Step 1: The Mesozoic era, the age of dinosaurs and gymnosperms, is divided into three periods in order: Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous.
Step 2: Permian is the last period of the earlier Paleozoic era and ends with the Permian to Triassic mass extinction, so it belongs to Paleozoic, not Mesozoic.
Step 3: So Permian is the correct answer.