Astoria sighed in relief that she hadn't stumbled on another goblin camp or anything on the way down and looked around to see if there were any people out in the fields. There appeared to be no people out working the fields, and so she turned her attention toward the nearest house. There has to be a road somewhere near the house... I guess I'll head that way. She climbed through the small wooden fence that marked the boundary of the field and made her way toward the house in the distance. The wheat, or whatever it was, looked like it was about ready for harvesting. It was waist high and the tops of the plants felt scratchy against her fingertips as she walked. It wasn't long before she got to the edge of the field and onto a small dirt road near the farmhouse.

So... do I be the creepy stranger who knocks on some poor farmer's door... or do I continue on to the village? she mused to herself. It was getting late and maybe these people would let her take shelter in their barn or something. Her feet and back ached a little from all the walking, and she wasn't particularly looking forward to going any further right now. She was a stranger here though. After long moments of deliberation, she decided that it might be better to continue on toward the village anyway. Just as she turned away from the house and began walking away, a door creaked behind her and a burly man walked out, holding a bow with an arrow nocked. He called out to her.

"What's a stranger doing skulking around my farm so late in the day? What business have you around here? We haven't anything worth stealing, and I won't let you harm my family without a fight." He stared her down.

Astoria reacted the same way she would have on Earth if some big scary guy had pointed a gun at her. With a squeak she hopped back a little and raised her hands up to show that she was harmless. "S-Sorry... I've just gotten here from over the mountains. I mean no harm. I'm just trying to get to town or find somewhere safe to sleep for the night."

The man looked her over and seemed to be contemplating something for a while. It would be clear from her ragged clothes and dirty appearance that she had been through a lot.

"The town of Oliend is a few hours' walk from here down the main road. Lately, we've been plagued by wolves attacking livestock and people unfortunate enough to be outside after dark. You won't see anyone outside this late in the day." He paused for a second. "I’m not heartless. I have two girls of my own inside and I wouldn’t feel right just letting you go off into the night alone in the shape you’re in. I guess what it is I'm getting at, girl, is that if you want shelter for the night, you can stay here." He looked to be appraising her again before adding, "My only condition is that you hand over your weapons for the night and let me lock them up. I have to consider the safety of my family, you see."

Astoria quickly thought about what this guy was saying. She didn't know if she could trust him either, but the thought of being chased down in the open by a pack of hungry wolves wasn't exactly her idea of a good time. In the doorway behind him, she spotted a little girl running around playing. Despite his gruff words, Astoria thought she could see a gentleness in this man’s eyes. Taking a deep breath, she decided to take her chances. "Okay. Thank you. I'll gladly take you up on the offer." It took her only a few moments to drop her weapons on the ground and then she took several steps back away from them.

The man turned around and said, "Rodia, will you go grab those for me?" A few seconds later, a woman came outside. She quickly scurried over and, while keeping a watchful eye on Astoria, grabbed the weapons. She then turned around and, just as quickly, went back over to him. The man reached into his shirt and pulled out a necklace that held a heavy bronze key. "Lock those in the chest, alright?" He smiled warmly at the woman as she nodded and went inside.

He turned back toward Astoria and lowered his bow, beckoning her over. "Come on over. Sorry about the fuss, but one can't be too careful around these parts when it comes to strangers. There have been bandits, goblin raids and an increasing amount of animal attacks around here. I'm Jayse and that was my wife, Rodia."

Astoria hoped she was making the right decision and walked over to him. “My name’s Astoria. Thanks again for letting me stay here tonight.” She had almost called herself Emily but decided that, since this was her new life, she should embrace her new identity as well. The house was small and built out of wood. It had a thatched roof that looked as though it would likely leak a bit if it rained.

The interior of the house was warm and inviting. A little girl who was probably around five years old was playing with some dolls. Another girl, who looked like she was around twelve, sat in a wooden rocking chair, reading a book. It was titled The Adventures of Ydris the Just, and the girl appeared to be totally enthralled in the story. "This little one is Aerie," Jayse ruffled her hair as they walked by, "and this little bookworm here is Judy." He sat down and, with a smile, motioned Astoria to have a seat.

