It was the last day. Their last chance. Their final opportunity for the battle training. They had failed again the day before. Crushed by the Tree Monster King.

  Jack, Reina, and Rune again materialized in the battle zone. The Trentree Warriors, grim-faced and weary, battled the endless tide of tree-monsters. Their fiery crimson eyes and powerful long limbs were all utilized in their optimized state. Aimed at their opponents.

  The newcomer trio plunged into the fray. Their movements were sharp and precise. Almost mechanical in their effectiveness and efficiency. They were already pretty experienced in battle now.

  They carved a path through the lesser monsters. Reacting and taking initiative as one solid unit. Almost as if they had already been anticipating every move.

  Then... the illuminated monsters came. Fewer in number than the common tree monsters. But much more potent in danger. These creatures should have been already out of their league. But the trio, with perfect cooperation and great assistance from the Trentree Warriors, managed to dispatch these creatures. Although it was not that easily.

  Jack's rapid change of his kamaitachi and rakshasa forms became a hurricane of destruction. Reina's bullets ripped through weak points Jack exposed. Rune danced around them. A beacon of misdirection with incredible timing.

  They did it again. They cleaned up the last obstacles leading to the final challenge.

  Then, the ground groaned. The earth convulsed. A shadow fell over the battlefield. Deeper than any natural cloud. Larger than all the survivors combined into one. The Monster King arose.

  It seemed to be more terrifying than they remembered. A colossal monstrosity. Its ancient branches scraped the sky. Its roots cracked the very ground beneath them.

  Its hundreds of vines lashed out in lightning fast strike. And each was as thick as a tree trunk. Capable of smashing the entire squads of Trentree warriors into pulp.

  "Survive, Love!" Jack yelled. His rakshasa form was already shifting into Kamaitachi. "Hold on as long as possible. That's the goal!"

  Reina nodded. Her face was set in a grim mask. "Understood, Dear."

  They didn't try to fight it. It was impossible. The monster king was on sanctified stage. The 'Demigod' stage. Two full stages above their current level. For them, it was an engine of pure destruction.

  They had discussed it before. Their strategy shifted entirely to evasion. Jack abandoned his human form. He flitted between only two forms. The kamaitachi with the super speed to evade and prevent them from being crushed. And the rakshasa whose strength was used only to clear debris or deflect attacks.

  Reina had saved enough mana to keep herself safe for a while. She was a blur of teleportation whenever danger approached her. Appearing a good distance away from where titanic vines had just smashed.

  Her guns, illusion, and fog magic were silent now. All of her remaining mana went to danger perception and teleportation. She was in survival focused mode.

  Rune zipped around. She was the least pressured among them. Her size, movement speed, and danger sense made her almost impossible to hit. Even in the previous attempt, she was only ejected from the battle zone because Jack, her bound master, was killed.

  The three survived, But the Trentree Warriors around them were being annihilated rapidly. These tribal characters fought valiantly. But they were being crushed. The battlefield quickly became a ruin of splattered blood, broken bones, mangled flesh, and dying cries.

  The trio, however, were still moving. Still breathing. Still pushing their honed skills to the absolute limit.

  A massive root, like a serpent made of gnarled wood, slammed down where Reina had been a split second before. The ground cracked open.

  She reappeared several meters away. Panting. Not completely uninjured. The shockwave of the attack still affected her. A thin trickle of blood from her lip. But she was whole.

  Jack, in his kamaitachi form, darted under a sweeping branch. The powerful wind of its passage ruffled his fur and threw him off balance. But he quickly controlled it.

  He saw Rune barely avoid being ensnared by a cluster of thorns. This was helplessness. There was no fighting this. Only existing. And they were good at existing now.

  They evaded. They dodged. They ran. They survived. Seconds stretched into minutes. Minutes felt like hours...

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  The Monster King was a force of nature. It continued its rampage. But it could not land a decisive blow on the three tenacious figures.

  But that was not the case with the native tribe combatants. Their number now dwindles drastically. Only few of them still managed to move and survive.

  Then... a shift came. A tremor in the air. Not from the monster. But from something else.

  A profound, crushing pressure descended upon the battlefield. A single point of gravity. Impossibly intense. It appeared straight above the Monster King's head.

  The gigantic treant roared. A sound of agony and disbelief. Its movements slowed. Then they stopped. Its titanic mass began to compress. To fold in on itself.

  Bark splintered. Roots snapped like dry twigs. Vines withered and curled inward. The hill-sized entity, the Monster King, was being crushed. By an invisible, unbearable weight.

  Then, he appeared. Bonebrother. He manifested above them. A silent, imposing figure. His bone armor seemed to absorb the pain and fear from the survivors.

  The powerhouse character radiated an aura of absolute command. He simply stood there. One hand was raised. And the Monster King that was previously the unbeatable horror... was effortlessly suppressed.

