple of Heroes, was where she and her classmates had been training for the last year and a half. Today, though, it was mostly empty of them.

The problem was the Displaced had run out of time. The Otherworlder heroes and heroines or the “Displaced” as their class referred to themselves as, had trained intensively, but the war had reached an intense back and forth that required the Human Kingdoms to commit everything they had, including them. Some of her older classmates, those born from January to June, were already involved in the fighting.

But only a rare few had distinguished themselves on the field of battle.

To Elizabeth’s joy, she immediately recognized two of her friends, dismounting. She stowed the quill away and ran out of her room. Being rather tall, despite only being fourteen, her long legs carried her quickly through the corridors.

“Alan, Charlie! You’re back! How was your—” Elizabeth froze, as she saw her friends’ long faces. “That bad?”

“Yes, that bad,” muttered Charlie. The middle-eastern boy nevertheless embraced Elizabeth warmly, if awkwardly, due to the bow on his back.

“We failed. Tim summoned himself back and Leah got wounded. I think she wants to go home too."

Elizabeth winced. She didn’t know Leah that well but she knew Alan and Charlie counted her as a friend. “That’s how many now?”

“If we don’t include Leah, we have a perfect hundred and fifty of us left out of three hundred." Alan raised his gauntleted hand as Elizabeth opened her mouth. “I don’t want to talk about the mission. It just went to hell so suddenly.”

“Elizabeth Kim?” called a voice.

Elizabeth turned around to find Lady Alice Trollhammer, their chief combat instructor. She was tough, but rather kindly. She was standing next to a red-robed magician who Elizabeth recognized as Scarlet, their main magic instructor. She was not so nice and tended to play favourites.

“Yes, Mrs. Trollhammer?” queried Elizabeth.

“There’s been a development. Report to the briefing room quickly please,” said Scarlet gruffly. She turned on her heel and strode away, whilst Alice smiled apologetically.

“You didn’t do anything wrong Elizabeth, we just want to speak to you about something,” Alice said kindly.

Elizabeth nodded and after quickly saying goodbye to Alan and Charlie, followed Alice into the castle.

Scarlet was already in the briefing room, with Count Haurstadt, the head of training for the Otherworlders. Despite his age and full white beard, the man was built like a freight train and had a champion’s poker face. He smiled wanly but made no other gestures as Elizabeth entered the room behind Alice.

“Sit down, Elizabeth,” said Haurstadt.

Elizabeth sat down, trying her best to keep her features calm, but she was bubbling with curiosity and questions. Why was she being asked to come here? What was going on?

“Elizabeth, we know you aren’t fifteen yet, but we have a mission, and with your classmates deployed to various fronts, or recovering, we would like to ask if you are willing to do a mission,” said Haurstadt.

Elizabeth nodded. “Um, yes. I’m sure.”

Alice frowned. “Are you sure, Elizabeth. There’s no need to say yes.”

Elizabeth was about to say she was sure, but the concern in Alice’s eyes made her pause. Still, Elizabeth felt like she had to try. She’d been training for this and she wanted to help the humans. The stories that the Displaced brought back from the frontlines had told of how brutal the Alavari could be to civilians and the brutal nature of the fighting.

Making a quick prayer to God in her head, Elizabeth begged him to help her not mess her first mission up, and said, “I’m sure.”

“Alright." Count Haurstadt pointed to the map on the wall of the briefing room. “We managed to break through Westfall Pass a few weeks ago and after another skirmish, are tightening the siege of the Twin-Towns of Kwent. Your mission is to escort one of your classmates who has been sent to support the siege and forthcoming assault.”

“Oh? Who?” Elizabeth asked.

Alice smiled, “You probably don’t recall her. She’s been apart from Lehrbeck, training with Master Edana, the Head of the White Order. Her name is Frances.”

However, much to the surprise of the various instructors, Elizabeth frowned.

“You heard of her?” Haurstadt queried coolly.

“Mage Scarlet has mentioned her repeatedly.” Elizabeth tried to keep the sarcasm in her voice, but failing miserably.

Scarlet had an expression schooled into one of dispassionate silence, even as Alice scowled at her and Haurstadt gave a disapproving look, which was interesting to Elizabeth.

“She is an excellent magician and the best of the other Otherworlders,” Scarlet hissed, “I was using her as an example, a role model.”