The furniture appeared to all be handmade. Incredibly beautiful, colorful, knitted blankets hung from the backs of each piece of wooden furniture. Although the material appeared to be spun wool, which would probably be scratchy, she was sure that they were warm. Rodia had been tending a bubbling pot of food that smelled delicious. Astoria was sure that it would be infinitely better than the food the goblins had made. The aromas that filled the house made her mouth water.

"You got here just in time for dinner," Rodia said, turning to her and offering a kind smile. "So where are you from and why are you way out here all alone?"

Astoria decided to see what information she could get out of these NPCs and told the truth, "I'm actually not from this world... I'm from a place called Earth, and I only arrived here about a day ago. I appeared in a weird cave up in the mountains that had these monster bugs that attacked me."

Jayse chuckled and raised an eyebrow as he listened to her story. Once she had finished, he exchanged a look with his wife before saying, "Not from this world? So you've come from another plane of existence? It's not unheard of... but it doesn't make sense. It's okay if you don't want to tell us where you're from. You must have your reasons. But if you're going to lie, then you should at least come up with a better story."

Astoria really thought they would believe her, but she dropped it and made up a story that she had run away from her home on the other side of the mountains. They seemed to accept the new story, and she was able to move on to other topics. "Do you have any maps that I could see? Maybe even a map of the whole world?" She knew that it was unlikely for them to have such things, but she kept hope alive anyway.

"We don't have much need for maps. My family has lived here for generations and we don't go too far. If you're looking for a map, you should try going to the general store in town. Eld, the shopkeeper, will probably try to rob you blind, but he would have some maps and other basic items that could help you if you're set on continuing your travels," Jayse told her as he sipped something that looked to be tea.

"Would you like some tea, dear?" Rodia asked her after noticing that she had been staring at the cup in Jayse's hands.

"Yes, please. Tea sounds great!" She got up from the chair she was sitting in and went over to Rodia, who grabbed a warm kettle from the large wood fired stove and poured piping hot water into a cup that had tea leaves at the bottom.

"Here you go, dear. Be careful, it's very hot." She turned back to stirring her stew and checked on some bread that was baking in the oven which she pulled out and placed on a wooden cutting board to cool. Astoria went back over to her chair.

"So, you went into a cave up in the Serpentine Mountains, you said? And you encountered some monsters?" Jayse asked her over his tea cup.

"Yeah, I thought it would be safer inside shelter than to be out in the open... I was wrong and these giant bug things attacked me. I barely got away." She felt bad about lying about why she was inside the cave.

"You probably stumbled into the old excavation site. Supposedly, deep inside the Serpentine Mountains was an ancient seat of power that was held by mountain dwarves who mysteriously disappeared hundreds of years ago. Garland, the local lord, hoped to find great riches there, but the project was abandoned."

"So they just disappeared into thin air and no one knows why?"

"Well... when the excavation team finally broke into the part of the cave system that held the ancient city, they were overrun by all kinds of vicious monsters. Almost the entire crew was devoured. No one could be convinced to go back inside."

Astoria shuddered, realizing that she had literally been spawned inside of some extremely dangerous dungeon. She was really glad that she didn't venture further down the tunnel where she had initially encountered the things. "Anyway... the next morning after I left the cave, I ran into a couple goblins on my way down the mountain. They tried to kill me, but I managed to beat them, and I found myself here after walking all day."

Jayse ran his fingers through his well-kept beard. "You're lucky to be alive, little lady. I don't really see why you traveled over the mountains through wilderness rather than following the road through the pass, but you're probably past the worst of it."

Astoria nodded and asked more about the area. She found that Oliend is an outlying town at the edge of the kingdom of Regulus and that the closest large city is Elivaster, a few days' journey north along the road. Jayse warned her that this road, although patrolled by guards, is not what he would consider safe for a person traveling alone, but Astoria assured him that she could take care of herself.

She decided to get acquainted with the two girls when Jayse said he had to go outside and finish locking up the animal pens for the night. Judy told her a bit about the book she was reading. It was an anthology of tales about the hero Ydris and her adventures all around the world. Apparently, it was a very popular book and everyone in the family had read it so many times that the book's binding was beginning to break. Judy gave her the grand tour of the small house and showed her the girls' bedroom where she would be sleeping that night.

