Chapter 826

The Dark Dimension was a place that made reality itself feel small.

There was no sky. No ground. No horizon. It was more like stepping into an endless, alien cosmos, filled with strange spheres drifting through the void. Some were tiny. Others were enormous, each radiating an eerie, otherworldly glow.

Clare stood alone among them, feeling impossibly small.

It was as if she’d been shrunk a million times and dropped inside a living body. The drifting spheres reminded her of blood cells moving through veins—except these were black and green, and whatever they were, they were anything but alive.

The moment she entered the Dark Dimension, the storm winds carrying her forward began to weaken.

Clare descended onto a moderately sized sphere.

The tip of Rhongomyniad, the Star-forged Holy Lance in her hand, lightly scraped across its surface.

Hummm.

The sound that followed was strangely mournful.

Anger.

Sorrow.

And beneath both, a trace of fear.

Clare’s expression changed.

She understood.

These weren’t just random masses floating through the Dark Dimension.

They were the remnants of worlds.

Worlds Dormammu had consumed.

Their civilizations, their histories, their very existence had been reduced to fragments, absorbed into the Dark Dimension until nothing remained but these drifting remnants.

That was why Rhongomyniad had reacted.

The lance was mourning its lost brothers and sisters.

And somewhere beneath that grief was the fear that its own world might eventually suffer the same fate.

Clare gently rested a hand against the weapon.

"Don’t worry, partner. Our world isn’t going anywhere."

She raised her head and scanned the endless darkness.

Dormammu already knew she was here.

There was no way he couldn’t.

He was the ruler of the Dark Dimension.

In a very real sense, the Dark Dimension was Dormammu, and Dormammu was the Dark Dimension. He was its will given form.

As if to prove the point, a brilliant purple light suddenly appeared behind Clare.

She turned.

And immediately regretted it.

Two enormous purple lights burned through the darkness.

They were so bright that she instinctively squinted.

What the hell?

From this distance, they looked less like eyes and more like a pair of industrial floodlights.

Who installs headlights this powerful?

As the distance between them became clearer, the lights finally revealed themselves.

Eyes.

Two enormous eyes set into an even more enormous head.

Dormammu.

His head was colossal, easily comparable to the mythical giants of legend. But unlike those majestic images, his face was covered in countless ridges and wrinkles that constantly shifted across his skin.

It was... unsettling.

Not exactly ugly.

Just profoundly unpleasant to look at.

Dormammu’s enormous mouth opened.

"This planet belongs to me, just like all the others!"

His voice shook the entire dimension.

Clare stared up at him without the slightest trace of fear.

She slowly removed the armor covering her right arm and held it beneath one arm.

"Dormammu."

Her voice was calm.

"I’ve come to negotiate."

"Hmph!"

Dormammu raised one enormous hand.

"You’ve come to—"

He stopped.

His eyes widened.

"...Oh?"

His expression changed almost instantly.

"Oh! You’re here to negotiate?"

The wrinkles across his enormous forehead seemed to accelerate, rippling so quickly that they looked like an advertisement sign running at ten times normal speed.

The raised hand slowly lowered.

Then, with remarkable casualness, Dormammu placed it behind his head and scratched.

"Ah, yes. Negotiate. I heard you say negotiate. I thought you said something else. But you said negotiate, right? Of course you did. So..."

He gave an awkward little nod.

"Let’s negotiate."

Clare silently reattached the armor to her marked right arm.

Then she pinched the bridge of her nose.

One of us has definitely developed dementia.

Back in the real world, Cassius lay on the ground staring upward in utter disbelief.

"This... this isn’t real."

Clare had gone into the Dark Dimension to negotiate with Dormammu.

And somehow, she was actually doing it.

Evenson hadn’t bothered restraining Cassius. Instead, he simply held up a glowing Kilrogg’s Eye and used it to project the scene unfolding inside the Dark Dimension.

The yellow pupil functioned like a projector, displaying a crystal-clear image accompanied by sound.

Cassius stared at the projection.

Then grabbed his head.

"My master can’t possibly be this... this pathetic!"

He shook his head violently.

"No. That’s impossible. There has to be a reason. He’s obviously just playing with them!"

In the Dark Dimension, Dormammu awkwardly scratched the back of his head.

Several tiny fragments of dead worlds drifted loose and floated away like cosmic dandruff.

"So... negotiation."

He cleared his throat.

"That’s what negotiation is all about, right? You make demands, I consider them. If they’re reasonable, I can agree immediately. If they’re difficult..."