“We’ll talk about this later, Master Scarlet,” said Haurstadt, poker face breaking to reveal an unamused glower. “Elizabeth, you may leave to prepare for your trip.”

Elizabeth bowed and left, mind whirring from the news.

“Frances? Frances Wendlan? You’re going to be escorting her?” Alan asked with wide eyes.

Elizabeth gave her helmet a final polish and set it in her saddlebag. “Yup. I kinda remember her, but it’s been a while. Has anybody seen her since we were displaced?”

Charlie shook his head, looking perplexed. “No. Are we sure Haurstadt means the same person? Frances was really quiet and creepy. Like stay-away-from-her creepy."

Elizabeth frowned at her friend’s tone. “That’s not a very nice thing to say, Charlie.”

Charlie raised his hands placatingly and winced. “Sorry, but… well, it’s true. She didn’t talk to anybody, headed to the library every lunchtime, and always buried her head in books. I can’t quite figure out how she’s doing so well.”

Try as she might, Elizabeth couldn't deny that she shared Charlie's confusion, but she tried anyway.

“Those are the rumours and mutterings from Master Scarlet, and you know how cranky she is."

“I would agree, but all of our other Red Order instructors have said similar things. I mean, have you heard of how jealous they sounded when they spoke of Frances’s achievements? How they want a student like Master Edana’s?” Alan asked. He paused and bit his lip. “We also heard some things on our way back to Lehrbeck.”

Charlie regarded Alan. “About what—Oh right. Westfall Pass right?” At Alan’s nod, Charlie shuffled closer to Elizabeth. “You know how the only Otherworlders here that did well so far are Leila and Jessica, as well as John, Christina and Sam, over in Roranoak right?” Well, the missions they succeeded in have nothing on what Frances did at Westfall Pass. I heard from the soldiers in the caravan that Earl Forowena, their commander couldn’t stop praising Frances, and that Frances essentially turned the tide of the battle.”

“But she’s only our age,” Elizabeth stammered, feeling incredibly self-conscious. She hadn’t even seen battle, much less bene outside Lehrbeck for a year and here was this classmate of hers, the rumoured weird girl no less, turning the tide of battles and getting praise from the local Durannon nobles.

“Yeah.” Alan pursed his lips. “By the way, where did you say you were heading to?”

“Kwent. We’re apparently going to put it to siege and assault it

“A siege? Wait, an assault?! Those are incredibly dangerous!” Charlie exclaimed.

“Well, yeah, but the monsters have occupied Kwent since the beginning of the war. Isn’t it good that we’re going to liberate it now?” Elizabeth asked.

Charlie and Alan exchanged a look. Suddenly, Elizabeth felt a feeling of dread run up her back.

“Guys? What’s wrong?”

“Liz, Alan and I talked, and I think we should go home honestly."

Charlie's voice was quiet, but it echoed in the small room the pair shared.

“Wait what? You’re not just going to give up—”

“Leah got her foot chopped off!” Charlie shouted.

Elizabeth stared at her friend, stunned, but when she found Alan’s solemn eyes, she knew what Charlie said was true.

“I know we can’t die, but I mean, terrible things can happen to us here… we don’t need the Gold or the good luck charm. I… I miss home.”

“But what about the other humans here? Who will help them? You said that it’s our responsibility to help them!” Elizabeth cried, her hands shaking. She couldn’t believe this was happening. Charlie? Funny, determined Charlie, wanted to leave, and quiet, hardworking Alan wanted to go as well.

“They have their own heroes. They have people like Frances. And this… isn’t our world. Alan and I tried, but we failed.”

“There’s always next time—”

“I’m sorry, Liz. I… I can’t. I’ve had a grand time here, but it’s not fun and games in Durannon. There is death and war, and we have to kill a monster king.” Charlie sighed. With a shake of his head, he made for the door. “Follow us if you would like. I’ll see you soon.”

Elizabeth stared as the door slammed behind him. Tears in her eyes, she turned to Alan, who shook his head.

“I’m sorry Liz, but… we’re all scared. I’ll… I’ll see you later.”

Alan suddenly grabbed Elizabeth and gave her a quick hug, before following Charlie, closing the door behind him.

