A/N: Hey guys! I bring to you all the new update to this story! Again, this chapter is rather long so I hope you guys can bear with me. Also, I have a presentation to do next week as well as some stuff to do with my other group mates, so I'm not sure if I will be able to update so soon next week. Just a heads up.
Now to respond to you awesome reviews! And some of them were really great to read! It made me glad that you guys are still enjoying the story

Gravenimage: I guess so. It's never official in the game but well, that's where I'm developing it

Grayjack72: Oh man, that's a really gruesome scene to be covered in blood of your enemies... I LIKE IT

Dimdy3019: I know Victor is the title given to the Chromatus bearer, but I wasn't aware that it's also given to the final waymarker :O thanks for letting me know. So in a sense, yes, Ludger is eligible for the title

F-ckthesystem125: Yeah, he's changing very slowly... whether Ludger can notice it or not, we shall see

Demons Anarchy of Pride: Yeah, he is slowly changing isnt he? For me, I'm not sure who's scarier. I mean, they're technicalyl the same person so I guess Ludger is scary as Victor :S I don't know
-YES! I have been waiting for so long to write the previous chapter of Ludger destroying the Elympion army. I mean, he may be outnumbered but you don't mess with a guy that has the 4th level of the Chromatus! Nice, glad to see you still remember Ludger has level 5 in this story :D
-Well we shall see what Ludger will do after this event. And I never played the Julius ending, I only watched it. Whenever I come to that part of the game, I just can't do it _
-Yeah I believe the only reason Ludger didn't break mentally in the game was cause of the people he cared about. The bad ending I feel is a glimpse of what happens when Ludger cracks. If Ludger isn't careful, he's going to break... and his friends will not want that

Shikyo no Kyoufu: Yup, I agree that the Chromatus is overpowered. It's because of the Chromatus that I believe it makes Ludger one of the most powerful Tales protagonist in the Tales series. I'm not saying he's at the top but it definitely makes him a contender at least

MagatsuIza: Well you won't be seeing much of Victor really.
-Yup, Fractured Milla softening on Ludger xD

Guest: Yup, you'll see Muzet very soon :3

13: Oh damn, thanks! That really means a lot to think that my story is one of the best things that's happened for you! I'm glad you enjoyed my writing style and the overall plot of the story! Thanks!
-Ah yes, I've read my fair share of timetravel stories and like you said, most of the time the character doesn't reveal to the cast about their status. I find that rather... annoying
-Glad you loved how I characterize the story. Of course not all of them are my effort. Some of them I remember to write them in thanks to the reviews of my previous chapter and I adapt it into the story.
-Yeah I wanted to add Fractured Milla mainly because I feel it will be interesting to imagine both Millas in the ToX plot and how that will change the story. And it fits into the story, so why not?
-Another good point. So far, important characters have survived when they died in the original ToX timeline... and of course, this means there will be consequences
-Thank you for your review! I hope I will hear more from you. I appreciate your thoughts

version15: I'm glad you enjoyed both of my stories. Thanks for your support!
-Well thanks to Ludger's appearance, Jiao manages to live. So we shall see how this will affect the story

SonicProdigy55: Well Ludger's appearance helped to save Jiao so I'm glad you liked that part. As for Muzet, well... we shall see her VERY soon in this story :D
-Ah yes... the scene of Agria and Leia being friends in the fractured dimension in ToX2 really made me feel like "Oh man... they could actually be friends!" So I wanted to explore that
-Yeah I noticed that "A New Path for History" has been updated but I feel it isn't the same. For one, I read Nameless Knight's plot outline of the story when he/she quit, so I still have some memory of the plot. Also the chapters have been really, really short... which is unlike Nameless Knight.
-Oh? Did you just read the final chapter of "A Different Path"? I mean... this is rather surprising to bring up my previous story so suddenly xD
-And yeah, I've already outlined chapter 1 of my other story actually but I still don't want to publish it yet. Mainly because I want to focus on this story first and still have my ideas written out

Sorata Shioya: Something is amiss? D: What could it be?
-Yeah Ludger's desire to priotect his friends is both his weapon and weakness. And yup! Jiao gets to survive what happened to him in the original game :D
-Mmmm, you'll just have to wait and see what I have planned for Agria ;)

Well that's it for reviews! I hope you guys will enjoy this chapter and please let me know what you guys think of the chapter

CHAPTER 34: QUESTION & ANSWERS

Jude's group was still on the run, following Gaius and three of the Chimeriad. They were moving northwards and only Gaius knew their destination. Milla was still unconscious, being carried by fractured Milla. And not too far behind them, Jiao was catching up. No one but fractured Milla noticed him yet because despite his large size, he managed to run without making much noise.

Once Jiao was close enough, Gaius took notice of his presence and stopped the group's retreat. Only when Gaius stopped did the three Chimeriad along with Jude and the others noticed that Jiao was behind them.

"Jiao!" Elize cried out happily. She thought she would never seem him again.

Jiao slowed down once he was close enough, his injuries inflicted by fractured Milla earlier starting to affect him. But he still pushed on.

When Jiao was finally before Gaius, the King asked, "Jiao, what are you doing here? Did you… defeat them all?"

Jiao shook his head, "No… I offered to remain behind as I intended to… but… he came and insisted that he'd take my place."

"Who?" Presa asked.

Before Jiao could, Gaius answered, "Ludger Kresnik."

Jiao nodded as confirmation to Gaius's words. "Yes. It was him."

"Ludger Kresnik?" Wingul said with surprise, "That man's an enemy, so why did he save you? Sacrificing himself instead… that doesn't make sense."

