Mamadou had just left Mount Meru and had set out in search of the first stele.

It was the first time in quite a while that he had left Mount Meru. He had become strong, and now he wanted to test himself immediately.

It would be a good thing if I ran into them.

Mamadou thought as he swung from tree to tree.

Normally, he would have avoided them, but since the place he was heading toward now happened to coincide with their territory, he figured he could kill two birds with one stone by confronting them.

After leaving the mountain, memories of the first time he had fled came rushing back.

Terrified of the Ark Monkeys, he had run away without looking back.

But some time later, he had been attacked by a snake. Thinking back on it now, he had come close to death countless times.

I really adapted well to this place.

He finally arrived at his destination.

A cave.

Vegetation had completely taken over the area. He stood at the entrance, his senses reassuring him from the moment he arrived that there was nothing inside.

It was still daytime, so he decided to inspect his old home.

He stepped inside.

"???"

Well, I more or less expected it wouldn’t be the way I left it, but this isn’t what I imagined.

Mamadou had left this place in a hurry. Although he had hidden the weapons he had carved, the same could not be said for everything else.

He felt as though he had been robbed.

The place was as empty as it had been on the very first day. The only traces of his passage were the writings carved directly into the cave walls and the claw marks scattered across the stone.

Damn.

He walked toward the center and began digging, but he found nothing.

"Even the stone heads of my weapons are gone."

Mamadou knew very well who was responsible. He simply found it inconceivable.

Those goblins, I don’t understand them. They looted my hiding place, and if that were all, it would be fine.

After all, they know how to use tools, so it’s normal for them to use weapons.

But the tablets?

What use could those things possibly have for them?

Or did they just take everything at random?

When Mamadou had decided to live here, he had started carving stone tablets to record his memories. It was a way to remind himself of his objectives, to preserve useful information, and above all, to never forget who he was.

But the goblins—assuming it really was them—had taken everything.

Everything?

He was quite certain of it since he had carved many tablets.

There’s no point staying here.

I still remember where their camp was. I’ll go take a look.

He left his former shelter behind.

This part of the forest was now teeming with monsters.

He encountered Austral Frogs, Nocyris Snakes, and many others.

He killed several of them. Even though his level did not increase, he felt as though something was changing, even if only at a negligible rate.

He knew he was close when he reached the place where he had killed his first goblin.

"I’m almost there!"

Mamadou reduced his speed as he approached the monsters’ lair, but the closer he got, the more he felt that something was wrong.

He ultimately decided not to hide and simply head straight there.

Am I becoming reckless, or is it really because I need to see what I’m worth now?

He focused and walked forward.

It did not take long for him to understand why he felt something was off.

Where there should have been a goblin colony, there was nothing.

One would have expected that after all this time their numbers would have doubled.

Instead, they had vanished.

As he stared at the deserted area, he wondered what had happened.

Did they migrate somewhere else?

He found no footprints, which led him to believe that the goblins had left this place quite some time ago.

As he continued his inspection, he discovered an area he had not noticed during his previous visit.

It was a fairly large clearing.

The place had clearly been used for something, but because so much time had passed, he could no longer determine what.

There are no traces of battle over there.

And none here either.

So they really migrated.

But why?

According to the old monkey, the territories around Mount Meru should be relatively peaceful.

Why would they want to leave?

If his explanation was correct, the deeper one ventured into the wilderness, the stronger and more dangerous the monsters became.

Or did they move in the opposite direction?

But that would be dangerous too.

There’s no point speculating.

Since they’ve left, if we’re destined to meet again someday, we will.

Just as Mamadou was about to leave, a noise alerted him.

He immediately went on guard.

In one hand, he gripped Osbone.

In the other, he held a stone axe with a wooden handle.

It was something he had prepared specifically for this occasion.

When he turned around, he discovered it was only a mole.

He sighed and approached.

The mole immediately fled.

Something caught his attention where the mole had been moments earlier.

It was a stone.

A stone?

No.

It’s a carved stone.

He approached the object.

It was shaped like a tablet.

A bad feeling crept over him.

He lifted it.

The back of the tablet was anything but ordinary.

He exhaled slowly.

Then he turned the tablet over.

His brows furrowed instantly.

It was something Mamadou understood.

Something he recognized.

After all, he had spent a large portion of his time writing and carving words into stone.

He carved down everything that crossed his mind, but above all, he recorded his objective.

He did so in his own language.

Mamadou wrote in English.

And on this stone, two words had been carved in English.

Return! Revenge.

There were so many questions these words raised.

Who had carved them?

Were they intended for him?

What meaning lay behind them?

And why were they here?

The engraving was not in his handwriting.

The words looked slightly childish.

That allowed him to discard the possibility that it was one of his own carvings made while in some altered state.

This engraving belonged to someone else.