There was even a washroom in the house that had a bathtub. Apparently, filling it was a bit of a task, but they did it every few days by boiling buckets of water from the well and slowly filling it up. They would then take turns using the water while it was still warm before draining it out. There was a plug at the bottom that had a small tube running to beneath the house. Astoria was very impressed that they had a drain system like that.

There was a basin, some cold water in a pitcher and a washcloth in the washroom as well. And she was told that there was an outhouse to the side of the house that she could use. She was happy to be back in civilization where people had bathrooms. It was a reassuring thought that today she would be able to do her business without having to look for leaves and a bush to hide behind.

After some time, the meal was ready. Astoria felt so at home with these people. They were kind and it was just nice to feel safe for the first time since coming to this world. She decided that she wanted to help these people with something before heading to the village. Anything she could do to repay their kindness would make her feel a lot better about taking advantage of their hospitality.

"Thank you again for letting me stay. I literally have nothing to offer you in return, but if there's something you can think of that I can do for you, I'd gladly help." Astoria said to Jayse, while Rodia ladled stew into bowls. Judy took the bowls as they were filled up and placed them around the dining table.

"Well, now that you mention it... how good are you with that bow?" Jayse asked.

Astoria looked down at the steaming bowl of stew in front of her hungrily and answered honestly, "Truthfully? I'm not very good with it yet. Why do you ask?"

"As I mentioned earlier, we have had some trouble with wolves recently. A pack of the beasts have been harassing all of the nearby farms, killing livestock and attacking anything they come across. I've been spending my evenings watching for them from the roof and trying to pick them off here and there, but having a second pair of eyes and another archer would be a great help." His face grew hard and he looked at her seriously, "I won't promise that this will be safe, but if you think you can help it would mean a lot. Also, I think I can give you back your equipment. You seem to be trustworthy."

It meant a lot that Jayse would trust her with her weapons again after such a short time. They really were good people. "I'm probably not going to be much help, but I'll do my best." She gulped, thinking about ravenous giant wolf monsters. Astoria wouldn't let herself chicken out, though. "When do we start?"

"After we finish eating. The best strategy that I've come up with is to go up onto the roof of the house and pick them off from above. They won't be able to get us, and hopefully we will be able to take a few of them out. The footing up there isn't very steady so you will need to be extra careful."

Astoria nodded at his explanation. It made a lot of sense to fight them in this way. "Okay. Sounds like a plan to me."

"We don't have much to offer as payment, but I could pay you a small amount of coin if we can get rid of this threat." Jayse cut the loaf of freshly baked bread and handed thick slices to each of them.

Astoria was excited to hear that she could actually get some money out of this. It would mean that she could even buy some simple items in town perhaps. Before she could open her mouth to thank him for the possible reward, however, a translucent prompt window appeared in her vision.

You have been offered a quest: Predator or Prey?

Jayse and his family have been increasingly having problems with a pack of wolves on their farm. The beasts have been killing livestock and destroying pens to get to the animals. The family asks your help to alleviate this threat to their way of life.

Reward:

• 500 EXP

• Some coin

Do you accept?

Yes / No

Astoria blinked at what she was seeing. She simultaneously selected yes and nodded her agreement to Jayse. She hadn't thought that something like this could pop up as a quest and really hadn't expected it would offer so much experience. She was elated to see that by doing this she could for sure reach level 3. They continued eating and talking about various things. Everything was so unbelievably delicious. It wasn't a complicated or fancy meal but a lot of care had been put into making this. The family had probably grown everything that went into the stew themselves, she supposed. At home, her family was often busy, and home cooked meals were few and far between. After they finished dinner, Aerie and Judy went to bed and Rodia began cleaning up.

Jayse went to a wooden chest by the hallway entrance and unlocked it. Reaching inside, he took out Astoria's belongings and held them out to her. After re-equipping herself, she mentally prepared herself for what was to come.

It was now getting pretty late, but thankfully the moons provided a good amount of dim light to see by. They made their way to the side of the house and climbed up a ladder to get to the roof. There was a steep slant to the roof, and Astoria took care to follow Jayse to get to the proper position. She nocked an arrow to her bow, and the two of them sat on the roof waiting for something to happen.

It wasn't long before she heard a series of howls and saw about a dozen wolves burst out of the tall grass onto the road. They looked about the same as wolves on Earth, except for the fact that they appeared considerably larger. The beasts charged as a coordinated unit toward the chicken pen and began digging and tearing at the wire.