Jiao looked at Elize and the little girl had a big smile on her face. He returned the smile and spoke, "Ludger… he told me that I still have someone to protect… someone that doesn't want me to be gone from her side. He said he understood how I felt. That's why he told me to go and… he'll stay instead and buy time for everyone."

Jiao finished speaking and again looked at Elize. Seeing her again, he now truly appreciated Ludger's actions. As much as he wanted to stay with the group to protect Elize, he was still a Chimeriad, a servant of King Gaius. So he was proud to have been chosen to stay behind and serve the King. But because of Ludger, Gaius was safe and Jiao could keep his life.

"I didn't think he'd actually grow soft and throw his life for Jiao." Presa stated regarding Ludger, "He was a nuisance even for us. I wonder why the change of heart."

Gaius heard Presa's words and thought back to when he first met Ludger, back at the audience chamber in the royal castle of Kanbalar. Ludger openly said that he was from the future, know his real name of Erston Outway and even his sister Karla. As a matter of fact, Ludger was the only one that openly called him Erston, even during their fight at Fezebel Marsh. And during their fight, Gaius could feel Ludger's words through their duel. Ludger's words and actions, they were all true. Gaius could not detect any hint of lies through their battle.

"You're mistaken, Presa." Gaius finally said, "From the beginning… Ludger was never our enemy. After crossing blades with him, I understand now what he's been trying to tell me. That's why he helped Jiao." Gaius turned around and started moving again, "Let's continue on."

Presa and Wingul did not fully understand what Gaius meant and followed the King. After that, Jiao and Agria followed behind.

But the moment Jude heard that Ludger stayed behind to take Jiao's place, he was worried. He was looking back where they came from, hoping to see a sign that Ludger was behind them. But he wasn't. There was no sign of him.

Alvin nudged Jude in the ribs, "Worried about him, kid?"

"Of course I am." Jude answered without looking away, "I know he probably saved Jiao for Elize but… but… he's alone against those guys."

"Should we… go back and help him?" Leia suggested. She turned to fractured Milla, "Um… 'Milla', what do you think we should do?"

Fractured Milla wanted to go and make sure Ludger was safe but she bit back her tongue. Firstly Milla was still unconscious and it would be dangerous to head back when she was vulnerable. Also deep in her heart, she felt she could trust Ludger.

"Don't worry, I've got a feeling he's going to be fine." Alvin said and gave a strong pat on Jude's back.

"How can you be so sure?" Jude asked.

"Come on kid, you saw what he did against those guys right? He was drawing most of those guys attention towards him and even then, they still couldn't handle him. Heck, he even destroyed a few of their ships single-handedly! " Alvin sighed, "So don't worry about him. He'll be fine. Now come on, we need to catch up with Gaius."

Jude finally nodded, "You're right. Ludger… he'll be fine."

Alvin made a move and the rest followed. Just a second later, the mercenary couldn't help but to insert one last comment, "Thinking about it, I think it's not Ludger we should be worried about. We should be worried about what he'll do to those guys."

Jude chuckled at the little joke, appreciating Alvin's attempt to ease the mood. However unknown to Jude, Leia or fractured Milla, Alvin's little comment was actually true.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile at Fennmont, the Sharilton and Rashugal army managed to make it back into the city after the sudden invasion of the Elympion army. However, they suffered heavy casualties. When the Sharilton army merged with Rashugal to meet the Auj Oule army, they numbered at 40,000. Now after the hasty retreat, the combined army was numbered to less than 10,000 and the number did not include the injured. It was a devastating blow to Rashugal's military strength.

The three leaders of the army, Nachtigal, Rowen and Cline were inside the throne room of Orda Palace, using the large room as a temporary command post. Nachtigal sat on the throne, mentally exhausted after what happened. As for Rowen, he was busy listening to the reports from different officers on each division from the Sharilton and Rashugal army, being told the numbers of deaths, injuries and combat-ready. Cline was next to him, helping the Conductor.

After a long while, Rowen and Cline were finally done with listening to reports.

"I did not expect to lose so many soldiers in our retreat." Rowen declared, "From the reports, it appears we only have three thousand soldiers that can still continue with its duties. The remaining survivors only number around seven thousand, most suffering from heavy injuries."

"It's expected when we called for a blind-retreat." Nachtigal pointed out. A blind-retreat was always costly and the fact Rowen called told Nachtigal that even the Conductor had too little information to work with.

Cline was the one to finally voice out the question that was on Nachtigal and Rowen's mind. "The flying ships… and those foreign soldiers… who are they?" Cline asked.

Rowen shook his head, "That's what we'd all like to know, Lord Cline. The only thing we can conclude from their actions is that they are not an ally to Auj Oule. The foreign soldiers attacked the Auj Oule army as well as ours. Their weapons and flying ships mean that they possess technology far superior to ours. The fact we have no idea who they are and where they are from troubles me deeply."

"Do you think they might have something to do with the Lance?" Cline questioned. He then gave an accusing glare at the King, "Do you know something, Nachtigal?"

"I only funded the Lance of Kresnik. Gilland only told me it was a weapon that I could use to further my ambitions... and like a fool, I believed him." Nachtigal was disgusted with himself but continued, "But I know nothing about the Lance. Whether those foreign invaders and the Lance have a connection, I don't know."

Silence. Nachtigal looked away, not wanting to feel Cline's accusing glare on him any longer. He was aware that he caused many of his loyal subjects to suffer under his rule. But he was trying to make amends. Everything he just told Cline, it was true. He had no knowledge of the Lance's purpose.

Now that the Lance was brought up, Cline turned to Rowen, "Do you think Jude and the others… managed to destroy the Lance?"