After that terrible moment, Elizabeth had just wanted to end it all and summon herself back home. Back to her parents, back to her family’s lovely house to see her father, mother, grandfather and grandmother. She wanted to eat kimchi and all the Korean foods she’d taken for granted. She wanted to go to an actual mass, not question how the hell did Amura and Rathron figure into her Catholic beliefs. The cherry on top was that with Alan and Charlie summoning themselves home, all of her close friends from school were now gone.

The only thing that stopped from leaving was the fact that she spent almost two years training in Lehrbeck castle and if she didn’t see somewhere outside of it, she knew she’d regret it.

And that was why she was riding with her escort of soldiers towards their mission area, painfully aware that she was three months from being fifteen, that her friends had abandoned her and… it was everything Elizabeth could do not to just break out crying.

To take her mind off of it, she focused on examining the valley and the Twin Towns of Kwent.

The Twin Towns of Kwent sat squarely on the original border between the human Kingdom of Erisdale and the fae, or monster, Kingdom of Alavaria. It consisted of two towns across the Kwent river (hence the town’s name), one of human, and the other of fae. In times of peace, the town prospered due to the trade between the two kingdoms.

In times of war, the bridge that spanned the Kwent river became a strategic point of contention. After losing their side of the town in the opening months of the war, the Kingdom of Erisdale was attempting to take both sides with the assistance of as many of the Displaced they could spare. This included the girl she was being sent to escort, Frances.

Frances… Elizabeth’s thoughts returned to the other distraction that had kept her from simply leaving. Barely any of the Displaced that remained in Durannon could remember that girl was part of their class. Their instructors and teachers had since begun to mention Frances’s exploits, or mutter under their breath why could some of them not be like her. Rumours, always a common thing at the castle of Lehrbeck where the Displaced were trained, painted a rather terrifying picture.

She was apparently the first mage to cast “true lightning” in years. Single-handedly rescued her mentor, the White Order’s head, Edana Firehand from a hundred orcs, centaurs and harpies. She was the perfect student, assisted in the capture of towns, defended forts, and healed thousands of critical or fatal wounds.

The Discplaced’s instructors, such as Master Scarlet, increasingly mused why they couldn’t have as good a student as Edana did. Whispers in hallways hissed as to how Frances was so mature and able to deal with combat, unlike her fellow classmates.

Her fellow Displaced classmates had become increasingly resentful of this phantom classmate that nobody had seen. So, the moment Elizabeth had been announced to be assigned with Frances to take this important town, everybody had pressed her for information, even before she had set off.

For her part, Elizabeth was just worried and that worry grew as she approached the palisaded siege camp. Being Catholic, she’d tried to obey her God’s tenets and attempted to ignore the rumours and the gossip. However, she was painfully aware that she was some new heroine, going to be working with someone highly competent, who’d fought and killed. Someone who somehow was thriving in this world rather than wanting to leave it.

She’d never killed anybody, and God told her not to kill, but if she was to protect the humans, then she had no choice but to kill.

Elizabeth was so wrapped up in her thoughts, she didn’t realize that she was in the middle of the siege camp, still sitting on her horse, an armoured figure poking her knee.

“Oi, you! You’re the Otherworlder sent to help us?” grumbled the man.

“Yes, sorry sir!” Elizabeth leapt off her horse and bowed. “Elizabeth at your service—”

“It’s Earl Darius, and as the commander of this force, you will address me as such, Otherworlder.” He scowled at Elizabeth, narrowed dark brown examining her. “Don’t you even know how to bow properly. Don’t answer that. Report to Frances. You’re escorting her so she’ll get you settled in.”

“Where—”

“Short brown hair, olive-brown skin, and has a wand. Ask around if you don’t know. Move it,” snapped the Earl.

Elizabeth nodded and turned to run off, only to be stopped by a hand on her shoulder. Spinning around, she stared at the earl with eyes wide with confusion, only to see him running his hand through his brown hair.

“You dingus, you’ve forgotten your pack!” he exclaimed.

“Sorry sir-Earl, Earl Darius!” she exclaimed, just wanting to be away from the man as fast as possible. She squirmed out of his hand, grabbed her pack and raced away as fast as she could.

Thankfully, she had long legs. Unfortunately, she soon found herself completely lost in the camp, which suddenly seemed far larger than it was when she was seeing it from a distance. And everybody in the camp seemed to be preoccupied with doing something.

