Monkey Evolution

Chapter 16: Hunted

Mamadou moved quickly through the forest. He had not taken the time to prepare any more than that.

"I think I caught them off guard. Even if they found where I live, I doubt they know I can move through the trees."

Since he was using his climbing abilities and monkey agility to jump and travel from tree to tree, he had not been able to take as much as he had planned—just his axe and a knife. It had to be said that he had left in a panic.

Oro and his troop had spotted Mamadou the moment he fled and immediately gave chase. Oro was certain it was Mamadou.

When he had been informed of a place that seemed unusual, he had come personally to investigate. In the middle of that area was a cave, a cave sealed with branches tied together by roots and vines.

He immediately knew he had found his target.

He stationed some of his men nearby to observe the creature’s movements.

Elite goblins remained hidden there and eventually identified the creature. When Oro learned what it was, he was disappointed at first.

A monkey would not give him the fight of his life.

If that monkey had survived this long, it was certainly because of the tools it used. And if it had killed goblins, it was undoubtedly thanks to the element of surprise.

And he was right.

Under these circumstances, he could not simply give up. He decided to hunt the creature and test it. After all, it had devoured his kin. It had to die. Once that was done, he would prepare the goblins’ migration.

So Oro decided to test the monkey’s reaction—or rather, its intelligence.

After making sure the monkey was inside, he remained hidden until he was certain his prey was there. Then he threw the axe they had recovered earlier, destroying what served as the monkey’s door.

Thanks to the monkey’s reaction, Oro confirmed his suspicions.

Most creatures would have fled immediately.

But this monkey reacted differently.

Cautiously, it emerged from its hideout and checked the surroundings.

Oro and the goblins he had brought remained hidden, so the monkey had no way of discovering where the attack had come from.

Even then, the monkey should have fled immediately afterward.

Instead, it went back into its cave and came out carrying strange tools.

There was no longer any doubt in the goblin chief’s mind.

"That bastard is intelligent. He knows what he’s doing."

If the monkey was intelligent, then targeting the goblins had been deliberate.

Oro felt his blood boil—not with anger, but with excitement.

"It’s a shame he’s so weak."

The monkey emerged with its tools and immediately began to flee.

Oro admired its quick reaction.

Then he gave the order to attack.

The hunt had begun.

Since the monkey displayed unusual behavior, he had not anticipated that it would travel by leaping from tree to tree.

"It doesn’t matter. Track him."

"Yes..." the goblins answered in unison as they emerged from hiding.

"Even if he’s alone, there might be more of them. If we can kill them all, we won’t have to worry about food."

A total of twenty goblins emerged.

Five carried axes similar to the one Mamadou had made, though theirs appeared much cruder. The others wielded spears fashioned from sharpened poles.

The goblins were ready to hunt a monkey.

They moved swiftly through the forest.

The goblin chief had excellent eyesight. From a great distance, he spotted where the monkey was and grabbed a spear from one of his subordinates before throwing it.

The spear embedded itself in a tree, narrowly missing Mamadou.

Mamadou lost his balance and fell.

He immediately got back up and looked behind him.

Nothing.

But he could feel the vibrations in the ground.

Something was approaching.

"Already?"

He knew the goblins were after him, but he had not expected them to be this fast.

He hated the feeling of being hunted.

He was clearly the prey, and he had to stay alert in case something other than the goblins came after him.

He began running again in an erratic pattern.

Sometimes he sprinted across the forest floor.

Other times he used vines to swing from tree to tree.

He had doubted his acrobatic abilities before, but his desire to survive had pushed him so far beyond his limits that it felt as though he had awakened a natural talent.

Time passed, yet he felt unable to shake the goblins.

Whenever they got close, stones and spears flew at him.

He managed to dodge them at the last moment, just as he had done against the frog.

He had the impression that the goblins were trying to wear down his stamina.

So whenever they got close, he increased his speed.

And whenever he managed to widen the gap, he rested.

Of course, those rests were only brief pauses to catch his breath.

"I can’t keep this up."

Although Mamadou had decided to relocate, his plans had not included a chase like this.

To make matters worse, the goblins seemed to be playing with him.

They were numerous and had a much better grasp of the terrain.

"Sadistic creatures. What do they gain from chasing a single prey for this long?"

On top of that, they possessed dangerous tools.

No matter how high his Fatigue Resistance level was, ignoring fatigue did not make the problem disappear.

He needed to find a solution quickly.

The only way for me to survive is to lose them.

But recently, I haven’t been able to do that.

That only leaves finding a safe place.

If I could hide somewhere and wait for them to leave, I could survive. freёwebnovel.com

But where is that safe place?

How am I supposed to find it?

With the goblins on his heels, it was difficult to think of a specific location.

What was the safest place he knew?

Mamadou pondered the question.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him.

As far as he knew, most monsters and animals in the area were territorial.

Even the goblins would not enter another group’s territory without preparation.

Furthermore, the group chasing him appeared intelligent.

And what was the place with the largest group Mamadou knew of?

The mountain.

For the first time since arriving in this world, Mamadou was grateful for the existence of his fellow monkeys.

At last, he had something resembling a solution.

All he had to do was change direction and head there.