When Ludger got to his apartment, Sectonia followed him and they found a letter on the table. Ludger decided to let Sectonia read it to him, which she complies.
Sectonia read the note aloud. "Ludger, my brother... Bakur now holds the Key of Kresnik. And with Elle in the palm of his hands, we unfortunately only have one option left. A powerful member of our family must give his life to unfold the bridge to Canaan and pave the way for another. That, I'm afraid, is the final trial that we face in front of us: a sacrifice to build the soul bridge. I'm waiting at Rieze Harbor in Marksburg. Come find me when you have steeled yourself, when you know what you must do." At that moment, there was a knock on the door.
"It's open." Ludger said as the rest of the group came in.
"Hey, Ludger..." David said in a low tone.
"If you don't mind, can you two tell us the contents of his letter?" Milla asked. The two nodded and they told the group what they have learned.
"Maybe Elle told us what she did because she already figured out that a human sacrifice was the only way to get into Canaan." David speculates.
The group remembered what Bisley told Chronos back in Marksburg.
"There's a secret to entering Canaan, and I possess it." They remember Bisley say. "The life of a Kresnik, correct?"
The group see Ludger looking down at this.
Lloyd spoke up at this. "Elle must've concluded that you'd be the one sacrificed to build the bridge."
Gaius stepped forward. "Before we proceed further, there is something I must know. Do you believe that you are capable of sacrificing your own brother in order to reach the Land of Canaan?"
"Whoa! Gaius, show some tact!"
Despite Lloyd's comment, Ludger knows that there's no other way. "I have no choice."
"So it would seem..." David said. "Then at least let us accompany you." There was another knock at the door, and it was Nova carrying groceries.
"Surprise!" Nova said in her usual cheery tone. "Guess who's not here to bug you about your silly payments?! We need to celebrate your newfound freedom from crushing debt!" She then saw the rest of the group. "Uh-oh... You guys look even more depressed than usual."
"Well, Nova..." Jude started.
"Our apologies." Sectonia finished for him. "But we'll be gone for a while."
"Oh, I see." Nova said. "Well, I guess I can put this party on hold, but not for too long! I mean, isn't Julius back, too? I bought tomatoes for him and everything!" She saw Ludger wasn't looking good. "Ludger?" Ludger gently put Nova on the side as he left for Marksburg with the group following him. "What... What did I say this time...?"
At Marksburg, Julius was holding his arm.
"Just need to hold out a little longer." Julius then saw Ludger and the group appear. "Ludger, you came."
The group then saw a purple trail leading to Canaan.
"What the-? What is that?" Scott asked.
Julius answered. "What you see there is a soul bridge. Bisley just entered the Land of Canaan."
"Does that mean... Elle is..."
Julius shook his head to the group's relief. "No, she's his weapon against Chronos. I'm guessing that Rideaux unfortunately got the honor."
"Damn..." David muttered. He hated Rideaux with all of his guts, but even he doesn't think he deserved this.
"Bisley never saw me and Rideaux as anything more than tools for creating the bridge. That's...just the sort of man he is."
"There's no other way...is there, Julius?" Ludger asked.
"No, there isn't." Julius said sadly. "Unless one of us dies, the Land of Canaan will forever remain out of our reach. Such is the fate of the scions of Kresnik." Ludger was very heartbroken about this, but Julius brought out his gloved hand. "Don't feel too badly for me." Julius removes the glove, revealing his hand to be black.
"His transformation has already progressed that far?!" Ramona asked.
"I'm a dead man no matter what. At least this way, my death will mean something to someone. Use my life. Let me be your path to the Land of Canaan."
Ludger was in the worst possible situation to be in right now. He doesn't want to kill Julius, but if he doesn't go through with it, the group will go for him instead. Not to mention that there won't be anyone to save Elle, who might already be a divergence catalyst by the time they settle things with Bisley. And so, he told Julius: "I... I'll do it."
"So you're ready?" Ludger nods and they both draw their swords. "If that's the case, let me be your big brother one last time. I need to see for myself if you're strong enough to see this through."
{Cue Song: For the Sake of Mutual Proof- Tales of Xillia 2}
"Wait!" Jude tries to go forward, but David stops him.
