Quezon City, Philippines

May 26th, 2025

[Robert Dela Cruz's POV] 

I couldn't understand why his best friend Alexander would betray him like this. He couldn't process how or why, but I knew that his life was completely over. 

At the age of 30, Alexander and I established a company that's tailored towards accepting construction contracts and the like. And for a few years we had some hit and misses. 

But we had our successful so called 'Big Hit' and we became popular within the country as one of the top construction companies. 

Politicians and powerful people hired us for their services whether if it's abroad or domestic. But things got too political or Greed seeped in through the cracks of our friendship and I was too late to realize that my best friend was buying out the company, making false evidence to show to my family, my fiancee, and invidently ruined my life. 

And it all happened in the span of 5 years. 

I am not 35 years old, drinking away at my mistakes and sorrows in life, plotting revenge as I glanced at the pistol that I bought online. It was a 1911 pistol, a relatively 2nd model which I bought for a cheap price along with 5 magazines. 

I planned meticulously on how would I end Alexander's life as I knew he wanted to rub it in one last time as he hasn't taken everything from me not yet, so I planned to take him down with me. 

I even made home made bombs that I have looked up on the internet and online video guides. It wasn't easy getting some ingredients but money doesn't really matter for me as long as I get my revenge.

I then Rigged my house that was my grand parents ancestral house with homemade bombs along with an old fashion detonator and waited for that fated day. 

I played multiple scenarios in my head on how. It'll go down, regardless if I die, I would blow up the one thing I would deny him getting, which makes me smile a bit. 

[May 27th, 2025]

[Old Ancestral Home of the Dela Cruz's Family] 

[Robert's POV] 

I tucked the pistol in front of my hips and covered it to not alert Alexander's bodyguards nor his family from what I'm about to do and sat down on the living room and waited. 

Not long after, I heard multiple vehicles arrive at the property along with Alexander, my ex Fiancée, and his family and barged in my grand parents house like they owned the place. 

"Well well well, if it isn't my old and dear friend Robert. How kind of you to wait for us to see you suffer more." Alexander smiled a devilish grin along with my ex Fiancées enraptured gaze on Alexander.. 

I honestly felt disgusted that I fell in love with her such a woman and vowed never again to be more careful in my next life, whenever may that be. 

I stayed silent as I watched Alexander pulled a chair and sat in front of me, clearly gloating that he had won. 

"How very boring Robert, come on! Speak up! Man up like you always did back then." Alexander said, cockingly

I only replied Alexander with calming words, my eyes calm, but inside a desire to kill Alexander and his family grew every second as he wanted to savor the satisfaction of absolute despair and desperation on Alexander's face once he finds out. 

"I honestly don't know why you're doing this, but I have an inkling on why. So don't bother explaining your villainess ways. You and Sofia can go to hell for ruining my life and my family." I said, before pressing the detonator, detonating the whole ancestral house entrance and exits along with setting fire on the surrounding estate. 

Alexander and Sofia were about to reply, but their shocked expressions and despair quickly took hold on what happened and looked at me as if I were a crazy person. 

"YOU MOTHER FUCKER! LET US OUT NOW AND WE'LL LET YOU DIE PEACEFULLY!" Alexander Shouted. 

Sofia like wise shouted in desperation as well as anger towards me "ARE YOU CRAZY ROBERT!" 

I laughed like a crazy man who has nothing to lose as I grabbed my pistol in front of my waist and stood up. 

The moment they saw the gun, they quickly backed up and Alexander stuttered and tried to calm me down without avail. 

"No-now Robert you wouldn't want to be a murderer aren't you? Killing your best friend and fiancee? Come on I was kidding. Now please drop the gun and we'll talk." Alexander said, trying to talk shit out of his predicament. 

Sofia also tried flirtious words and seduction to calm me down

"Robert remember me? Your loving Fiancee? Dear please drop the gun and we can be together again. We can have a life togethe regardless if you're poor."

Shouts from the outside of the ancestral estate indicating that the family of Alexander along with his bodyguards called the fire department and trying to quench the flames. 

But I didn't mind them since it would take hours even to reach us as I pointed my gun to Sofia and said my final words to her. 

"Rot in hell bitch." before I fired one bullet through her skull. 

I watched as her shocked expression along with disbelief as her body fell down the floor hard, with blood oozing out of her temple. 

"HAVE YOU GONE SENILE NOW ROBERT! WE WERE PLANNING TO LET YOU GET AND DIE ALONE YOU FUCKING LUNATIC! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO HAVE NO-" 

I didn't wait for him to complete his words as I slapped the butt of the pistol onto his face and watched him fell down the floor hard, screaming bloody murder as he clutched his right cheek, bruised and his mouth dripping with blood. 

"I have nothing to lose Alexander." 

I fired a bullet through Alexander's right thigh, and I watched him screamed and tried to crawl away before I fired again, this time on his left thigh. 