Rowen stroked his beard before shaking his head once more, "I do not know. However, I do hope they are alright. One of them accompanying them worries me."

"One of them? Who?"

Rowen waved it off, "It's probably nothing, Lord Cline. Just an old man's worries and ramblings."

Cline seemed to buy it and spoke with Nachtigal. This gave Rowen an opportunity to be alone with his thoughts. He was serious with his words earlier, that he was worried about one particular individual travelling with Jude and the others. That person by the name of Alvin.

Rowen originally held no suspicions on the young man when he first met him, but that changed during Gilland's attack on Sharilton a while back. During the battle, Rowen noticed that Alvin's eyes were locked on Gilland and it would seem that the mercenary knew Gilland. Whether they actually knew each other or not, Rowen was aware of this tiny little detail. As an experienced general, paying attention to everything was something that he picked up from his long career.

'I hope my suspicions on Alvin are wrong.' Rowen thought in his head, 'But I fear my intuition is not wrong. Alvin and Gilland… do they have a connection with one another? I wonder…'

Rowen was removed from his thoughts when the grand doors of the throne chamber burst open. Nachtigal and Cline were also surprised, seeing two Rashugal soldiers rushing towards them. Rowen moved to greet them.

"What's wrong?" Rowen asked with concern.

"C-Chief Ilbert, our… our scouts have told us of a grave matter and we came as fast as we could to report to you." One of the panting soldiers said quickly.

Rowen's eyes narrowed. He did not like where this was going. "What happened? What did the scouts report?"

When the two soldiers struggled to find their words, Nachtigal stood up from his throne, "Speak!"

"Y-Yes, your highness!"

And with that, the two soldiers quickly gave a brief but detailed description of what the scouts reported. When they were done, Nachtigal, Cline and Rowen were dead silent.

"Everything you told us… what the scouts saw… are they one hundred percent sure about this?" Cline asked with a shaky voice.

The soldier nodded, "Yes sir. The scouts didn't mistake what they saw."

Rowen stroked his beard, troubled by what they heard, "Nachtigal, what do you think?"

Nachtigal released a heavy sigh and sat back down on his throne, shutting his eyes. His mind was processing the information he just received and what would be the best course of action. While Cline was unsure of the right decision, Rowen already guessed what Nachtigal would choose to do. If Nachtigal was now truly the honorable man he was in his youth, the answer was obvious.

When Nachtigal opened his eyes again, Rowen already saw the answer. Nachtigal looked at the two soldiers and gave out one command, "Assemble a unit for another recon mission. You have five minutes."

The two soldiers were confused, "Y-Your highness?"

"I said, you have five minutes." Nachtigal repeated.

The two soldiers quickly turned around and out of the throne chamber to carry out Nachtigal's orders. Once again, only the three leaders were left inside the chamber.

Nachtigal turned to the young Lord of Sharilton, "Cline. I'm going to be gone for a while. You'll be in charge of taking care of Fennmont until then."

Cline blinked, "Huh? Wait, where are you going?"

"I'll be leading the unit on that recon mission." Nachtigal revealed, "I'm not going to let those foreign soldiers harm my people."

Rowen smiled. To the legendary Conductor, this was the Nachtigal he knew from his youth. The man who cared for his kingdom.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Gaius, the Chimeriad and Jude's group were still in the regions of Fezebel Marsh and fortunately, they have met no sign of the Elympion soldiers. Nothing happened much for several minutes when fractured Milla felt movement on her arms and heard Milla groaning. Fractured Milla stopped and slowly put Milla on the ground. Jude and the rest stopped as well.

Milla's eyes slowly fluttered open and groaned, "W-What…? What happened?"

Jude quickly moved to inspect Milla, "Milla, you okay? How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine Jude." Milla said and slowly got back up on her feet with Jude helping her. When she looked around her, the memories returned, "Wait, the Lance! Where's the Lance? We need to destroy it!"

"Milla, calm down!" Jude cried, grabbing Milla by the shoulders. Once she finally relaxed, he told her, "Gilland, he… he got away with the Lance. We couldn't stop him."

When Gaius heard Milla was awake, he stopped and approached the Lord of Spirits. The moment Milla caught sight of Gaius nearing her, she was in a rage, "Gaius! You… why did you stop me from pursuing the Lance? If you didn't stop me, I could-"

"The Lance was long gone when you attempted to pursue it." Gaius replied calmly, "Pursuing it would have cost you your life. And I cannot have you dying just yet. Now with the Lance gone, we need to work together despite our… differences"

Before Milla could retort, Efreet whispered into Milla's mind, "The human King is right, Lord Maxwell."

"There was no way we could have caught up with those flying ships in the air." Sylph added, "And now we don't know where those idiots took the Lance. We need this human king's help."

With the two Great Spirits supporting Gaius's words, Milla said nothing more. Gaius sensed that Milla conceded and turned around, "Let's press onward."

Gaius led the run again with the Chimeriad following behind. Alvin, Leia and Elize ran off while Jude made sure Milla was okay. Once he was done, he followed up the others.

Milla turned towards her other self, "Jude told me you were the one who carried me while I was unconscious. I wish to thank you."

Fractured Milla waved it off with a light snicker, "I couldn't just leave my look-alike behind, right?"

Milla managed to laugh a little and the two quickly started running, joining the others. As Jude looked behind and saw the two Milla running next to each other, he couldn't help but feel the two were really like sisters at this point. Especially because they were so similar and at the same time, their different personalities set them apart. Of course Jude made a mental note to not call them 'sisters' openly, or he would be feeling fractured Milla's wrath.

