These five years for Jake and his friends were nothing but a rigorous training routine, from 5:00 in the morning to dinner; they hustled more and more.

    "Today is the last day of your training," Reynold said as he led them inside the forest.

    This time the group didn''t have any playfulness on their faces; instead, they were all calm and composed. Even Jimmy wasn''t joking about anything as the group followed after Reynold and Tom.

    They were no longer kids; in Celestaria, one becomes an adult at 12 years, the same age as their core matures completely. Jake and his friends now looked like 20-year-old teenagers from Jake''s previous world.

    Jake had black hair and purple eyes, with a lean but muscular build. His right hand was coiled by wooden chains with a short sword on its end.

    Emily had long blonde hair, chestnut-colored eyes, and a perfect slim figure, with a bow in her hands. She was a combination of beauty and power.

    Jimmy had blonde hair, chestnut-colored eyes, a muscular but lean build, and a long sword on his back.

    Mark had black hair, blue eyes, and a tall, flexible physique, with a spear in his hand.

    "Today is also your graduation day, which means a test to see if you are all ready or not," Tom smiled as he said.

    Soon the group reached a clearing inside the forest, where they saw four magical beasts chained.

    Jake and his group gulped as they saw the big monsters in front of them.

    "These are E RANK mana beasts: a striped panther, a gale hawk, a drill mole, and lastly a spinoraptor. Each of these mana beasts is specifically selected for all of you," Reynold said as he introduced the mana beasts to them.

    "Master Rey, Master Tom, are you saying we are going to fight them?" Mark asked, looking at the giant mole, clearly intended for him.

    "No, you are not going to fight them," Tom shook his head and said.

    Mark and others breathed in relief, while Jake felt disappointed until...

    "You are all going to kill them, or we won''t let you leave the village," Tom said, smiling, but his smile sent chills down their spines.

    "Okay, first is Emily, and don''t worry, we won''t intervene, at least not until you are all on the verge of death," Reynold said as he broke the chain of Gale Hawk, which quickly tried to fly away until a pressure descended on him. "Fight with them, and you are free," Tom said, looking at the Gale Hawk.

    The bright green hawk, with a wide wingspan, fixed its gaze on Tom for a moment before shifting its focus to a blonde-haired female.

    Emily, undeterred, calmly readied her wooden bow, now adorned with glowing runes. She aimed at the eagle, tapping a blue rune. A blue arrow pulsating with a greenish hue materialized on the bow. Pulling the strings, she aimed at the Gale Hawk and released it. The arrow shot towards the majestic bird, but with a slight tilt of its body, the hawk skillfully dodged the projectile.@@@@

    Tom nodded seeing Mark all ready and broke the chain, freeing the Spinoraptor.

    The raptor quickly rolled itself into a ball with full spikes and rushed... rolled towards Mark.

    Mark kept dodging against the relentless assault of the Raptor again and again.

    After a moment when the raptor was rolling towards him, Mark smirked and stepped aside. The raptor''s spikes got embedded into himself into the giant tree; it struggled to break free but dropped lifeless the next moment.

    The moment it became embedded into the tree, Mark arrived near him and tapped on the white rune, causing his spear to glow in silvery light, and he pierced the heart of the Spinoraptor with it, ending its life.

    Jake and others applauded after Mark finished its opponent. Mark smiled and bowed in their direction.

    "Next is Jake vs. Drill Mole," Tom said as Jake came and stood in his position, his eyes locked onto the Drill Mole.

    Drill Mole is a metal and earth attribute mana beast; they burrow underground and prey on unsuspecting beasts or humans.

    Tom nodded seeing Jake ready and broke the chain, freeing the Drill Mole. The moment it was freed, it burrowed underground.

    Everyone became quiet as they focused on their surroundings. Jake smiled slightly and started walking slowly.

    TAP, TAP, TAP.

    His slow rhythmic tapping sound echoed in the area. As Jake walked, he suddenly jumped high in the air and then pointed his right hand where he stood moments ago, with Jake pointing the Chained Dagger. It seemed to come to life as it shot towards Jake''s pointed target.

    The moment it was inches away from touching the ground, a hole appeared, and Drill Mole poked his head outside of it only for his head to get pierced by the Dagger of the Chained Dagger.

    Jake yanked and pulled his chain along with the 3-meter big Mole.

    Tom and Reynold nodded approvingly, while his friends applauded.

    "Hmm, Jake, how did you know it was coming?" Jimmy asked, and Emily and Mark chuckled at him.

    "Tch, acting like you all know how he did it," Jimmy clicked his tongue and grumbled.

    "He baited it; Jake walked for some distance and then stopped, and he then jumped silently. The mole thought Jake is still there, so he attacked but got killed instead," Reynold smiled and explained to Jimmy.

    Unlike his friends, Jimmy is a straightforward guy who likes to solve his problems with fists rather than brains.