Breathing out, Elizabeth adjusted her pack onto her shoulder and started to look. She wandered through the camp, passing row after row of tents and awnings filled with soldiers, or knights. She tried asking a few people, but while they heard of Frances, nobody knew where her tent was.

Elizabeth, now standing around the kitchen area of the camp, groaned. Perhaps she could get some food and continue her search. Her stomach was beginning to growl.

“Hello, I heard you were looking for the mage Frances?” asked a voice.

Elizabeth straightened and turned to face a blonde hair blue eyed male knight in armour, with a friendly smile. He looked to be a year older than her.

He also seemed to be fashioned with a rather large button nose. It was so large that Elizabeth knew she was going to remember his face for some time, simply due to the size of it. It wasn’t that the knight’s nose was ugly, it was just big.

“Yes! Do you know where she is?” she asked, pushing that thought away.

“I’m afraid not. But I’m looking for her as well. I’ve been assigned as part of her escort.” He extended a hand. “Name’s Martin of Conthwaite.”

“Kim Hae-won, but you can call me Elizabeth. I’m also part of her escort,” said Elizabeth, shaking the knight’s hand.

“Kim— Elizabeth it is." He released her hand, scratching the back of his head. “Earl Darius was very unhelpful I’m afraid, but I suppose he’s occupied by the siege. Want to try searching after we get a meal?”

“That sounds just… brilliant,” Elizabeth said, not bothering to hide how grateful she felt. She followed Martin into the large mess tent and took a spot by the row upon row of tables set up undercover.

“So you were assigned as part of her escort? Who else?” Elizabeth asked as they waited in line to get their food.

“Just you and I." Martin shot Elizabeth a discerning look. "You’re the Otherworlder assigned to help right?”

Elizabeth pursed her lips and gave the knight a cautious look. “Yes?” she said, grabbing a wooden bowl and a battered fork from the many that were stacked up for the soldiers.

“Oh, well it’s good to meet you. I’m glad we have you to help us.” He held his bowl out for the cook to ladle in some stew. “We’re in the thick of this war and without you, we would have been in deep trouble. I take it you’re a warrior?”

Elizabeth blinked. Most of the humans who weren’t her instructors viewed her and the other Displaced with a healthy level of skepticism and some fear. Martin seemed genuinely curious.

After her last two friends just up and left her, it was a very nice change.

“Yup." She found a space and pointed to it. Martin nodded and the pair quickly rushed to it. Dumping her pack onto the ground, Elizabeth nimbly slid onto the bench, with Martin taking the spot next to her.

“Did my Warhammer gave it away?” Elizabeth quipped.

“Yes,” said Martin. He quickly muttered a grace to what Elizabeth recognized as Amura and Rathron, the two Gods of the Humans in Durrannon. Without missing a beat, she made the sign of the cross.

If Martin noticed, he didn’t say anything, he just swallowed a spoonful of stew, which Elizabeth also sampled, and found it was rather tasty.

Martin looked up from his stew. “So, do you happen to know anything about Frances?”

“No. I was hoping you might,” Elizabeth whined.

The young knight arched an eyebrow. “I thought you all were part of the same school?”

“We haven’t seen her since she started apprenticing under a mentor.” Swallowing, Elizabeth stabbed her spoon into the stew. “All we’ve heard of her are rumours, and even before that, she kept to herself.”

“Huh. I know her only by reputation as well. I have heard she's one of our combat mages and for this campaign. Interestingly enough, I also have heard she's quite a nice person...” Martin's voice trailed off as his eyes glanced sideways, away from Elizabeth. Something was distracting him, and she turned to see what.

A girl about her age, with olive-brown skin and brown hair, had sat down across from Elizabeth. She wore a simple green dress, which was mostly covered up by a quilted jacket, and was carrying a small cloth-wrapped package.

“Um, hi. Are you Kim Hae-won?” she asked, in a timid voice, which seemed to match her thin figure.

Elizabeth blinked. “Uh, yes?” Her mind, a second later, suddenly realized that this girl matched the description Earl Darius gave her, but before she could finish thinking, the girl continued to speak.

“I’m Frances and um… I made something for you." She unwrapped the package, revealing a covered wooden bowl, the lid of which she promptly took off.

An impossibly nostalgic smell of salted cabbage, fish sauce, and chilli assaulted Elizabeth’s nose and widened her eyes. Her nose knew the smell, but it took her eyes peering into the bowl for her to believe what she was seeing.