He scratched harder.

"...I can think about them."

Tiny chunks of planetary debris continued falling behind him.

If Dormammu had possessed hair, he probably would have been completely bald by now.

But his awkwardness had nothing to do with Clare’s demands.

There was another matter bothering him.

Who exactly is this human?

More importantly—

Why does she have that mark?

Dormammu could recognize power.

He could recognize beings far beyond his own comprehension.

And that mark belonged to something like that.

He couldn’t fully understand its nature.

At first, he’d wondered whether it belonged to one of the great elemental powers—the rulers of earth, water, wind, and fire.

The mark did possess an affinity with earth.

But it was different.

Higher.

Older.

More... prestigious.

Which left only one possibility.

Dormammu’s enormous eyes flickered.

One of the Three Pillar Gods.

And among them, there was one particular entity known for wandering through mortal realms and taking an unusual interest in them.

A being with an affinity for earth.

A being whose motives were impossible to understand.

A being who treated the mortal world like an endless source of entertainment.

Nyarlathotep.

Dormammu’s expression twitched.

Oh, for fuck’s sake.

If this human had personally received a mark from that being, then the situation had become considerably more complicated.

Nyarlathotep had taken an interest in Earth.

That much was obvious.

He might even be somewhere on the planet right now, watching the whole thing unfold for his own amusement.

Which meant Dormammu had nearly swallowed one of the toys belonging to a being he absolutely did not want to offend.

Thank God she stopped me.

Otherwise, he might have consumed the planet without realizing whose property he’d just destroyed.

And if Nyarlathotep wanted his toy back afterward?

Dormammu wasn’t even sure he’d survive the experience of finding out.

So the immediate problem was simple.

How did he back down without looking like he was backing down?

Clare finally spoke.

"Since you’re willing to negotiate, then I’ll state my conditions."

Dormammu nodded enthusiastically.

"But first, understand this. Sovereignty is not negotiable."

"Absolutely!"

Dormammu immediately agreed.

"Sovereignty is sacred. It must never be violated. Otherwise, what would that make me? An invader?"

He slapped one enormous hand against his chest.

"I know I have something of a bad reputation, but that’s mostly a misunderstanding. I’m actually a very reasonable person. Why would I ever behave like some shameless conqueror?"

Cassius’s expression twisted.

Dormammu continued.

"Don’t look at all those planets I’ve consumed and assume I invaded them."

He waved dismissively.

"In every case, the people on those planets performed rituals begging to merge with me. They practically begged to become one with me. What was I supposed to do? Refuse?"

He sighed.

"I couldn’t bring myself to be so cruel."

"So I accepted."

Clare stared.

Dormammu smiled.

"But if you don’t want that, then naturally I won’t force you."

"YOU—!"

Cassius clutched his chest.

He rolled across the ground, face twisted in agony.

The Ancient One was right.

Dormammu really is a shameless liar!

Clare nodded slowly.

"Then let’s begin the actual negotiations."

There was something deeply satisfying about having Dormammu practically trip over himself trying to be reasonable.

"Since you claim you have no intention of invading Earth, I want you to leave immediately and never target this planet again."

Dormammu nodded.

"And?"

"Your followers have committed countless atrocities here. Their souls remain behind. They must be judged and punished for what they’ve done."

"In that case, I completely agree."

Dormammu nodded solemnly.

"Crimes should be punished where they’re committed. That’s only fair."

Cassius froze.

Dormammu continued.

"Those people are actually rather awful. Don’t let my impressive appearance fool you. I have a terrible sense of direction."

He sighed.

"I got lost in the universe this time. I was trying to find my way home when suddenly someone called for me."

Dormammu shrugged.

"I assumed they were calling me home for dinner."

His enormous face became genuinely indignant.

"Instead, I followed their directions, took a wrong turn, and nearly became an invader."

He pointed accusingly toward Earth.

"Those people have terrible morals."

"I..."

Cassius’s face went blank.

Then something inside him snapped.

He suddenly felt his connection to the Dark Dimension disappear.

His eyes widened.

"No..."

He coughed.

A mouthful of blood sprayed across the ground.

"No! No, no, no..."

His dreams.

His ambitions.

His ideals.

His Milia.

Everything he’d fought for—

Gone.

Evenson watched him with a faint smile.

There was something cruelly satisfying about watching someone reach the summit of their dream only to discover there was nothing waiting for them at the top.

"You don’t need to feel too bad," Evenson murmured.