  And the gigantic monstrosity finally imploded. Collapsing into a small, charred crater. Leaving behind only dust and silence.

  Jack was panting. His kamaitachi form was still in its battle stance. Watching the destruction with mixed expression.

  Reina was kneeling nearby. Staring at the empty place where the horrifying monster had been a few seconds ago with wide eyes.

  Rune hovered in place not far away. Glowing with a frantic, relieved turquoise color.

  The battle had ended. Not by their hands. But by the intervention of a god-like character.

  Bonebrother looked at them. His voice vibrated through the air. Low and steady. "You survived. You learned. You improved. You adapted."

  He made a gesture of respect. "You passed. The training is complete."

  They passed. A wave of profound relief washed over Jack. Momentarily eclipsing the phantom aches and the lingering trauma. They had done it. They had survived the training trial and emerged stronger.

  ...

  The transition was instantaneous. One moment, the world around them was a messed up desolation caused by a great battle. The next, their surrounding was a calm place filled with lush trees and vibrant plants.

  They were back in the Trentree Sanctuary.

  Jack felt his body shift back. The light, built-for-speed form of his kamaitachi incarnation broke into pieces like fragile glass. He was human again.

  He looked down at his hands. The phantom pain was there. But the blood, the grime, and the real internal injuries were gone. His energy reserves had been scraped bone-dry during the final stand. But it now surged back to full capacity.

  It was some kind of a hard reset provided by the trial's conclusion.

  Beside him, Reina let out a long, relieved breath. Her long black hair, previously messy and stained with sweat and dust, fell perfectly down her back. Her beautiful face showed clean, fair skin. Untainted by grime and blood.

  The projection of Bonebrother was still standing before them. Unmoving like a holographic statue carved from a nightmare.

  "You survived." He repeated. "The first ones to complete the training while still being in enhanced transcendent stage."

  Jack opened his mouth to ask many questions he wanted to ask. About the other people who completed the same training with them. About the invasion and the monsters. About the reason he left a piece of his consciousness in this sanctuary. About the reason he placed the gate to this spatial realm in an undersea trench...

  But, before a single word could escape, Bonebrother made a sharp gesture. "Take your rewards." He stated.

  A heavy wooden chest materialized on the grass between them. Bound in weathered bronze. And etched with leaf patterns.

  "Wait..." Jack started.

  But, Bonebrother didn't wait. The projection flickered once. And then, it turned into a pillar of pale light. Before vanishing completely.

  The sanctuary was suddenly felt very quiet. Save for the faint hum of the floating Rune. And the sound of the leaves swaying in the breeze.

  "Oh, come on!" Jack grumbled. Rubbing his neck. "There are still many things I want to ask."

  Reina stepped closer. "At least we get a reward for passing the training, Dear. Just now... I truly thought that we'd fail again."

  "Me too, Love. Me too." Jack kicked the chest lightly. "Let's see if the pay was worth the pain."

  He activated his [Eyes of Judgement]. His vision blurred for a second before sharp, glowing sets of information began to flash into his field of vision. Introducing the items inside the chest, as he flipped the lid open.

  The first thing he saw was a pouch made of organic silk. He took the pouch and opened it. Inside were several dozen seeds that looked like polished emeralds.

  [Name: Seeds of Ancient Fruit Trees]

  [Grade: Epic]

  [Durability: ??? (dependent on soil quality)]

  [Special Ability: Rapid Growth, Mystical Properties]

  [Description: These are the dormant essences of the ancient Trentree's primary life support. When planted in high-quality soil, they grow into mature trees within weeks rather than decades. The fruits produced possess concentrated life energy capable of healing severe physical injuries, cleansing deep-seated toxins or impurities from the body, and instantly restoring large amounts of supernatural energy.]

  Jack whistled.

  "Emergency rations and med kits that grow on trees. Not bad." He commented after he explained the description to Reina.

  Reina reached in. Picking up one of the emerald seeds. She held it up to the light. "The energy inside seems dense. But we have a problem, Dear."

  She looked at Jack. "We can try planting this back home. But Lonestone City is... well, it’s a city. Even the Garden District has that layer of soot from the steam-industries. If we plant these in our backyard, they might choke on the fumes before they sprout. It would be a waste of epic grade resources."

  "I agree." Jack said. Looking at the seeds. "They need pure air and high-mana soil. Lonestone's ground is not good enough. We'll need to hold onto these until we find a better spot. Or make one."

  He reached back into the chest and pulled out the next reward... a heavy tome. The cover was made of a strange, flexible wood that felt like leather. The titles were written in a hieroglyph-like script that they fortunately could understand.

  It was in Ancient Trentree Language. It could be read as... The Book of Dancing Principles.

  "The book of dancing principles?" Jack raised an eyebrow. "What the hell is this? Trying to turn me into a ballet dancer?"