The deep chant of the Dufol Language was followed by an outpouring of the power of the Protection Against Evil like a tide along the direction of Jason’s fingers.
The ’book,’ which should have been illusory, began to tremble upon contact with the special force field of Protection Against Evil, and ripples appeared layer upon layer on the cover of the ’book.’
Edward, who had always maintained a comfortable and malicious smile, suddenly changed color.
Without any hesitation, Edward issued the command from the bottom of his heart.
However, the ’book’ did not return to his hands as it had before, instead shaking even more violently.
Edward ordered again.
This time, it wasn’t a silent thought from deep within but a loud roar.
"I will not let you succeed!"
Roaring, Edward spit out another mouthful of blood.
And with the release of this blood, the shadowy power on the ’book’ immediately intensified, the violent shaking beginning to subside.
But Jason cast another Protection Against Evil right away.
After casting Protection Against Evil twice in succession, Jason, now greatly drained of his physical strength, couldn’t help but gasp for breath.
Seeing this, Edward’s eyes shone with an uncontrollable glint.
"Being able to suppress the power of shadows must be a tremendous burden even for you, Jason, isn’t it?"
"How many more times can you use it?"
"You are still a loser!"
With those words, Edward spat out another mouthful of blood.
The ’book’ once again emitted shadowy power and began to struggle.
Feeling this struggle, Jason looked up calmly at Edward, and then cast another Protection Against Evil.
The breath of life disappeared from Jason.
"The backlash got you, didn’t it?"
"I told you I am the victor..."
Edward wanted to say more but suddenly stopped short.
His widened eyes were full of astonishment.
Death retreated from Jason.
"This isn’t an external attack, but a backlash from your own use of strength, you can’t resurrect so easily!"
Edward shouted loudly.
But immediately, the once uncrowned king of Cherry City seemed to think of something.
His complexion changed drastically, his eyes showing unprecedented surprise, wariness, and anger.
"You stole my ’Reincarnation Ceremony’!"
"No, not just stolen!"
"You made it even more suitable for you!"
"You transformed into a..."
Edward roared as if to confirm his own claim, and blood gushed from his mouth once more.
The power of resistance from the ’book’ grew stronger.
Jason cast [Protection Against Evil] without any hesitation repeatedly.
The breath of life and death appeared alternately on Jason’s body, like an ’ouroboros’ in an endless cycle.
This breath confirmed Edward’s guess.
However, this time Edward wasn’t shouting loudly, but his tone turned grave; he looked at Jason with eyes as if seeing him for the first time.
The surprise in his eyes receded.
The wariness deepened.
Yet there was also a sense of relief.
"If you couldn’t even do this, how could you possibly be the person behind all the schemes?"
"I underestimated you before."
"Was it your ’deception’ that fooled me?"
"Worthy of you, Jason!"
Edward’s voice grew increasingly vociferous as he stared intensely at Jason, uttering words that made Jason frown profoundly.
Overthinking it again!
Jason could confirm that Edward had misunderstood something, but at this point, Jason chose not to speak out.
The continuous use of [Protection Against Evil] had already exhausted him.
Although death was kept at bay, his energy hadn’t recovered.
He really didn’t want to speak right now.
And such silence, in Edward’s eyes, seemed like an acknowledgment.
"But, deception only works once!"
"I’m clear-headed now!"
Edward roared angrily and fiercely punched his own chest.
The punch was straightforward; Edward’s ribs shattered, blood spurted continuously from his mouth, yet Edward’s presence grew increasingly strong.
John and Brian, who had been watching the battle from a distance, subconsciously pulled the unconscious McCaul back.
Since the beginning, the battlefield had surpassed the capabilities of the two.
The two experienced men clearly understood that at this moment, not intervening rashly was the best help they could offer Jason.
Brian asked John softly.
Then, he felt deeply ashamed under John’s gaze, which resembled looking at a fool.