Chapter 721 – Corrupted… or Corrupted Again?

Wanda finally came to a painful realization—it had all been her own delusion, her self-inflicted obsession. Everything she claimed was "for the children" had only ended up hurting them.

Faced with the children's frightened, unfamiliar, and even hostile gazes, Wanda trembled slightly. Her body, once driven by the power to slay gods and demons alike, now quaked with anguish. The very belief that had pushed her this far had become the weapon that shattered her completely.

Her expression blank, her steps unsteady, Wanda slowly turned away from the children she had longed for so desperately.

The two kids immediately ran to their real mother. As she watched the three embrace tightly, Wanda collapsed to the ground.

This was the scene she had dreamed of countless times. It was also the origin of her obsession, the beginning of her descent into darkness. For this, she had swept through the multiverse in a storm of blood and destruction—falling from a world-saving heroine to a merciless, twisted witch.

She had imagined it so many times: her children running into her arms. She had convinced herself that everything she'd done was to reunite their family. But now, she finally realized—the more she fought, the further she pushed them away.

The Wanda from Universe-838 gently comforted the children, then slowly walked over. Seeing the other Wanda so torn and broken, she reached out with a soft touch and said solemnly, "They will be loved."

Wanda looked up at her with teary eyes, as if staring into a mirror and seeing who she used to be.

Yes… this was what a real mother looked like—the kind of mother her children could trust and depend on. And she? She had become nothing more than a monster who brought harm to the people her children loved.

Looking back at all her madness, how was she any different from Agatha, the wicked witch who had once tried to destroy her?

Both had done everything they could to tear apart a happy little family.

At that moment, America silently closed the portal. Wanda floated slowly toward the altar, now fully awakened from her obsession. She knelt with both knees to the ground, no longer the crazed figure from before.

America, still uneasy, turned to ask Zombie Strange, "What do we do now?"

Stephen Strange's corpse, now half-corrupted by Wanda's chaos magic, looked more decayed than ever—like a mummified husk weathered by time.

He glanced at Wanda and said, "Now, we leave."

America nodded. "I'll find you." Then, she opened a portal and left with Wong.

Inside the dark temple, only Wanda and Strange remained. Wanda looked at him calmly and said, "I opened the Darkhold… so I must be the one to close it. You don't have to worry about its influence or corruption anymore."

Then, she raised her hands, and scarlet energy—like vines—snaked up the surrounding stone pillars and walls. As she moved, the entire temple trembled. The top half of the Darkhold's sanctuary was torn apart!

The mountaintop, held aloft by Wanda's magic, rose into the air. The sheer power behind this act proved how terrifying she still was. But this time, her strength wasn't directed at others—it was turned on herself.

Once the peak had risen high, Wanda suddenly withdrew her magic. Massive boulders crashed down like a torrential storm, and the mountain's summit collapsed like a dam bursting.

From afar, a flash of scarlet energy burst out from the center of the temple—then vanished.

The Darkhold's sanctuary, once the place of Wanda's rise, had become her true grave. The Darkhold was buried with her.

"No!"

Outside the video, Pietro cried out in pain, reaching toward the screen as if trying to pull his sister back from within it.

Just a moment ago, he had told Strange that the Wanda he knew had returned—only for her to choose self-destruction the very next second.

Strange raised an eyebrow. "Pietro, the Wanda you knew never feared sacrifice, right? Just like you."

In the future video, Pietro had sacrificed himself to protect others. Before Wanda turned dark, she too had made tremendous sacrifices to save the world.

And now, after her awakening, she chose to die with the Darkhold. To Strange, it was both a sacrifice… and redemption.

This crisis had started with Wanda. Her obsession had led to countless deaths—Kamar-Taj, the Illuminati… everyone had been wiped out. From Captain Carter to Professor X, the casualties had been brutal. All of it, on her hands.

Strange's zombie body had also perished with her, but that was no problem—his real body was safe.

With the threat gone, as they waited for America to come pick them up, Strange took a moment to say goodbye to Christine.

If Wanda's obsession was her children, then Christine was Strange's. This collapsing universe had already proved that much.

Maybe it's just something about sorcerers—none of them seem entirely stable. Wanda had her dark turn, and so did Strange. Most notably, he'd willingly read from the Darkhold just to stop her.

Even though Wanda destroyed the original Darkhold, could it really erase its influence on Strange, just like that?

Soon, America returned and took him home. Strange went back to his own universe. Kamar-Taj was under reconstruction, and the surviving monks continued training as they always had. America joined them, beginning her journey in the mystic arts.

Strange dropped by several times. Wong worried about his mental state, since the side effects of the Darkhold were terrifying. But Strange said he felt fine.

Later, he returned to the New York Sanctum and repaired his broken watch—perhaps a symbol that he was ready for a new beginning. Dressed in casual clothes, he stepped out into the city with a clear mind and a steady heart.

Everything seemed normal.

But just as he was crossing the street, he suddenly let out a cry of pain, dropped to his knees, and howled in agony. A third eye burst open on his forehead.

People who had thought this story would end on a hopeful note were left cold with dread.

Seriously? Strange couldn't escape corruption either?

Are we in a nesting doll of breakdowns?

First Wanda fell to darkness, then Strange… who's next?

Can't we catch a break already?!

_____

T/N:

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