A rooster crowed somewhere out there and the cursed thing shattered the peaceful pre-morning silence. Amelia stirred in her cot and as she opened her tired eyes, a thought rose in her mind,

'So we'll be cleaning chickens today.'

It had been a week since she first awoke in this new world, and she could say for certain, that it had been a dreadful week indeed.

Things started going south on her very first night, when her father, Calvin the Village Hunter, returned with grim tidings,

"Ye won't credit what we spied yonder, beyond the hills' reach. Goblins! Goblins I tell ya'! A whole rabble o' them, swarmin' like flies under the mountain's shadow!"

Calvin and his fellow hunters had spotted a small horde of goblins passing the day's light in a forested outcropping some seven leagues northeast of the village, beyond the river Glanduin.

The river was one of the reasons why they weren't already fleeing westwards. It was not the first time goblins had been spotted roaming the wastelands north of the river, or so her Hallbera told her, and they had yet to cross the river and attack their village. Another reason would be that the villagers had faith in the might of their arms and their numbers for there were a dozen more villages down the river shore.

They were hardy folks, Amelia had gathered that much from her memories and over the week she had lived amongst them. Men and women who lived sandwiched between the vast barren country of Eregion and the wild folks of Dunland.

Still, not all credit could be given to their desperate habitat. They had a knack for archery and swordsmanship, hunting, and ranging kept them fit and prepared for any battle that may come their way. Already they had convened a 'council' so to speak, it was but a gathering of village chiefs discussing which places they must fortify or should they make for the westward road to the deserted plains of Minhiriath and so across the ruins of Tharbad.

The hunters were out keeping an eye out for the goblins while all able-bodied men and boys were called to arms. Amelia being a girl... was left out... again.

Amelia sighed and stretched,

[You have slept in a bed. HP and MP are fully restored.]

'Define bed.'

As always, no answer came.

She grabbed a simple tunic and breeches from a peg on the wall and dressed quickly, the bothersome but warm kirtle was replaced by clothes that didn't hinder her movements.

With a sigh, she stepped down to the dining room,

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"Amelia!"

A voice boomed from across the floor and she turned to see her father, Calvin. He was burly as always, but now he went about the house armed with a shortsword as if he was waiting for the enemy to show up on his doorsteps.

"There you are, lass. Heard yer stirring."

His voice was gruff, as always, but a touch softer than usual.

Amelia nodded politely,

"Mornin', Da."

She had taken to their language pretty quickly, it wasn't all that hard, all she had to do was to be a tad bit informal.

"Morning it is,"

Calvin sighed. He ran a hand through his beard and sighed again,

"Look here, lass, Ye has been helpin' yer mum a lot, but with the goblin about, she might need to pick up 'er bow again."

Of course, her mother didn't come under the so-called 'Women and children first.' She was a Ranger before her marriage and that's why she was the village's butcher.

"But what about me, Da? Can't I help with something?"

It wasn't hard pretending to be frustrated, for she was quite frustrated indeed, with the measly rewards that the daily quests offered. Butchering animals, helping clean the weapons, sharpening the blades, exploring the cellar... it was getting quite repetitive.

"Well..."

He made one of his thinking faces,

"There might be somethin' you can do to help out around here. Although, it ain't much, lass."

He began, scratching the back of his head,

"Ya see, lass, We need jerky, aye, enough to last a siege. So ya can get ta' work on the venison. Thin strips, mind ye - thin as yer finger, thinner if ya can!"

[Quest Alert!]

War Quest: Ration Preparation (1)

Objective: Cut venison into thin strips (0/5kg)

Reward: +50EXP, Venison Jerky (2kg)

[YES] [NO]

'Yes,'

The reward was rather generous, much more so than cleaning the cellar or butchering rabbits. It also confirmed one of her suspicions, there were several types of quests, and the reward warried greatly for each of them.

- Job Quests: Quests that are designed to help her pursue any particular field of expertise.

- Quests: Quests that are created when someone asks her to complete a task. Tasks such as picking something or handing someone something don't count.

- War Quests: Quests in preparation for a conflict. They have superior rewards than the others and are more difficult as well.

[INT Increase by 1]

The system does that sometimes, usually when she's working on something really heavy like a whole deer carcass or a log.

With a sigh, she nodded at her father,

"Sure thing, Da. I'll get right on it."

Calvin ruffled her hair, as he always did whenever he was making an excuse of some sort.

"Good lass. We'll all be needin' yer strength, come what may."

And with that, he walked away downstairs and out through the main gate.

Amelia's eyes followed him all the way, she knew what troubled his mind. The militia would be of no help against the Goblins of Moria, then it would be the hunters and rangers doing most of the fighting. Calvin and Hallbera knew that there was a chance they wouldn't survive, and it gnawed at them.

Reaching the back of the butchery, she found a massive slab of meat hanging from a polished metal hook. It was an impressive game, Calvin's game, usually such an impressive hunt would have its head stuffed and mounted on the wall while its meat would be used for a feast. If times were less desperate that is,

'So, I just have to cut the meat in thin slices right?'

Picking up a thin but long butcher's knife, Amelia checked its sharpness on a piece of bone and nodded contently. She had never prepped jerky before, not when she could go downstairs and buy a readymade packet from the convenience store. But the system wouldn't give her a quest if it didn't think she could complete it... right?