"This is only the appetizer."

"You’ve still got a long way to go."

Clare, meanwhile, was beginning to find the negotiations almost suspiciously easy.

"All right."

She continued.

"Then, to prevent another misunderstanding like this from happening, I want you to stop recruiting followers on Earth."

Dormammu’s expression suddenly became serious.

"Ah. There’s one thing I need to correct."

Clare blinked.

"I have never recruited followers."

He pointed one enormous finger toward Earth.

"Those people aren’t my followers. They’re thieves who stole my power and used my name to commit crimes."

He spread his hands.

"They have absolutely nothing to do with me."

Clare scratched her head.

"Oh."

She considered the matter.

Then shrugged.

"All right. In that case, I suppose we’re finished."

Dormammu nodded.

"Then it’s agreed."

He raised one hand solemnly.

"I am a being of my word. Once I make a promise, I never break it."

"Don’t!"

A voice suddenly interrupted.

Clare froze.

Dormammu froze.

Evenson froze.

There was no one else there.

The voice simply seemed to come from nowhere.

"I was just watching the show. You really don’t need to worry about me."

The voice sounded incredibly casual.

"And you, young lady, I need to have a word with you."

Clare’s expression tightened.

"You can’t just use my producer status to suppress the villain’s development arc. If you keep doing that, I’m going to have to criticize you."

The voice sighed.

"Carry on. Do whatever you’re supposed to do. Pretend I was never here."

Clare’s face went pale.

There was only one being who could speak from nowhere with that kind of casual authority.

Nyarlathotep.

And the meaning behind the message was obvious.

Don’t worry about my opinion.

Do whatever you were going to do.

Clare’s stomach dropped.

Oh, come on.

How did this suddenly go so wrong?

Was fate seriously not on her side?

Then the voice suddenly returned.

"Wait, what? The new actress wants to stay in Hollywood long-term? And she’s trying to move up?"

A pause.

"Fine. Bring her to my bedroom and I’ll explain the script to her."

Another pause.

"...Oh, damn it. The phone was still on."

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Clare stared blankly into the distance.

Dormammu stared blankly at Clare.

Finally, Dormammu spoke.

"Do you have a script?"

Clare blinked.

"What?"

"Give it to me. Where were we?"

"I..."

Clare awkwardly smiled.

"I was hoping you’d tell me."

Dormammu thought for a moment.

"Oh."

He nodded.

"Then let’s fight."

His expression changed instantly.

The awkward, accommodating demeanor vanished.

His enormous face twisted into something terrifying.

"If you want me to honor those conditions, then prove you have the power to enforce them."

His mouth opened.

A massive beam of dark energy erupted toward Clare.

"Twilight Aegis!"

Clare reacted instantly.

Dark violet energy erupted around her, forming an egg-shaped barrier that completely enclosed her body.

The beam slammed into the barrier.

The Dark Dimension shook.

Clare stood firm.

She didn’t move an inch.

"Hahaha!"

Cassius suddenly sprang to his feet.

"See?! I knew it! Dormammu was just playing with you!"

Moments ago, he’d been completely broken.

Now he was practically celebrating.

Evenson’s expression tightened.

But before he could act, Clare’s calm voice came through their communication link.

"I’m fine."

A pause.

"Start Plan B."

Evenson immediately understood.

Clare had realized something the moment Dormammu’s attack struck her barrier.

The attack looked terrifying.

But the actual power behind it was nowhere near what its appearance suggested.

Dormammu stared at Clare, then laughed.

"As expected of the emissary of that great being!"

He raised one enormous hand.

"Then how about this?"

A storm of shadow crystals erupted from the darkness.

They fell toward Clare like a meteor shower.

Clare swung Rhongomyniad.

One.

Two.

Three.

The attack was over.

The countless shadow crystals had missed her almost completely.

They embedded themselves in the ground around her.

Dormammu had somehow achieved the impossible.

He had mastered the ultimate form of supernatural marksmanship:

weaponized personal-space management.

"Then this!"

Dormammu shouted.

The countless planetary fragments drifting through the Dark Dimension suddenly began moving.

One after another, they hurtled toward Clare.

Unfortunately for Dormammu, there were too many small spheres and too little room.

The first wave collided with itself.

Then the second.

By the time the remaining fragments reached Clare, there were barely any left.

The sphere beneath Clare’s feet shattered.

Everything around her was destroyed.

Yet the small section where she stood remained completely intact.

Dormammu stared.

"...Enough playing around."

His expression became serious.

