In a manner different from that of ordinary people,
"The power of the 'Reincarnation Ceremony'?"
Then he struck down with a cleave.
He could confirm that the 'ceremony' had been interrupted, and it had backfired on 'Edward'.
Just now he had merely twisted 'Edward's' neck and had not crushed his previously strong and powerful heart.
The heart had burst directly as a result of the ceremony's backlash.
The short-handled Broad Blade Cleaver swept past 'Edward's' neck with a whoosh.
'Edward's' head flew far away.
But no blood sprayed out.
The headless 'Edward' rolled over several times quickly and then stood up.
Next, as if shedding a 'coat', 'Edward' crawled out from that tall, strong body.
Edward, covered in some sort of mucus, looked quite disheveled, and that tall, strong body, along with the far-flung head, began to wither away as soon as Edward crawled out.
In a breath's time, it turned into something akin to 'snake sheddings'.
To be precise, 'human sheddings'!
Edward wiped some mucus from his face.
At this moment, Edward's face finally lost its smile.
What remained was only anger, resentment, and... disbelief.
Edward was certain that he had decapitated Jason.
Can a person live without a head?
So how was Jason still alive?
Could it be the 'ceremony'?
Unconsciously, Edward began to make associations, and his gaze toward Jason changed.
"So that's how it is!"
"It's not just me who discovered that point!"
"You noticed it too!"
"No wonder after you wrote the not-bad 'Cross Street Tracker' back then, you became so unremarkable, not only weakening in writing but also lacking in logic. Turns out you devoted all your energy to learning from the 'Mystical Side'."
Edward said, nodding as he spoke; the surprise and disbelief in his eyes began to dissipate.
Edward had seen and experienced the power of the Mystical Side.
Having such a miraculous power, no matter how many anomalies appear, it's all normal.
Hadn't he, too, revived?
There was nothing strange about it.
But there was something Edward couldn't get over, something he dwelled on.
"You have mastered a considerable amount of 'mystical knowledge', and besides that, your own perception is extraordinary. Even more, you have some sort of technique to apply that perception, ceremonies! Because only through combining the two, could you divine, calculate my perfect plan! So, quite naturally, you turned my plan against me. You didn't stop everything from happening, nor did you act rashly. You just quietly waited, waiting for me to show a flaw!"
"It's my biggest mistake to not realize that my opponent was also a member of the 'Mystical Side'!"
Indignation spread over Edward's face.
Jason's eyebrows lifted behind his mask.
He really wanted to say, "You're overthinking it; that's not how it is."
But Jason did not speak.
He didn't mind the enemy overthinking.
Because it was beneficial to him.
"You cleverly caught my flaw!"
"It's only right that you knew when to interrupt my 'ceremony'."
"You also knew that the flaw in my 'interrupting speech' that I showed deliberately was a trap."
"Do you really think you have control over everything?"
Edward's voice grew louder. He pointed the King's Scepter in his hand at Jason, saying word by word, "Do you really think I didn't plan for the worst?"
"What I completed was not just the 'Reincarnation' ceremony!"
With these words, Edward disappeared from the spot.
The next moment, when Edward reappeared, he was standing behind Jason.
Edward had 'emerged' from Jason's shadow.
The former King of Cherry City still pointed the scepter at Jason, which glowed faintly at the base with a profound light.
This light, like that of fireflies, seemed insignificant, but to Jason, who was 'illuminated' by it, it felt like a mountain was pressing down on him. However, Jason didn't care.
Under the hockey mask, Jason's nostrils twitched.
He had caught the scent of 'food'.
It was Edward's scepter.
Jason was certain that the scepter had been just an ordinary one before.
It had become quite delicious.
Did some 'ceremony' mask its own scent?
Jason was filled with curiosity as he guessed.
If it could disguise one piece of 'food',
Could it be masking more 'food'?
At the thought, Jason's saliva began to secrete uncontrollably.
He was filled with anticipation.
Edward looked at the bound Jason, his heart filled with resentment and hatred.
This resentment and hatred were ten times deeper than when he had first chosen Jason's "Cross Street Tracker."
After all, back then, it was he who had chosen willingly.
All of this was the scheme of the man before him!
Edward, having just thought of something else, looked at Jason's back and gritted his teeth with a grating sound.
"You must have sensed something from my initial movements, and thus before I even chose 'Cross Street Tracker', you began to subtly influence me, leading me to choose your book."
"I must say, you did an excellent job!"
"I didn't realize it until now!"
"You couldn't have started influencing me only then; you must have started even earlier!"