In the depths of the cave, the flickering firelight silently danced on the stone walls, casting eerie shadows. The large goblin's breath was heavy and uneven. With each breath, a muffled wheeze echoed, as though his lungs were being torn apart by pain. The smaller goblins huddled in the corners, trembling with fear, their bodies pressed close together. Seeing the fear in their eyes only tightened my chest further.

  The large goblin slowly turned his head toward me. His eyes were tired, but there was a deep yearning in them, as if he wanted to convey something. His lips parted, and his voice reverberated through the stone walls of the cave:

  "Raulo... Alvis."

  My breath caught in my throat.

  I knew this name. It was written on the old, faded paper I found in the golem room on the 0th floor. The experimentation rooms, goblin bones... Pieces began to fall into place in my mind. Raulo Alvis. This name... was a harbinger of something terrible.

  The large goblin struggled to continue:

  "He... killed the goblins."

  My heart nearly leapt out of my chest. The large goblin's voice trembled, but he pressed on:

  "The goblins, the experiments..."

  "I am strong... I am the experiment..."

  This sentence struck me like a hammer. My blood froze.

  Was the large goblin an experiment?

  At that moment, I understood why he was so much bigger and stronger than the others. The small goblins living in this cave were not ordinary. They might not even have been born this way. The large goblin was their leader because he had saved them.

  "I survived..." he said. His voice cracked.

  "They are the small goblins..."

  Slowly, he hit his knee with one of his massive hands, as if he was punishing himself.

  "I took them... and escaped..."

  At that moment, I struggled to breathe. This massive creature was not just a leader. He was the one who had saved them, their only hope. He had spared them from death and torture.

  "The big one helped," he said, his eyes drifting far away.

  But... who was the big one?

  "The big one is like you..."

  "The big one is strong... The big one is good..."

  Hearing this, a strange feeling settled in me. Another person had come here before, and had helped these goblins escape.

  Who was that?

  Were they still alive?

  Or had they...

  Thoughts echoed in my mind, questions followed one another.

  But then the large goblin's voice pulled me back to reality:

  "There are no special medicines," he said, his eyes half-closed now.

  "So I will die soon..."

  My heart shattered.

  Not being able to help him...

  Not being able to save him...

  Despite all my strength and knowledge, not finding a way to save him...

  The helplessness inside me grew.

  But he reached out to me with trembling hands and grasped my arm with his fingers.

  "Human..." he whispered, his voice barely audible now.

  "Become stronger..."

  These words stunned me.

  He had accepted his end.

  But he wanted me to survive.

  He wanted me to watch over the little goblins.

  He wanted me to become stronger in this cursed tower.

  He wanted more from me than I had ever expected.

  "I... sleep..." he said finally.

  And closed his eyes.

  He took a long, deep breath. His chest rose once, then fell. His breathing slowed...

  And silence fell over the cave.

  Even the crackling of the fire seemed to be hushed in respect. The little goblins silently watched their leader fall into sleep, quietly crying. For them, crying was perhaps not natural, but tears were streaming from their eyes.

  I, however, knelt on the cold stone floor, trembling hands gripping tightly, and simply watched.

  He was sleeping... but I didn't know when he would wake up.

  At that moment, I realized:

  There was no turning back now.

  These goblins... they were now my responsibility.

  This cave... had become my home.

  And Raulo Alvis...

  My priority was my mother's health, but if I came across any clues about Raulo Alvis on this path, I promised I would pursue him.

  To understand what had happened.

  To solve why these goblins were here.

  And perhaps... to completely upheave this cursed tower.

  I silently stood up. I looked at the dying embers of the fire. Then I glanced one last time at the large goblin.

  "I promise," I said, my voice cracking.

  "I will burn this tower to the ground."

  Hours passed slowly.

  When I entered the cave, the fear that had once consumed me had turned into reality. My heart was pounding wildly, and my steps grew heavier on the cold stone floor. The embers of the fire had long since died, and the cave had fallen into a cold, silent void.

  I knew that silence.

  When I reached the corner where the large goblin had laid, my eyes involuntarily welled up. He wasn't breathing. His chest wasn't rising or falling.

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  He was already gone.

  The sudden pain that pierced my heart made me drop to my knees. I had been with him for almost two months. We didn’t talk much, but his presence alone had been reassuring. Sometimes, we would sit by the fire, silently. When the little goblins fell asleep, he was always alert—watching over them, protecting them.

  And now, that protector was gone.

  I bowed my head. I was sad. But the voice inside me told me that this wasn’t enough.

  Being sad wouldn’t bring him back.

  When I turned around, I saw the little goblins. They were all there, their heads bowed, waiting silently. There were no tears in their eyes, but I could feel their broken hearts. The one who had protected them, guided them, the one they had laughed and cried with, was gone. How would they bear that loss with their tiny bodies?