It was kimchi, a Korean dish she hadn’t seen in two years. The dish wasn’t her favourite, but she missed the taste dearly as nothing like it existed in Durannon.

“How—what—” Elizabeth stared at the dish, and back at Frances, jaw agape. Slowly, disbelievingly, she pulled the pot to her and levered a spoonful into her mouth.

The crunchy texture, the hint of spice and the taste of fish, all wrapped up with the smell of the fermented cabbage exploded across her mouth.

Frances smiled shyly. “Do you like it?”

Elizabeth swallowed and blinked back tears as the taste took her back to dinners with her family. To fond memories of Sunday nights eating her grandmother’s food.

“It’s perfect. Thank you! How did you make this?”

For a brief second, Frances’s smile faded, but it returned as if it had never disappeared. “Oh, I um, I made it for my parents. I can teach you the recipe if you would like?”

Wiping her eyes, Elizabeth nodded eagerly, but she couldn’t help but wonder about Frances’s bizarre reaction. That thought made her realize that she was acting rather rudely and completely leaving Martin out of the conversation.

“Oh gosh, where are my manners.” Elizabeth put her spoon down. “Frances, I’m Elizabeth, and this is Martin of Conthwaite. He’s also part of your escort, like me,” she said, gesturing to the knight.

The knight, smiling, extended his hand to Frances. “Pleasure to meet you.”

Frances took it and gave what Elizabeth decided was a rather awkward, if sincere, shake. “Pleased to meet you too."

“Would you like to join us for lunch, Frances?” Martin offered.

The mage blinked, “Oh, yes please, if you don’t mind. I just need to get my lunch first.”

“Take your time. We’ll save you this spot,” said Elizabeth reassuringly.

Frances's smile widened and after a quick dip of her head, she quickly scampered off to the lunch line. Elizabeth watched her quietly join the line.

That was when several thoughts struck Elizabeth in quick succession.

Her first thought was that she realized she quite liked this mysterious classmate of hers, and she seemed like a very kind, if shy person.

However, it suddenly occurred to Elizabeth that none of what she’d just seen matched the rumoured image of Frances being a powerful mage and loner. That itself wasn’t surprising as they were rumours after all, but she found it odd nonetheless.

Her more pressing realization was that she suddenly realized she recognized Frances.

“Wait, she’s Frances?” stammered Elizabeth, eyes wide.

“Elizabeth? Are you alright?”

“No, it’s just...” She swallowed. “I recognize her now.”

She remembered now. Well she kinda did, but now that she had a face to her memories, it all clicked. Frances was the grade’s weird girl. The one who spoke to nobody. The last to be picked at every PE. The one who’d shown up with a battered backpack and very plain clothing that seemed too big for her. She’d always been in the back of Elizabeth’s mind, as she’d always reminded herself to ask Frances to join her and her friends for lunch. It would be the Christian thing to do, but Frances didn’t share a single class with her and seemed to disappear every recess, with one exception.

The day before they’d been displaced to Durannon, Elizabeth had noticed Frances picking up a discarded tray of fries from the school cafeteria on the playground.

Elizabeth wouldn’t have given it a second thought, but when Frances didn’t throw it into the nearby trash can, she’d gotten curious, and continued to watch through the 2nd-floor window she’d been sitting beside.

Before her eyes, Frances had given a glance around, and when she’d thought that nobody thought she was looking, she’d eaten the fries.

The sight had so horrified Elizabeth, she rushed to the only teacher she knew was on duty, the librarian, Mr. Thom. He’d been shocked, and his expression had turned grim. She’d had to stay after school to talk to the principal, the counsellors, and then to child services before she’d been allowed to go home. Her parents and the administrators had all told her she should speak of what she saw to nobody. And so she hadn’t.

Subsequently, the memory had been buried as she’d been displaced to Durannon and never saw Frances again. But now, she could remember that sight as if she’d just seen it yesterday.

Taking a deep breath, Elizabeth felt a deep sense of guilt at not having gotten to know Frances better. She must have had a hard life if she had to scrounge for food. Perhaps that was why she had become such a great heroine.

But Elizabeth knew she could change that right now, and she resolved to get to know Frances better. Perhaps Frances could teach her something and help her to… to fit in better with this world.

Besides, if the kimchi she was chewing on was any indication, she seemed like a really nice person.