After some time, the group finally came upon a large group of Auj Oule soldiers. Gaius relaxed once he knew it was his army. Jude and his friends were a little apprehensive but they decided to trust the King. He did say they needed to work together. When the Auj Oule soldiers spotted their King, they captain of this group of soldiers quickly went to greet the King.

"Your highness, we're glad to see you're safe." The captain said.

Gaius nodded, "What happened at the Arklund Quag? Was the invasion a failure?"

The Auj Oule captain shook his head, "We were attacked by an unknown army. They possessed… ships that flew in the skies and advanced weapons. We quickly made a retreat but because of that, many of us are scattered."

"How many soldiers are under your command?" Gaius asked next.

"Only a hundred or so. I saw a few other divisions moving northwards, most likely back to the capital. We might meet with other survivors further up."

Gaius again nodded, "Good. Gather your men and prepare to move. We march for Kanbalar."

"Yes, your highness." The captain turned back and returned to his soldiers. He repeated Gaius's commands and in just a manner of seconds, the Auj Oule soldiers were prepared to move out.

Gaius turned to Jude and his friends, "Let's go. We're returning to Kanbalar."

Jude and the party offered nothing to say and followed Gaius. They did not have much of a choice in the matter anyway. So now accompanied by a small division of Auj Oule soldiers, Gaius and Jude's group resumed their march northwards.

From the beginning, Gaius had hoped to run into a division of Auj Oule soldiers. Mainly because since they were still in Fezebel Marsh, they would require a number of people to cast earth artes to move through the marsh with greater ease and speed. Now that they had this group of Auj Oule soldiers with them casting earth artes as they moved through the marsh, it was much easier.

As the group continued marching northwards, the climate around them started to change. The ground was no longer swampy and the light drizzle had stopped. Jude felt something cold land on his head and looked up. Instead of raindrops in Fezebel Marsh, it was now replaced with snowflakes.

"Snow?" Jude wondered aloud.

Presa turned around to explain to the medical student, "We'll be entering the Tulea Tundra soon enough. I hope you're prepared for the cold. Compared to Kanbalar, the weather at Tulea Tundra is much, much lower."

"We won't be entering the Tulea Tundra today." Gaius corrected, "Order the men to set up camp. They're exhausted. Marching onwards would be past their breaking point. We'll rest here." Gaius then eyed Milla, "Also… I cannot wait any longer. I need to speak with Maxwell about… the situation."

Milla glared at Gaius but said nothing.

"At once, your highness." Wingul said with a bow before making his way towards the Auj Oule soldiers.

Wingul gave the order and the small division of Auj Oule soldiers started preparing to make camp. Some ventured off to gather firewood and others with setting up the tents. In just a matter of minutes, the camp was completed. Gaius made a gesture for Jude's group to follow.

As they walked through the camp, Jude was thankful for the warmth provided by the campfire that the Auj Oule soldiers set up. He was shivering a little from the cold but the fire made up for it. Then he noticed that not only were Gaius and the Chimeriad unaffected by the change in temperature, but even the Auj Oule soldiers seemed indifferent to the cold.

"They're not even shivering from the cold." Jude said with an amazed tone.

Alvin chuckled, "Surprised kid? Well it's nothing unusual really. They're used to the cold, so this isn't much to them."

"But you don't seem to be affected by the cold either!" Leia highlighted.

Alvin gave a casual hug, "I told you guys, I'm a mercenary. I travel all over the place and I tend to do my business here in Auj Oule. So really, I'm quite used to the cold too." Alvin then shook his favorite muffler, "And I keep myself warm with my outfit too."

Alvin then grabbed Jude by the head and started messing with his hair, causing Jude to squirm around. Normally Alvin wouldn't do something like this but ever since he confirmed the truth about Ludger from Steiner, he felt… free. He now knew who his trustworthy friends were. He just wanted to express that somehow.

Gaius stopped and turned towards the group, "We'll discuss inside the main tent that my soldiers set up."

Milla nodded and followed. Alvin finally released Jude from his grasp and the young medical student quickly fixed his hair. This was their last moment to fool around. Once they entered the tent, things would be serious. There were two soldiers keeping guard on the entrance of the tent.

Gaius entered first, followed by the Chimeriad. Milla was the next to enter and the rest followed. Inside the tent, there were very little things. Only one table and a large chair behind it but Gaius did not sit. He was waiting for Milla and her group to enter.

Once everyone was in, Gaius did not waste time and got straight to the point, "Maxwell… I want you to tell me everything you know. Wingul already told me when you saw the flash of light and it broke a hole in the sky, you knew something. You claimed the Lance wasn't a weapon. Now I want information what this all means. Who are these invaders? Where did they come from? What did the Lance destroy in the sky?"

Milla was dead silent for a while. Wingul narrowed his eyes, "You know… don't you, Maxwell? I can see it in your eyes."

Milla still said nothing but it was clear that she would tell them what was going on. Gaius signaled Wingul to not bother her. She took a deep breath and gathered her thoughts. Finally, she was ready.

"Surrounding the world of Rieze Maxia is an invisible barrier that I cast two millennia ago. It is a spirit arte and using that arte, I created the schism around Rieze Maxia. With the schism, it separated one world into two, sealing Rieze Maxia inside the schism. This is the world you all know."

Gaius's eyes widened at this revelation. Even the Chimeriad were surprised by this.

Leia was the one who voiced out her surprise, "Did… Milla just say she separated a world into two?"

"So… the hole in the sky that we saw…?" Gaius said slowly.

Milla nodded and answered Gaius's unfinished question, "Yes. What you saw was a hole in the schism, the invisible barrier that sealed Rieze Maxia in. The Lance of Kresnik fired and managed to dispel a small part into the barrier. That is the 'opening' you see in the sky."