The two of them stood up, and Astoria aimed while pulling the string back and tracking the movement of one of the wolves. She fired her first shot but missed. Taking a deep breath, she tried again and managed to hit it in its torso. The arrow was lodged deep into its flesh, and the wolf let out a yelp as it collapsed to the ground. Shortly after, Jayse scored a hit to the head of another wolf, killing it instantly. Most of the wolves continued tearing and digging at the chicken coop, trying to get to the livestock, but a few of them turned their attention toward the roof. They growled and saliva dripped from their fang filled mouths. Astoria was not at all concerned, however, as she was sure they were safe up on top of the roof of the farmhouse. She nocked and loosed over and over, and after a few minutes there were only five wolves left. Despite the deaths of their compatriots, they were not deterred from their crazed state.

The wolves managed to break through to the chicken coop and three got inside through the hole in the enclosure. The chickens, which had been woken up by the noise, had been in a frenzy the whole time and now they clucked and jumped around in fear as the wolves tore into them. Outside the enclosure, there were only two wolves remaining and they had run to the porch of the house beneath them and were smashing into the door. They were so strong that it shook the house a little as they pounded against it. That was when it happened. Astoria lost her footing and rolled down the thatched roof slamming into the ground ten feet below.

Before Astoria could even get her wits about her, the wolves were charging her. Her arrows had fallen from her quiver and were scattered around her on the ground. Panicked, she grabbed one by the shaft just before one of the wolves jumped on top of her and brought its jaw toward her neck. She blocked with her forearm and she felt as though it was about to snap right off. Her health bar began to drop at a prodigious rate. Using her free hand, she slammed the arrowhead deep into the beast's throat over and over again until it died and the grip on her arm lessened.

That wasn't the end, though, as the other wolf had leapt onto her as well and had its mouth around her ankle. She screamed and kicked it in the head over and over again as she writhed around in pain. Astoria knew that she wouldn’t be able to get help from Jayse. He wouldn’t have a shot from his angle. She was on her own.

The wolf began to drag her backward and she clawed the ground, kicking and screaming as it pulled her. Her arrows were out of reach, and her panic-riddled mind had almost forgotten that she had a dagger strapped to her thigh. She reached down and grabbed it. Her hand was slick with blood, but she managed to keep a firm grip on the hilt as she was dragged. The beast let go of her leg and leapt on top of her, going for her throat in much the same way the last one had. This time, however, she was ready. She plunged the foot long iron dagger up through the roof of its gaping maw and into its brain.

Astoria panted, her breathing ragged and her HP down to 26/180. Reaching into her coat pocket she pulled out her last tiny vial of health potion and downed it quickly. It would take thirty seconds to finish doing its work, but she didn't have time to sit around. Jayse had been yelling for her to climb back up. The three wolves inside the pen had torn through several of the chickens and hadn't yet noticed her, but that couldn't last. Astoria limped over to her bow and quickly scooped up a handful of arrows, shoving them into her quiver. Then she was on her way back to the ladder leading to the roof, but one of the wolves had spotted her and let out a blood curdling howl. The three predators left the chickens to focus on the bigger prey.

"Get up the ladder!" Jayse screamed down at her as he fired off two shots in quick succession. Only one landed, but at least it took the wolf out of the fight. The other two were closing ground fast. She knew she would never make it to the ladder. Instead, she aimed and loosed an arrow, which caught one of the remaining wolves right in the eye. It face-planted into the ground, skidding a few feet as it died. The other wolf leapt at her, and she swung her bow like a baseball bat, smashing it into the beast's head. The wolf shrugged off the attack after a moment and stood just a few feet away, growling and preparing to attack again. Astoria swung her bow again like a club, but this time the wolf caught it in its mouth and split the bow in half.

Astoria yanked the sharp end of the broken bow back and then quickly stabbed it deep into the wolf's throat. It gagged and choked, as the splinters got caught in its throat. Wasting no time at all, while it was choking, she dove onto its back, grappling it to the ground. The wolf thrashed, biting and kicking, but it didn't matter as she had already taken out her dagger again and had it firmly in her grasp. Steel flashed in the moonlight as she plunged it down again and again into the side of the wolf until it lay still.

