Something was off.
Herman could sense a strange anomaly coming from the Ancient One. As she drew closer, powerful magical ripples radiated from her body, yet Herman felt none of the vibrant vitality a Sky Father–level being should possess.
Indeed—as the Lord of the Dead, one who wielded dominion over life and death, even Herman could not detect the life force of the Sorcerer Supreme.
That was completely unnatural. They were both Sky Father–level entities; there was no reason the Sorcerer Supreme should be able to conceal her life energy so perfectly.
"Deathly stillness. Darkness."
Herman watched as the Sorcerer Supreme emerged from the forest. Those were the only words that could describe what he sensed of the Ancient One. There was no trace of the living, nor any decay of the dead... it was as if the Ancient One herself was wrapped entirely in darkness.
"Are you alright, Sorcerer?"
When Herman had first crossed into this world, the one he most dreaded meeting was the Ancient One. But now, he no longer feared her as he once had.
At an equal level of existence, Herman didn't believe he would lose to the Ancient One. So even when she appeared before him unannounced, he remained calm and composed. What puzzled him was simply her current state.
"Better than ever..."
Under the dark night sky, the Ancient One's hoarse voice broke the silence. Slowly, she pulled back her hood, revealing an unnaturally pale face.
Herman nearly jumped in shock—the sockets where her eyes should have been were empty, hollow, and bottomless. A strange magical energy shimmered within them, thick with darkness. The crimson sigil on her forehead glowed faintly, stark and ominous.
"The Dark Dimension..."
Herman instantly recognized the mark. It was the sign of one who had drawn upon the power of the Dark Dimension—a symbol borne by Dormammu's followers in the origin of Doctor Strange.
Of course, the Ancient One was no follower of Dormammu. She merely harnessed the Dark Dimension's energy, unlike those deranged cultists who devoted themselves entirely to him.
There was a world of difference between borrowing power and offering oneself in blind worship. Kaecilius, the brilliant yet misguided sorcerer, was the very image of such blind devotion. He never truly understood the limits of his so-called master.
Many dark mages exalted Dormammu, calling him the "Ruler of Dimensions" or the "Dark Demon Lord."
But in truth—it wasn't like that at all.
Dormammu wasn't the true master of the Dark Dimension. He had merely absorbed immense amounts of dark energy, becoming the most powerful entity within that realm. At his core, Dormammu was still just a human sorcerer.
His talent didn't even reach half that of the Ancient One's. Though she once claimed Doctor Strange was the most gifted, in raw magical aptitude, she herself was every bit his equal.
In fact, no Sorcerer Supreme was ever ordinary. For the Ancient One to ascend to a Sky Father–level existence as a mortal—her magical talent was among the finest in the entire cosmos.
The reason Kaecilius was able to kill her before Doctor Strange succeeded her was simply because she allowed it—using the event as an opportunity to retire. Otherwise, how could a few traitors possibly threaten a being of her level?
"To recognize the mark of the Dark Dimension... it seems you know quite a lot," said the Ancient One, her hollow sockets glowing with magical energy as she gazed at Herman.
Whether she could truly see through those voids was anyone's guess.
As for magic itself, Herman's understanding was limited. His nature as the Lord of the Dead granted him authority over the very laws of existence.
Put simply—in the Marvel Universe, magic was borrowed from the masters of those laws, while Herman was one of the few who could lend such power to others.
"It's late, and raining no less. Sorcerer Supreme, you didn't come all this way just to quiz me on my magical knowledge, did you?"
Herman fixed his gaze on the Ancient One, ever vigilant. From her body radiated an intense surge of magical energy, wildly unstable—as if she might strike at any moment.
"Of course not."
The Ancient One's voice was unusually hoarse. The magical energy surrounding her grew increasingly active.
"I'm only here to verify something... and take you with me." Between her lowered hands, a magical array was steadily forming, its lines pulsing with growing intensity.
"Take me away?"
Divine power surged within Herman, gathering strength. He couldn't yet discern the Ancient One's true intentions, but one thing was certain.
"Before we discuss that, perhaps we should resolve my confusion first. Sorcerer... could you tell me—where your soul has gone?"
Yes.
Through his probing, Herman had confirmed a horrifying truth—the sorcerer standing before him possessed none of the soul a living being should have.
That was why he couldn't sense the Ancient One's life force. What stood before him was merely a moving, thinking, speaking shell.
This was magic... Herman felt a pang of awe and unease. He wondered what kind of demonic power the Ancient One had drawn upon to achieve such a state.
"Oh? You discovered that?"
The Ancient One's smile was eerie, twisted slightly at the corners as the magic circle between her hands grew stronger, more stable.
"You'll find out... after I take you away."
As her spell converged, violent winds tore through the Mirror Dimension around them. Trees bent and swayed, and the Ancient One's aura expanded—terrifying, suffocating, and steeped in darkness.
Had she aligned herself with Dormammu?
No, that didn't seem right. Dormammu had become a Universal-level entity only by absorbing the energy of the Dark Dimension. Someone like the Ancient One—who had reached the level of a Celestial by her own might—would never stoop to rely on Dormammu's so-called power. Besides, her true patron was Eternity, one of the Five Cosmic Entities of the Marvel Universe.
The Ancient One wasn't a fool. Why would she abandon a cosmic being of such magnitude to follow a petty overlord from some distant dimension?
"What if... I don't want to go with you?"
Herman's eyes flared with divine light, his body igniting with a brilliance like the blazing sun. Under the shroud of night, that light shone fiercely—radiant, oppressive, and filled with the might of death itself.
Within his gaze, torrents of death energy surged and churned.
To fight a peer of equal strength—and within the Mirror Dimension, where no harm would touch the real world—Herman had no reason to hold back.
The Ancient One's power was formidable enough to make Odin himself cautious, preventing the Norse god-king from ever again treating Earth as his private playground. Among Sky Father–level beings, she stood among the absolute elite.
"You have only two choices," the Ancient One declared, her voice unyielding. "Either come with me... or I take your corpse and soul instead."
In her hollow eyes, dark energy writhed, and magical radiance burst forth.
As her words fell, light erupted across the entire Mirror Dimension. The earth beneath them flared with immense, ancient magic circles—glowing with power, breathing with life.
An archaic aura rippled through the air, and the ground trembled as terrifying energy gathered and swelled.
"I think there's a third option," Herman said coldly. "For example, I could leave your body here forever."
Death energy exploded from his form, flooding the Mirror Dimension like a rising tide. It rolled and coiled through the air, vast and boundless, until the world itself seemed consumed by darkness.
Invisible to mortal eyes, waves of death energy intertwined and surged like a storm, staining everything in a shroud of black and swallowing the entire realm in the shadow of death.
A battle of Sky Father–level beings was about to begin...