"But it was sealed again." Gaius replied. Milla made no comment on this and Gaius asked another question, "Why did you create the schism? What was the purpose? Why separate one world into two?"

Milla answered immediately, as if expecting the question, "To protect both humans and spirits."

"What do you mean?"

"Two millennia ago, a number of humans discovered the use of spyrix technology." Milla explained but Gaius and the Chimeriad were unfamiliar with the term so Milla went to highlight that, "With spyrix, humans don't need to channel mana to use artes. It doesn't even matter the size of an individual's mana lobe, anyone can use high-leveled artes. At first glance, spyrix was almost like a miracle. But the use of spyrix harms and kills spirits. But the humans that used spyrix didn't care. In order to protect the humans who choose to not use and protect the spirits, I created the schism. It separated Rieze Maxia and the world of spyrix users."

Now everyone in the tent had a picture of what happened. And again, Gaius now realized something, "So… those flying ships we saw that entered through the hole in the schism… those foreign soldiers with advanced weapons… they're from the other world? From outside the schism?"

"Yes. And that world is called Elympios." Milla revealed. She then closed her eyes in regret, "I was wrong from the beginning. The Lance of Kresnik was never a weapon that aimed to harm humanity or spirits. It was created to dispel the schism. Exodus used Nachtigal to help create the Lance."

Gaius's eyes narrowed, "Exodus?"

"They're an organization that uses spyrix weapons in Rieze Maxia." Milla clarified, "Their aim was probably to dispel the schism all along."

"Dispel the schism?" Gaius repeated, "To what end?"

Milla shook her head, "I do not know."

A short silence ensued. Milla already answered most of Gaius's questions so the King was satisfied but now there was something that even the Lord of Spirits didn't know. Until someone spoke up.

"The 'Otherworld Reactor' plan. That's what Exodus… and Elympios are gunning for." Alvin said, delivering the grand reveal.

Everyone's eyes were now on the mercenary. Alvin merely smiled at them all, enjoying their confused expressions.

"Explain yourself." Gaius demanded.

Alvin raised his arms up in surrender, "Guess it's time I come clean. Everything Milla said here was true. The schism, Elympios and those ships that flew through the opening? Yeah, those were Elympios soldiers that attacked us. And they're all from another world, a world outside the schism."

It took a while for everyone to process this. Jude finally had to ask, "Alvin… how… how do you know about all this?"

Alvin turned to Jude with a devious grin on his face, "That's because I'm from Elympios."

Inside the tent, all was quiet. The only sound coming was from the Auj Oule soldiers stationed around the tent.

Jude was the first to recover, "Alvin… are you… joking?"

"Wish I was, kid." Alvin said casually with a shrug. He then took out his gun, "See this weapon? Look familiar? It's not a spyrix and a lot weaker, but it's the same type of weapon that the Elympion army used on us."

Jude always wondered why Alvin had such a unique weapon that could shoot out fire artes but now it made sense. It was an advanced weapon… a weapon from Elympios. But he could not believe that Alvin was actually from another world. And it wasn't just him. Even Leia and Elize were having a hard time accepting this.

Before anyone could ask him questions, Alvin continued, "And I'm not the only one from Elympios. All members of Exodus are from Elympios."

When Milla heard that, she took a double take, "Alvin… does that mean… you're a member of Exodus?"

Alvin ran a hand through his hair but chose to stick with the truth, "Yeah. Or, well… I was in Exodus but I've left the group. Ludger told me I left the group in the future and well… I decided I may as well cut my ties with the group now." Alvin chose not to tell the group about his little encounter with Steiner. There was no need for that. His interaction with Steiner was what made him believe Ludger was telling the truth.

"So that means you were working with the enemy when we first met you." Milla pointed out. She was not pleased about that.

"Listen, I was with Exodus so technically, I was against you. But after I confirmed that Ludger really was from the future, I chose to cut all ties with the group. I'm trying to be sincere now. I know I've done some things that made questions my… loyalty but I'm coming clean now, aren't I?"

Milla had to concede that. If Alvin was still with Exodus, he wouldn't be revealing all of this. There would be no point. The fact that he was exposing all his cards must mean that he truly wanted to help the group. And Ludger, the one person who knows Alvin, trusts the man. The only one time Ludger didn't was back in Xian Du.

While the group was deciding whether to trust Alvin, Jude connected something else in the puzzle. "Wait… Alvin, you said your weapon is an Elympion weapon, right?"

Alvin nodded.

"So if Ludger also uses them… does that mean… he's from Elympios too?" Jude asked. When he asked that question, this caught everyone's attention. The only one not surprised was fractured Milla.

"I'm guessing he never told you guys, but you remember when I first met you and Milla on the ship?" Alvin asked. Jude remembered. At the time, Alvin was working with Agria and Presa. Alvin continued, "After Ludger and I crashed into the ocean, we ended up at Leronde. That's where we met Leia. Anyway, I talked with Ludger and he told me he was from Elympios. I already suspected he was from Elympios anyway when we fought on the ship but I thought him coming from the future was… well, impossible. In any case, to answer your question kid… yeah, Ludger's from Elympios."

Jude was shaken up by this, "So… Ludger's also… from Elympios…?"

Leia was more amazed rather than disbelief, "That's amazing! If he really is from the future and from Elympios that means… somehow in one year everything managed to turn out okay, right?"

This was the first time Elize learned that Ludger was from the future, "So… if Ludger's really from the future, does that mean we're all friends then? And everything is how it should be."

Elize listened to the group and honestly, she was quite lost. Mainly because Ludger never told her he was from the future so all this talk about Ludger coming from the future was making her head hurt. She understood about the talk about the other world known as Elympios however.