  As I looked at them, I made my decision.

  I rolled up my sleeves. Moving the large goblin’s massive body out of the cave wouldn’t be easy, but I wasn’t alone. The little goblins helped without hesitation. Their bodies were small, but their hearts were immense.

  It took hours. We were drenched in sweat, but no one stopped. Each one knew what the weight of this burden meant.

  Finally, we reached an opening near the shore of the lake.

  We began digging into the earth.

  With our hands, with stones, with whatever we could find... Our fingers became sore, our nails cracked in the soil, but we never stopped. Because this was his right.

  When we finished his grave, my heart grew heavy again. As I laid him in the earth, I closed my eyes and silently prayed.

  Then I opened the small leather pouch at my waist and took out the flint I had used when we first lit the fire.

  The first spark he had ignited with his hands. That moment was unforgettable.

  I slowly placed the flint on top of the grave. This was our fire. Our first light.

  Seeing this, the little goblins one by one brought items they had found in the cave and placed them on the grave. Stones, bones, pieces of wood, and even some dried fruits they had gathered.

  Perhaps they didn’t fully understand what they were doing. But imitating me seemed to give them a sense that things could get better.

  In that moment, I understood.

  The big goblin was gone, yes. But his legacy, his spirit, lived on here. In every movement of the little goblins, in their every effort... In their desire to protect.

  I adjusted the grave one last time. My hands were covered in mud, but I didn’t care.

  I raised my head and looked at the sky.

  “I promise you,” I whispered. “I will look after them.”

  When the sun peeked through the clouds, we all sat silently by the grave. One of the little goblins moved closer to me. With trembling hands, it held my arm.

  This was their way of mourning.

  And now, I was a part of them.

  We remained silent for a long time.

  The sky was filled with pale sunlight filtering through the clouds, but the weight in my heart wouldn’t go away. The little goblins, their eyes narrowed, heads bowed, waited by the grave. The silence was only broken by the gentle ripple of the water hitting the riverbank.

  My heart was shattered.

  But I knew that standing here and mourning wouldn’t change anything.

  The big goblin’s last words echoed in my mind:

  “Human, grow stronger...”

  He had wanted to protect his people until his last moment. And now, I couldn’t afford the luxury of grieving. I had to make them strong.

  I slowly stood up. My fingers were still stained with soil, but I didn’t care. My eyes were still filled with tears, but I wouldn’t let them fall anymore. The big goblin’s legacy lived here, in these small hearts.

  I stood up, took a deep breath, and turned to the little goblins. My voice was shaky, but my determination was clear.

  “No more mourning!” I shouted. My voice echoed through the caves. The goblins raised their heads. The sadness in their eyes was replaced by surprise.

  “Let’s make sure we make the big goblin proud.”

  Despite the pain in my chest, I raised my fist in the air. Unshakably.

  “We’ll work hard! We’ll be stronger!”

  For a moment, there was silence. The little goblins looked at each other. Tears were still flowing from their eyes, but one — the tiny goblin that had first tried to touch the fire — looked at me and raised its small fist in the air.

  Then another. And another. One by one, they stood up. Despite their small bodies, they raised their fists in the air and joined me.

  And then... together, they shouted:

  “GOB!”

  Their voices echoed through the forest. That single word cried out by the little bodies felt like the rebirth of a community.

  In that moment, my eyes filled with tears again, but this time the pain in those tears had lessened.

  “Now go back to the cave!” I said. “Light the fire!”

  They didn’t fully understand my words, but they had learned my gestures, my tone. They were beginning to understand me.

  They all ran toward the cave quickly. I could hear their footsteps echoing on the stone floor, and even small laughs. The little sparks were returning.

  But I remained at the grave. Something was missing.

  I walked to the riverbank. The reflection of my face in the water looked tired and worn out. But that didn’t matter. I had to do more.

  I took a long, flat stone from the riverbank. It was cold. Whether my hands were trembling or the stone’s coldness was freezing my insides, I couldn’t tell.

  I drew my dagger from my belt. As the sharp tip touched the surface of the stone, I held my breath.

  I began to carve slowly.

  For each letter, each line, I left a piece of my heart.

  It took a long time. My fingers hurt, but I didn’t stop.

  On the stone, in trembling and deep letters, I carved these words:

  “Memory of the Great Goblin”

  I placed the stone at the head of the grave. The place where his hands had sparked the first flame.

  Then I took a few steps back. I watched the stone. And I bowed my head.

  “Rest in peace.”

  I closed my eyes and took a deep breath toward the sky. My heart still ached, but a new flame was burning inside me. That flame belonged not only to me but to the little community behind me.

  I was now their leader.

  And no matter what it cost, I would protect them.

  When I opened my eyes, I faced something I had been waiting to see for a long time.

  “Finally...”

  [Requirements Met…]