"Now I’ll fight properly."

Then he paused.

His eyes widened.

He looked toward Earth.

"Wait."

A delighted expression spread across his enormous face.

"That feeling..."

"The planetary defense system has been restored."

Inside the Final Bastion, the Eredar twins stood on a table.

They removed the light fixture from the ceiling and exposed the recreated New York defensive core they’d constructed several days earlier.

One of them touched the core.

Magic surged upward from the Earth’s ley lines.

The system awakened.

This was Evenson’s Plan B.

He’d never trusted Nyarlathotep enough to place everything on his shoulders.

Using the reputation of an Outer God was one thing.

Actually expecting that being to protect humanity was another.

Why would Nyarlathotep care whether humanity survived?

He wouldn’t.

The existence of mortals might amuse him.

But whether those mortals lived or died—or what form their existence took—was irrelevant.

That was why Evenson had ordered the Eredar twins to recreate the New York Sanctum’s defensive core.

If the negotiations failed, the system would activate.

And the Dark Dimension would once again be forced away from Earth.

Dormammu felt the change immediately.

"One defensive core?"

His voice boomed across the dimension.

"That isn’t enough to drive me away!"

Then his expression suddenly changed.

"My power..."

His eyes widened.

"It’s weakening."

"This is impossible!"

Clare stood there, staring at the enormous being as he began shouting at the universe.

Evenson glanced toward Strange.

"Strange."

Strange immediately understood.

He raised the Eye of Agamotto.

Green temporal energy spun outward.

A circular band of time-energy formed around his wrist like a glowing watch.

This time, the ruined Hong Kong Sanctum finally began restoring itself completely.

Dormammu staggered.

"No!"

His enormous body twisted violently.

"These mortals..."

His hands flailed as he fought against the returning laws of reality.

"They’re far stronger than they should be!"

Then—

A rainbow-colored pillar of energy descended from the sky.

BOOM!

It smashed directly into Dormammu’s head.

"AAAGH!"

Dormammu screamed.

This time there was no mistaking it.

That one actually hurt.

Smoke rose from his forehead.

He clutched the smoking spot and pointed furiously at Clare.

"You little thief!"

"You really are troublesome!"

"And you even brought reinforcements!"

Clare stared back at him.

Dormammu growled.

"Hmph!"

"I’m withdrawing for now."

"I’ll return, cultivate my power for nine trillion years, and we’ll settle this properly then!"

With that, Dormammu’s enormous body vanished.

The Dark Dimension began collapsing inward.

Clare immediately turned and leaped back toward Earth.

By the time her feet touched the ground, the Dark Dimension had completely withdrawn from reality.

Silence returned.

Dormammu was already on his way home.

One hand remained pressed against his smoking forehead.

Fight?

What the hell would be the point?

He had existed for longer than most civilizations could comprehend.

He had seen enough to understand when a battle wasn’t worth fighting.

Could he kill that little human?

Technically, perhaps.

But she carried the mark of that being.

Who would actually dare ignore that?

Dormammu certainly wasn’t volunteering.

And yes, Nyarlathotep had explicitly said he wouldn’t interfere.

But anyone stupid enough to interpret that as a genuine promise of non-interference deserved whatever happened to them next.

Dormammu knew better.

Besides, even if he won...

What exactly was he supposed to do afterward?

Eat a toy belonging to one of the Three Pillar Gods?

Absolutely not.

Earth was nothing more than one tiny planet in one insignificant galaxy, floating somewhere inside an incomprehensibly vast universe.

There were countless worlds out there.

Countless civilizations.

Countless things he could consume.

Why risk everything over this one?

Was it really worth it?

As for the possibility that defeating Earth might earn Nyarlathotep’s favor and elevate Dormammu to even greater heights—

Dormammu snorted.

"Please."

That kind of nonsense might work on ignorant mortals.

At his level, he understood the truth.

When dealing with something like Nyarlathotep, there was only one sensible strategy.

Stay away.

As far away as possible.

The closer you got to that creature, the worse things became.

Dormammu rubbed his aching forehead.

"Ow..."

His expression darkened.

"Those people really had no sense of humor."

He’d practically handed them the victory.

He’d been practically screaming please let me leave with my dignity intact.

And they still hit him with that rainbow attack.

"That really hurt."

Still...

Dormammu’s mouth curled upward.

At least he’d escaped intact.

He’d withdrawn with such magnificent dignity that surely nobody had realized the truth.

That he had run away.

Very, very quickly.