Gaius crossed his arms on his chest, "So… you and Ludger… are from the other world. Elympios."

"I don't know what to think." Jude admitted.

"I wouldn't trust him so easily if I were you." Presa warned.

Jude turned to Presa, "W-What do you mean?"

Presa glared at Alvin before turning back to Jude, "Have you already forgotten what he did to you at Kanbalar? I used to believe his words too… until I paid the price. He's already lied to you once... he can do it again."

This caused not only Jude to cast doubts on the mercenary but the rest of the party as well. Alvin sighed, "Seriously, Presa?"

"Alvin's telling the truth." Fractured Milla said suddenly.

Gaius turned to fractured Milla, "You know something?"

"I come from the same timeline as Ludger. So I've already seen the future… or at least, some parts of it. In the future that Ludger came from, the schism was broken and both Rieze Maxia and Elympios are trying to coexist. There were problems but…" Fractured Milla looked at Gaius, "You and the leader of Elympios were trying to make it work."

Jude shook his head, "Wait… so you mean in the future, we've actually been to Elympios?"

Fractured Milla gave a nod.

"Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Leia asked.

Fractured Milla shrugged, "I assumed that Ludger already told you that. I mean, if you guys knew he was from the future, I thought Ludger would have told you guys about the schism, Elympios and everything. I guess he left that part out."

Now that fractured Milla said that, Jude and Milla realized that Ludger never told them about all of this. He only revealed that he was from the future, nothing more. Of course Jude didn't know about the existence of Elympios at the time and Milla never thought he was someone from the world beyond the schism. That's why they never thought to ask.

'So why didn't he tell us he was from Elympios?' Jude thought, 'Was there a reason why he didn't tell us?'

Jude and Milla decided on their own that when they meet Ludger again, they would need to ask him about this. Why didn't he tell them he was from Elympios?

Presa was still adamant about her point, "We can't trust Al's words just yet… not until we actually have proof."

However Gaius disagreed, "No. I believe he is telling the truth."

"Y-Your highness?"

"I've already crossed blades with Ludger." Gaius said, recalling the memory of his duel with Ludger's level four Chromatus, "I understand now. He truly is from the future. However at the same time, we know very little about what he knows. Until we meet him again, we'll act on our own." Gaius turned to Milla, "Maxwell, I'll cooperate with you. Until we find Ludger and tells us what happened to the Lance of Kresnik, I will not take the Lance for my own use. And that goes the same for you too. You will not destroy the Lance until we determine the Lance's fate in the future."

Milla was about to refuse but Sylph stopped her, "Lord Maxwell… we should accept his help for now. Until we meet the Kresnik human again at least. Don't forget, we still need to free Gnome and Undine from the Lance of Kresnik."

So instead of refusing, Milla offered her hand, "Very well. We'll work with you."

Gaius and Milla shook their hand, trusting to cooperate with each other. Most had mixed feelings about this from both sides. Alvin was fine with the idea, so long as it meant to create the future that Ludger knew about. The same goes for fractured Milla. Jude and Leia were rather hesitant but accepted Milla's decision. Elize was just glad that it meant they wouldn't be fighting with each other. Wingul, Presa and Jiao had no opinion on it, trusting the King's judgment. The only one that was opposed to the union was Agria because she just hated Milla. And Leia. And basically everyone that was with Milla. But she didn't voice her opinion.

"What are your plans once we return to Kanbalar?" Milla asked.

Gaius answered with a straight face, "So long as those Elympion invaders harm my people, I will fight them. I will protect my people. From my understanding, Ludger was never originally involved in any of this in his timeline. This means while we still can create a better future with Ludger's help, this Elympion invasion was still part of history. That means regardless of Ludger's appearance, Elympios is still our enemy."

Jude had to admit, Gaius made an excellent point. While Ludger's appearance may have altered the original history, the Elympion invasion was probably something that Ludger couldn't prevent even with his appearance. And since Ludger was never involved in this on the original timeline, this meant that the Elympion army was their enemy regardless.

Gaius turned to the mercenary, "Alvin, you mentioned that you were a former member of Exodus."

"That's right." Alvin answered.

"That means Exodus plan was to use the Lance to try and dispel the schism. It only created a small opening but it allowed a small fraction of the Elympion soldiers to infiltrate our world. What's the point of all of this? What is their objective?" Gaius asked.

Wingul added, "You mentioned something about the 'Otherworld Reactor' plan."

Alvin ran a hand through his hair, "Sadly, that's all I know really. I only know the basics really. Something about… siphoning mana or something. Only Gilland and the higher-ups in Exodus know."

Gaius thought about this for a moment, "Then Gilland's our target. Once we reach Kanbalar, we'll need to find Gilland and have him tell us what this 'Otherworld Reactor' plan is for."

"When will we be departing for Kanbalar?" Milla asked.

Gaius shook his head, "No. We need to give the soldiers a few more hours to rest. In the meantime, you can all rest as well." Gaius then ordered the Chimeriad, "Show them to their respective tents."

The four Chimeriad obeyed and made their way out of the tent, gesturing for Milla and the party to follow. Once Gaius was alone in the tent, he had time to think about what he just learned. In particular, about the future they could create.

Skit: Show Me The Way
Present: Wingul, Jiao, Presa, Agria & Leia

Wingul: I'll show the two Maxwell to their tents. Jiao will show Jude and Elize. Presa, you can bring the mercenary with you.

Jiao: Understood. *Walks away*

Presa: Wingul, you know how I feel about Al.

Wingul: And is that an issue?