She had nothing left, her stamina bar nothing more than a sliver and her HP bar showing 63/180. She flopped backward, and before passing out she saw Jayse rushing to her side. “Hang in there, girl! Gods, I’m such a coward! I’m so sorry! Rodia! I need your help!”

The next morning when Astoria awoke, she sat up and looked around wide-eyed, thinking there might be more wolves, but then realized she was in bed. She was surprised to find that she felt fine and her HP was completely restored. She was naked underneath the blanket, but her clothes had been cleaned and were sitting in a neat pile next to the bed. She got up and quickly got dressed. She also noticed a small pouch of coins that was tucked into the pile of her clothes. It contained two silver coins. Notifications blinked in the corner of her vision, but she ignored them for now and went out to the common room. Everyone was there and seemed to be fine.

"Awake already, are you? You had a rough night, but we were able to get you back in good shape. I'm sorry I wasn't more help last night..." Jayse looked down in shame.

"I understand... you have your family to think of. You did everything you could," Astoria reassured him. She didn't want these children to lose their father, and everything had worked out in the end anyway.

"We have some breakfast ready for you," Rodia said, motioning toward the table, where a bowl of what looked like oatmeal was sitting. "We talked and we want you to know that you're welcome to stay with us for as long as you want. But if you insist on continuing your journey, then I won't let you leave without at least eating first." She smiled and gave her a look that said that she meant it.

Astoria thanked her and sat down to eat. Even though oatmeal was not her favorite thing, she was glad to have any food at all and knew that she could not afford to be picky. They continued with small-talk while eating and she found that, despite nearly dying last night while fighting those wolves, it felt good that she had been able to help them with their problem.

"We lost about a dozen chickens last night, but at least the problem has been dealt with," Jayse said while continuing to shovel oatmeal into his mouth. Apparently, he had a lot of work to do around the farm and had to start soon. While she finished up her breakfast, Astoria decided to go through her notifications.

Notifications You have gained 640 EXP for defeating 8 wolves. Congratulations! Your archery skill has increased to level 2! You have completed the quest: Predator or Prey?

Reward:

• 500 EXP

• 2 Silver Coins Congratulations! You have reached levels 3, 4, and 5! You have gained 18 attribute points to distribute.

Wow! I can’t believe I went up three whole levels for just a night’s work! The bad news, of course, was that her clothes were torn in several places and her bow was broken. There was nothing to be done about it though.

Considering the fact that she was leaning toward using bows and daggers, she decided that it would be wise to increase her endurance, agility and dexterity some more. She allocated three points into each. More health is also important, so she placed two points into vitality. Luck might help her in subtle but useful ways as well, so she placed one point into the attribute.

She saved the remaining six points. Having some points available for a rainy day sounded like a good idea, and who could say when she would level again. She looked over her status screen. Her stats were really coming along nicely now. "I'm going to head into town now. I just want to thank you guys for everything you've done for me. If you need my help in the future and if I'm still in this area, just seek me out and I will do whatever I can to help." She smiled and stood up to go to the door.

"One second, we have one more thing we want to give you." Jayse stood up from the table and went into his room. He came back out holding a bow in his hand, as well as a bundle of arrows in the other that was tied together with twine. "This is my old bow. It isn't much, but it is better than the one you had been using. I thought you could use it since yours is broken." He held the items out to her and she accepted them gratefully. The arrows were of the same basic sort she already had taken from the goblin. She examined the bow.

Common Short Bow • Quality: Average

• Durability: 45/48

Just as she would've expected of the gruff old farmer; it had been taken care of well. It was definitely an improvement over the beat up goblin bow she had been using. Asoria said farewell to the kind farmer and his family. She would always love and miss her own family despite all of their problems, but she couldn't help but look forward to her new life here. This is living. I've wanted adventure my whole life, and I finally get to live my fantasies instead of daydreaming about them. She shouldered her new bow and began the journey down the dirt road toward the unknown adventures that would surely be in her future.

Spoiler: Astoria's Stats Name Astoria Level 005 (1370/2251 EXP to next Level) Class None HP 210/210 MP 150/150 AP 6 Attributes Vitality 14 Magic 10 Endurance 15 Magic Resistance 10 Strength 10 Luck 7 Agility 14 Dexterity 13 Abilities • Kleptomancy Skills

• Archery - Level 2 (13% toward next level)