Building an Empire in Another World

"Cool. So first I die in some street, then I'm reincarnated in another world with a system from a novel, and now I have the choice of whether or not to have PTS… sigh", at this point Bruno feels a migraine coming on. As he starts massaging the bridge of his nose, he begins to think of his situation. Alone in a new world, no knowledge of said world or where he is, no idea what dangers are present, no clue of how the locals would receive him or where they are for that matter… The more he thinks on his situation, the more grim his face becomes. He knows he has a substantial sum of Goldmarks and an infantry battalion, but this world is full of unknown dangers and that terrify him. He knows he needs all the help he can get at this point, but he's also concerned about the consequences. In school he watched a documentary on the aftermath of the First World War, and vividly remembers how traumatized the soldiers were. Specifically one who was terror-stricken at the site of his own uniform.

"….sigh… Fuck it I know I'm probably going to regret this, but I need all the help I can get at this point. At least I'll be alive. System, accept the gift".

"Notice. Accepting gift. Host may experience severe a serve migraine, and physical pains. There is no need to worry, as they are temporary".

The moment the system's message flashed, Bruno's vision swam white as he experienced the most skull-splitting headache he's ever had. As he drops to his knees, he lets out a silent scream and begins punching the sand. Little does he know this is only the beginning, as he also starts to feel a burning sensation over his body. His joints begin the ache, his eyes and upper body begin to burn. As the pain reaches its crescendo, he finally lets out a blood-curdling scream and collapses face first into the sand.

"… what… w-what… w-what the fuck was that. That was the worst experience of my life! What the hell!?"

As Bruno curses whoever his benefactor is, he begins to remember a life other than the one he lived. He remembers being born to the Kaiser and Kaiserin, Wilhelm and Christiana von Richthofen, of the German Imperial family. He was raised as the Crown Prince, but received no benefits due to his lineage. In fact he was pushed harder than anyone on his family, due to the meritocratic beliefs the nation was founded on. He may be the Kaiser one day, but he has to have the knowledge and morals to lead his people to a better tomorrow, therefore he must earn his rank in the eyes of his family. It was these beliefs that led him to enrolling in the Royal Main Cadet Institute, where he met Erich Weissner and Michael Meyer. The sons of a local magistrate and military noble respectively. Together they graduated the Institute with top marks, and ended up with officer positions in the infantry. After a few years of desk work, occasionally meeting with each other and sharing drinks, war broke out, and they were sent to the front lines. What should have been a short war turned into a years-long endeavor that claimed the lives of millions. During that time Bruno bonded with those under his command, watched many of his brothers die horrific and gruesome deaths, and claimed many lives. After several injuries, including being shot in the shoulder, stabbed in the leg with a bayonet, shrapnel wounds in his back and under his left eye, and chemical burns from a surprise attack from the enemy, he was finally recalled back home permanently where he leaned of Erich and Micheal's deaths. As he relives each injury, the corresponding part of his burn aches or burns. Fast forwarding to the present, he remembers his past life on Earth before he died in a bombing. As the memories flood back to him, a tear streaks down his face. The sense of loss leaves him memenartily dazed before he snaps back to reality, looking at his hands as he mumbles to himself.

"What was that? I know it said I would live through the events, but that was too real….. Am I Bruno the history buff, or the Crown Prince? Am I neither? What is the hellbis happening?"

Thinking through the complex swirl of emotions, Bruno begins to sort through everything he just experienced. It's true that he was originally an office worker, but what he just experienced was too real. He'll never be the same afterwards, and vividly remembers everything; the laughs he had with his friends, the scolding from his father and the warmth of his mothers hug, the pride when graduating the Institute and the celebration his family through for him, the loss of his friends, and the looks of concern and fear on his family's faces when he was gunally pulled from the front. After nearly half an hour of sorting through everything, he comes to a conclusion.

"I'm both who I was before, and the Crown Prince. I can never be the same after, and those memories will be with me for the rest of my life. Right, i felt each injury", he says as he stands up and wasks to the waters edge. As he peers down into the reflection, he sees a handsome young man with dirty blonde hair and heterochromatic eye, one sky blue and the other sky blue and brown. There is a shrapnel scar under his left eye, which when combined with his heterochromia, gives him a striking look. Curious he raises his shirt to see a muscular yet lean body with many scars from chemical burns and bullet sounds.

"Damn. I look better than I did before, but these scars are a bit worrying. Really don't want to end up in a hospital later."

Bruno chuckles slightly at the irony that he finally has the looks he wanted in his past life, but it came at such a steep price. At this point he starting to think it was worth it. The rewards combined with the memories of such a life and his current body are starting to win him over. If he's being honest with himself, the memories he received have already become a cherished possession of his, whether he knows it or not, due to the fact that it was much more fulfilling than his previous one. With these thoughts, he returns to the present, and seeing the evening sky, decides the begin taking the first steps in rebuilding his family's empire.

"Well, I guess I better get started."