Presa: …Understood. *Walks away*

Wingul: And Agria…

Agria: *Realization* Oh no… you've got to be kidding me! There's no way I'm showing that little twat to where she's staying!

Leia: Hey! That's not nice!

Wingul: Just show her where her tent is and you can be done with it. It's simple. *Walks away*

Agria: Ugh… well, whatever! *Fuming* Well, come on! It's this way.

Leia: …

Agria: …

Leia: So, umm… the weather's great today, huh?

Agria: Seriously? That's the topic you choose to get a conversation going? You're dumber than I thought!

Leia: Well sorry! But it's better than this awkward silence.

Agria: ...

Leia: …

Agria: *Softly* Your injuries… isn't anything serious, right?

Leia: What?

Agria: Never mind! Ugh, what a pain!

Wingul showed Milla and fractured Milla to their tent before he went off. Fractured Milla went in first, eager to rest but Milla stayed out for a while, wanting some time to gather her thoughts. Ever since they arrived in Fennmont, a lot has happened without any rest in between. They battled Nachtigal, only for the King to become an ally. Then there was the war between Auj Oule and Rashugal, later followed by the Elympion invasion. After that, she was knocked out by Gaius and made a retreat.

Milla had to admit, going through all that was not just physically exhausting but mentally as well. She was thankful for this little time they were given to recover. But she knew they could not waste too much time resting. The Lance was still out there and while she promised Gaius she wouldn't destroy it, half of her still wondered if that was the right call. She was Milla Maxwell! Her duty was to protect humans and spirits.

"Lord Maxwell, you're exhausted. You should rest." Efreet advised. Sylph agreed, nodding fervently.

"I know. I appreciate your concern and I'll rest soon enough." Milla replied.

Milla took

"Milla, you okay? You look troubled." A concerned voice asked from behind.

Milla smiled. She recognized the voice instantly and even then, she was already expecting him to come. He was always like that.

"I'm fine Jude." Milla said and turned around to face him. Sure enough, it was the young medical student. "There are just a lot of things happening and… well, I just wanted to sort out my thoughts."

"We've been through a lot." Jude admitted, unconsciously taking a step closer towards Milla, "Sometimes I wonder how we managed to get this far. I never even imagined I'd be travelling the world with you guys. I was just a student before this."

"Do you regret it then?"

Jude immediately shook his head, "N-No! Of course not! I mean, you need all the help you can get and… it's to protect humans and spirits as well. And… well…" Jude blushed as he chose his next words, "I… I got to meet you, Milla."

Milla however was ignorant of that and simply nodded, "Yes. You've been a wonderful ally from the beginning. You and Ludger… you've helped me a lot."

Jude felt a little dejected that Milla did not pick up on his hints. He decided to change the topic, "Well… you've gone through a lot but we're getting close. Once we can get to the Lance, you can finally free Gnome and Undine."

Milla smiled at the thought, "Yes. They've been away for too long."

"Once you free them, you'll finally have the four Great Spirits again. With the four Great Spirits and their knowledge, you'll be…" Jude continued saying but Milla was not listening anymore.

The moment Jude mentioned the Great Spirits and about their knowledge, it triggered a flash of memory from Milla. It was back in Orda Palace before they fought Nachtigal, a conversation between her and fractured Milla.

Fractured Milla grinned, looking at Milla's shoulders where the Great Spirits normally would be. "You should ask Efreet or the other Great Spirits accompanying you. They know everything."

Fractured Milla mentioned this. It was when Milla asked what made the two so different despite both being "Milla". Fractured Milla told Milla that she still possessed the Great Spirits with her but another difference was that fractured Milla also knew something… something that the Great Spirits were not telling her.

"Jude, I'm going to speak with 'Milla' for a bit." Milla said, excusing herself. Jude nodded and walked away.

Milla hurried to her tent and entered it. Once inside, she found fractured Milla on the ground, laying on a fur coat that she was using as a bed. Fractured Milla heard Milla coming in and opened her eyes and instantly, she knew something was amiss. It was the way Milla was looking at her.

"What is it?" Fractured Milla asked. She sensed something but could not tell what it was.

"I just remembered what you told me at Orda Palace." Milla said, "You told me that I have to learn the truth on my own. And that the Great Spirits know something." Milla took a deep breath and asked, "'Milla', what did you mean by that? What's the 'truth'?"

Fractured Milla was not expecting this. She stared at Milla for a long time and for a moment, she felt like she was staring into a mirror, reflecting her past self. The way Milla looked right now, fractured Milla felt this was how she looked like when she demanded the truth in her dimension.

With a sigh, fractured Milla looked at the invisible space next to Milla, "I can tell you what I know, but first… are the Great Spirits with you fine with that?"

Milla summoned forth both Great Spirits, their physical forms appearing next to Milla. When Fractured Milla saw them, she remembered it had been far too long since she saw Efreet and Sylph. Of course this Efreet and Sylph was different to the one from her dimension, but it was still nostalgic to see them again.

Efreet addressed fractured Milla, "So… you know the truth?"

Milla nodded.

"What do you think Efreet?" Sylph asked the Great Spirit of fire, "Honestly, I'm sick of keeping this secret from Milla for so long. I don't like it. Maybe it's about time we told her?"

Efreet turned to Sylph, "You realize that means we will be betraying our mission."

Sylph rolled his eyes, "Mission, schmission… who cares about that? Besides Efreet, you don't like deceiving Milla as much as I do. I say it's time we tell her the truth."

Now that Efreet and Sylph came to a decision, Milla definitely wanted an answer. She was shocked that both Great Spirits who grew up with her had been keeping a secret behind her back all this time, but now she would finally know.