"We have no right to intervene in their fight." David reasons wiith Jude.
"Sorry about the entrance exam." Julius told Ludger. "This time, the test is real!" Julius charges forward and the two brothers clash swords. From here, Ludger can see that Julius is weak to wind and slash attacks. The two clash their swords for a while. "I always thought of you as a child. Someone to be there for, someone to protect... However! I accept you, you now have the power to choose for yourself!"
As the two clashed swords. The rest of the group comments on the fight.
"You know..." David started. "I never wanted either of them to die... However, this proves a good learning experience."
"How so?" Gaius asked.
"Well, life is full of barriers to overcome. You can't clear them if you don't believe in yourself. Ludger knows that he can't rely on us forever."
"That's right." Lloyd confirms. "We all have our own personal issues to deal with. We can help each other all we want, but in the end, we can only say we've overcome these insecurities if we settle them ourselves."
"Sectonia... When you face off against the entity that corrupted you once before, promise me you won't hold back. You have to use all of your power so that you can finally be free from this burden once and for all."
Sectonia smiled at David's words. "Don't worry... I promise."
Back at the fight, Ludger had managed to push Julius back.
"That's not good enough, Ludger! You're never going to achieve victory like that! Not against our family's curse. Not against Bisley!" Julius goes into his chromatus. "Your desire fuels the chromatus. It won't grant you power unless you want it!" Julius goes even further into his chromatus. "Do you have what it takes?!" Julius activates his mystic arte, in which he slashes Ludger multiple times. "I shall test your resolve!" Ludger went even further into his chromatus where everything except his head what covered in black armor. Julius performs a cross-shaped slash that radiates energy. "Ritual of Devastation!" However, Ludger's Form Destroyer overpowers this. "What?!" Julius finds himself at the end of Ludger's lance. "Well done... Ludger." Julius smiles and closes his eyes and takes the attack.
When the light faded, Ludger was back in Trigleph Station, and he realized that Julius created a fractured dimension where everyone was successful with their lives. When he reaches the apartment, he hears a voice from the other side.
"Yikes! Look at the time!" Ludger hid as the door opens, revealing it to be this dimension's version of Ludger. "Gotta move!" Alternate Ludger was about to leave when Julius stopped him.
"Not so fast!" Julius adjusts Alternate Ludger's tie.
"You know I can't stand dressing up."
"Well, you need to learn to stand it."
"Maybe someday."
"You're impossible."
Alternate Ludger checked his watch. "Whoa, now I'm really late!" Alternate Ludger then headed out. "I'll make pasta margherita for dinner tonight, okay?"
Julius sighed and scratched his head. "Still trying to butter me up with tomatoes." Julius then went back in the apartment. "It works, but still." After a while, the real Ludger walked in, and Julius looked at him. "What's up? Forget something?" However, Julius took one look into Ludger's eyes, and though smiling, he understood what was going on. "I sure wish...I could've eaten one last pasta margherita." Julius got up and put a hand on Ludger's shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it. There are worse things than being dragged around by your brother." Ludger has flashbacks of the good times he and Julius had together and Julius gave him his watch. "You're the one who showed me that. Go on, Ludger. Now it's your turn to look after someone special." Ludger then thought of Elle. "Go and create...your perfect world." Julius hummed the Hymn of Proof one last time, during which Ludger got into his chromatus and stabbed Julius, destroying the divergence catalyst and causing the dimension to break.
When Ludger returned to the prime dimension, he was consoled by the group and then a light twinkled at the edge of the dock forming a dark sphere with a trail leading to Canaan.
"Let's do it." Scott declared. "This bridge just might vanish like the old one did."
"Not this time." Presea said.
"Julius is holding it up for us." Genis said.
"I say Ludger goes first." Sectonia said. "After all, this bridge was built for none other than you."
Ludger nods at this and Rollo gives a long meow, for Julius.
"But first..." David said. "We've got a few things to take care of. Your loan, for one." Ludger nods at this. He'll have a hard time explaining this to Nova.
A/N: Inspired by Jexi the Hunter and Hope the Victor