...

Boom!

Arthur and Molton didn't take long to arrive at their destination and immediately witnessed an intense battle of two Monster Beasts ahead of them. And when the two of them saw that, they quickly took cover behind the dense bush nearby.

"What kind of beasts are those?" muttered Molton when saw them.

One of those two monster beasts was a huge lizard with crimson scales on its hind and spreading through to its arms. Meanwhile, the scales under it had a golden color as it spread from its jaw running all the way to its belly and up until the tip of its tail.

Its razor-sharp claws were leaving deep scratches on the ground. There were also some flames coming out from its mouth as it breathed in and out.

Seeing this particular monster beast, Arthur couldn't help but blurt out due to his excitement. "Is that a dragon?"

Hearing that, Molton slightly knitted his brow before replying. "It's just like an overgrown lizard to me."

Naturally, Arthur was able to discover it too after taking a closer look at it. And because of that, he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. "Too bad."

After that, they shifted their gazes towards the other monster beast which had the appearance of a huge fox with furs as white as snow.

"What a beautiful creature," muttered Molton unconsciously as he couldn't move his eyes away from the white fox.

"Unfortunately, it is still a vicious monster that can eat you alive at any given moment," commented Arthur from the side, pulling his junior brother back to reality.

Then they continued to observe for a couple of moments to understand more what was currently happening. And from their spots, they could see how the two monster beasts fought.

The so-called overgrown lizard was breathing out fire towards the white fox, burning all of the fallen trees on its path. But before it could even burn them into coal, a gentle breeze of wind and snowflakes put the fire out before creating cold vapors lingering in the air.

"So, that's what happened," muttered Arthur after seeing that scene.

They continued to observe the fight for a few more moments before Arthur told Molton to investigate the surroundings. "Given the abilities of those two beasts, both of them can't be here. This is supposedly not their territory."

"If I'm not wrong, those two are lured here by something or someone purposely," he added while squinting his eyes, surveying their surroundings.

"Fellow candidates?" asked Molton with a knitted brow after hearing that.

But the idea was immediately denied by Arthur. "That shouldn't be the case. Given the timing of our arrival, it is impossible for the other candidates to do this."

He trailed his words a little and looked again at the two beasts before continuing. "If my guess is correct, then this place had natives living here."

Molton nodded his head and was about to make his move when Arthur suddenly grabbed his shoulders, preventing him from standing up from their hiding spot.

"Wait!" said Arthur with a solemn tone while looking in a certain direction.

Molton couldn't help but frown his brows when he saw that, especially when he sensed the seriousness of Arthur's tone. Given that, he cast his gaze towards the locations where Arthur was looking and saw a man standing on a tree branch not too far from the two battling beasts.

The person was not wearing a shirt and showing a bare upper body. And since he could barely see the figure from afar, Molton couldn't help but use one of his Mentalism Techniques to have a clear look at that person.

A moment later, Molton's eyes suddenly turned wide as he saw a strange tattoo on that guy's shoulder; it looked like a barcode which further strengthened the unease that he was feeling.

"Is that a prisoner code?" blurted out Molton, shocked.

On the other hand, Arthur nodded his head heavily before saying with a deep frown. "From the looks of it, we are currently in a Prison Island where a lot of criminals are being held."

Hearing that, Molton immediately came to a realization before saying with a heavy tone. "Then, does it mean?"

Arthur immediately nodded his head before Molton could even complete his words. "Yeah, from the looks of it, the true nature of our test is to not only kill some beast or steal some points from the other candidates. It looks like they also want to test our real battle capabilities by letting us fight against these notorious criminals."

"B-but… B-but isn't it too dangerous?" said Molton stutteringly.

"Indeed, it is," said Arthur instantly, agreeing.

He was quite familiar with these kinds of people. In fact, the place where he was sent by Nathan for his special training was also a prison that had criminals that always wanted to attack him. "Tsk! This is going to be really troublesome."

"Why did the Magic Ace Academy change their exam format? This is more like the style of Top Military School," commented Molton while wearing a deep frown.

The two stayed for a few more moments to observe the situation a little more while also trying to see if there were some criminals hiding in the vicinity. And just like what they were expecting, they spotted 4 more people hiding in different places and seemed to be waiting for the two Monster Beasts to further weaken themselves.

"Let's go back for now and report our findings. We can't take this lightly anymore," said Arthur before retreating alongside Molton while avoiding being spotted by the criminals in the vicinity.

Not long after, the two were able to regroup with the group behind them and quickly reported what they just discovered.

"Criminals, huh? Then there is really a high chance that we are currently a Prison Island," muttered Shin before falling deep into thought.

"Is the school planning to get us killed? Sending us to a place full of criminals? Those guys will not think twice before killing us," said Jillian with a deep frown.

"For these guys, then yes. But I doubt it is the same for us; given our appearance, I bet those trashes will start drooling when they see us," said Lorraine with a disgusted tone.

In the meantime, Cloe turned her head at Shin before asking. "So, are we going to continue moving forward and try to steal the kill from those criminals or are we going with our original plan and head over that mountain?"

Shin was silent for a few moments before sweeping his at them while asking. "What do you guys think?"

Hearing those words, the group also became quiet for a couple of moments before replying to him.

"I'll go with whatever your plan is. You know me, I don't like these complicated things. But if it is a fight, you can always count on me," said Arthur tapping his chest.

Leonard was the same. He might not voice out his thoughts but his intention was clear given that he nodded his head after his words. And when Lorraine saw that she immediately released a helpless sight before nodding her head. "Well, if Leo is coming with you, then I will definitely be coming along."

On the other hand, Cloe didn't say anything but given that she moved closer to Shin, it was clear that she was coming with the group.

Seeing that, Jillian could only shake her head and smile bitterly in defeat. "What's the point of asking our opinion? Given that you have the advantage in numbers it is obvious that the majority of votes is obviously going to be in your favor."

Meanwhile, it was clear that Molton was agreeing with his sister despite not saying anything. And when Alice saw that, she knew that it was no point voicing out her thoughts right now.

Seeing that everyone seemed to come up with the same answer, Shin nodded his head before saying. "Then let's continue pursuing our current target."

"Maybe it is quite risky given that there are some criminals over there. But we are going to face them sooner or later, so it is better for us to face them now to understand their strengths rather than being caught off-guard sooner or later," he added after a brief moment of pause.

"Moreover, the academy will surely have some arrangements to save use when the situation go for the worst. If I'm wrong, then these black watches that we have is also for that purpose," he continued to reassure the girls.

Hearing that, the others nodded their heads in agreement before waiting for Shin to continue.

Seeing that, Shin turned his head towards Arthur and Molton before asking. "How strong are those guys that you saw?"

Arthur thought for a couple of moments before replying. "From what I saw, they seem to be at the Early Phase of Ethereal Opening Stage. Dealing with them shouldn't be much of a problem, but the two beasts are going to be tricky."

"Both of them are 5-star Monster Beasts. Even if they are currently heavily wounded, we can't still ignore their strengths," he added after some careful consideration.

"But they are still heavily wounded, that fact alone is a given. So, all we need to do is wait until the very last moment before making our moves," said Jillian immediately after Arthur was done talking.

In the meantime, Shin fell into deep thought before starting to arrange some plans for the team. And when they were done, they immediately started moving to execute the plan.

...