With Efreet and Sylph's permission, fractured Milla proceeded with the plan, "Alright then. If you're ready, I'll tell you something that you should know. About your identity."

Milla blinked, "My… identity?"

Fractured Milla nodded, "And first things first… I need to correct what you told Gaius earlier."

"What do you mean?"

Fractured Milla smacked her lips, "You told Gaius that you were the one that created the schism. But… that's wrong. It wasn't you."

Milla's eyes widened and listened as fractured Milla continued to tell Milla the truth about everything. The truth of who Milla Maxwell actually was.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Elympion captain saw his soldiers getting massacred and quickly pulled out his communication device, "G-Get down here and pick us up! Order the other ships to retreat!"

At that order, the Elympion ships started making a hasty retreat while one of the ships descended to pick up the remaining Elympion soldiers on the ground. The captain watched in horror as his men were killed one after another by Ludger. None of their bullets seemed to affect him and the spyrix weapons took too long to fire, allowing Ludger's enhanced reflex to dodge them easily.

Ludger swung his lance around him, slashing all the Elympion soldiers around him before dashing towards the Elympion captain. Only two others soldiers remained and they blocked Ludger's path but they were nothing before the Chromatus. With a slice across their midsection, both soldiers were sliced in half. Now only the Elympion captain was left and the Elympion ship was low enough to pick the captain up.

The Elympion captain ran for the ship but Ludger saw through his plan. He thrust his lance back and threw it like a javelin, the lance piercing the air as it flew towards the Elympion ship. The ship was gone as soon as it landed. The lance sliced through the hull like butter, destroying the engine room from within before coming out on the opposite side of the hull and returning back into Ludger's arm. The ship exploded as the flames danced on the destroyed ship with thick black smoke rising into the air.

The Elympion captain fell on both knees, knowing his only chance to escape was gone. He looked back and saw Ludger before him. Without a word, Ludger Kresnik plunged his lance through the Elympion captain's chest, killing him. Ludger pulled his weapon back, the weapon plopping out of the dead captain's body. The last Elympion soldier in Fezebel Marsh was dead. Ludger couldn't chase the Elympion ships as they were too far and there was no point. His purpose was to buy time for Jude and his friends to escape.

It was over. Ludger looked down at his body and saw that his Chromatus armor was drenched in red. The blood of the Elympion soldiers covered his body as well as the lance. And despite what he did, he was somehow calm.

Finally Ludger dispelled his Chromatus form and returned to his normal form. There was no need to maintain the Chromatus form any longer.

"Oh my… so this is what you really look like. How cute." A female voice said with a giggle.

Ludger froze. He knew that voice. She was the last person that he was supposed to meet in the original timeline. He turned around and sure enough, it was her. The Great Spirit Muzet. She had a smiling face, looking at Ludger with a curious eye.

"Muzet…" Ludger said as a greeting.

Muzet playfully gasped, "Oh my… you know my name? But I guess I sort of expect that. After all, you don't seem like a normal human." Muzet giggled again.

Ludger forgot how 'playful' Muzet tended to be in the original timeline. And there was one thing he remembered that Jude in the original timeline mentioned about Muzet. "Muzet, are you here to kill me because I know the schism?"

Again, Muzet gave an innocent smile, "Normally, yes. You humans aren't supposed to know about the schism, you see. It's my mission to kill any who does." Muzet paused, "But you're a little bit special. You see, Lord Maxwell knows about you. And he told me all about you."

Ludger blinked in confusion, "Maxwell? But… Maxwell's supposed to be… dead."

Muzet giggled, "Don't worry. Lord Maxwell sent me here to explain to you what's going on. You see, Origin and Chronos missed out on a lot of things they forgot to tell you. That's what I'm here for."

Ludger said nothing. But with this new revelation, he wondered what else was in store for him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

In the world beyond the schism, the city of Spyrix known as Elympios continued with its everyday activities. While the government of Elympios was key in running the nation, very little knew the one that truly held power in the ruling of Elympios. The true organization that held power over Elympios politics was the Spirius Corporation. And the man with all that power was the CEO, Bisley Bakur.

At the moment, Bisley Bakur was inside his private office dealing with paper work when the door to his office opened. Vera, his personal assistant, entered.

"I'm sorry to bother you sir, but I just received a message that calls for your attention."

This caught Bisley's interest, "Oh? What is it?"

"The Elympions that managed to enter Rieze Maxia twenty years ago finally opened a hole in the schism." Vera reported, "With that, the Elympion army sent a fleet of ships into Rieze Maxia to begin the 'Otherworld Reactor' plan."

Bisley nodded, "And?"

Vera placed a small device on Bisley's desk, "Unfortunately, the small opening in the schism sealed itself. However before it did, one of the Elympion ships managed to record some footage of what was happening on the other side. I believe… you'll want to see what happened."

Bisley raised an eyebrow in interest and reached for the device. It was a tape which contained some video footage so Bisley inserted the device into a video player and replayed the footage. A screen started playing what was recorded. At first, there was nothing that caught Bisley's interest. He could see the Elympion soldiers jumping off the ship, making their descent and he could hear soldiers calling for reinforcements. Finally the footage concentrated on the battle below.

That was when Bisley saw it. And his eyes widened in shock at what he saw.

The video footage displayed someone in a level four Chromatus fighting off the Elympion army single-handedly. Unknown to him, the person was Ludger Will Kresnik.

"That's… a person… with the ultimate Chromatus?" Bisley muttered in disbelief.

Vera could only nod.

Bisley could not take his eyes off of the video footage. He could not believe that someone in this world that was not even in Elympios or the Spirius Corporation had the ability to use the ultimate Chromatus. Now, he wanted answers.

CHAPTER END