"No words would ever change my mind Alexander. The last riches along with the estate will be blown to kingdom come. With nothing left for your family to grasp. Once I'm dead, my will along with the money in the bank will be donated and the rest will be to hire hitmen to target your family, your relatives, everyone, down to a single baby. Making sure your line goes extinct Alexander...youve brought me that low. "

Alexander looked up to me in fear as he realized to himself that he has made a devil in human form as I fired again, this time on his right arm, then his left. 

" I find it... Funny and ironic that back then, I thought we would be uncorruptible, unbribable. But here we are. So see you in hell Alexander." 

I pointed my last bullet to Alexander's Temple. 

He tried to scream, but was cut short by me blowing his head, and watching his body dropped to the floor. 

As I watched them lay dead in the floor, I felt a sense of statisfaction and emptiness as the flames continued to consumes everything around me. 

"Sorry mom, dad, sister, brother, I hope you're all in heaven while your youngest son will rot in he'll for what I've done.." 

-----------------------------

[3rd Person POV] 

He closed his eyes and pressed the detonator once again and he didn't feel the heat of the fires anymore, nor pain. But a unending scene of emptiness surrounded by darkness. There he lay, thinking this was his punishment. Fitting for him, he thought out loud. 

He reminiscent the past as when he was a child he was an active history nerd and loved the history of and evolution of warfare. He even spent his allowance on his models and collections of weapons ranging from gun models to tank models, to buying authentic uniforms. 

Of course, his parents reprimanded him a lot for spending his daily allowance on such insignificant things, but he loved it, he even made it his hobby and collected throughout the years until he stopped to focus on his company that he founded with Alexander. 

He find it funny that his old friends even questioned his love for such a hobby and even question him even more for being an Otaku as well. But all of that is in the past as he thought. 

One of the most favorite alternate or fictional histories even mixed with some facts was on the internet and some anime such as Youjo Senki, or Girls und Panzer, etc etc. Even he was an active reader and commenter on alternate histories of the past and changing it for the better. 

But as he continued to dwell in those happy memories of his past, a small tiny light suddenly popped up in his ethereal vision. 

He wondered what it is and even wondered on why he was seeing it, and closed his eyes for a brief moment and opened them again to see if he was hallucinationating or not. He knew he was like a big ball of white nothingness that he summarized as his soul, and thinking to himself, that if this white light is any sign of what's to come to him, he might be either be in hell, heaven, or even isekaied or Reincarnation like those in the novels and animes.

Thinking of countless possibilities and with nothing to lose since he was stuck here for God knows how long since his sense of time is skewed to being surrounded by complete darkness, he floated slowly but surely to the light that seems so far away but not so far that's it's not impossible to reach. 

After what seems hours, days, months or even years, he finally stopped to see a door that's intricately designed with detailed markings that's considered luxurious in his world. 

He looked behind the door only to see nothing behind it, even above and below. All he could see was a floating door that's lighting itself in the perpetual void. 

"well then... I have nothing to lose. Wish me luck whoever is out there" he said to himself, praying to anyone who would answer his prayers for Goodluck and safe passage and grabbed the door knob and twisted it and opened the door. 

He was then surrounded by a dazzling white light, nearly blinding him as he pushed on towards the unknown and the light swallowed him whole. 

-------------------------------

August 10th, 1919

Colonia, Germania

Inside one of the Military Hospitals

[(Old Name) Robert Dela Cruz - (New Name) Robert Aelberht Zettour POV] 

I opened my eyes in a panic as I tried to stand up, only to be met with sudden pain on my right shoulder along with my right leg being casted. Confused, I looked at my body first, inspecting any damages, only to find the only injuries I suffered were a cast leg, my right shoulder that's also supported with a supporter, and some bad scars that were visible throughout my chest. Most likely stitches as I would've guessed. 

The second most worrying part that I was thinking is where the hell am I? I looked up, only to see rows of bed filled soldiers, and some nurses and doctors attending them. 

The dreaded thought process that I was processing inside my mind that follows like a roller coaster slowly going up the rail as I looked at the soldiers uniform, most likely world War 1 era and looking at my body, I concluded that I was also a soldier, who most likely fought in the western front and got injured in the process. 

And judging by the 3 medals that were present on the left side on my bed on top of a desk, this man that I Reincarnated in was most likely a hero.

For a brief moment, I felt pity that this man that I was Reincarnated to, died to his wounds and I ended up in his body along with his entire memories, experience, and personality. 

I must say, I liked the mentality and preservarance of this man who has the same first name as me. 

Now that my brief crises has passed, it was time to figure out what year am I Reincarnated to, or if this was the same era as I have known in my last life, as I was about to call a nurse on what year it was, a soldier, most likely a private shouted the dreaded words that I heard. 

"THE WAR IS OVER! THE KAISER HAS ABANDONED US! THE FUCKING KAISER ABANDONED US!" 

some shouted, some cries, some cheered, but most of the soldiers I've seen were upset and felt betrayed that we lost the war. 

But all I could think of in that moment was: "I'm in Germany? After the great war? Fuck." after that, I lied down to think and plan ahead on the shitsstorm on what's to come to my future, and to the future of Germany.