Chapter 1: Nonsense Battle
"Max! Stay low in the trenches, you bastard, or you'll get yourself killed!"
Leonel shouted as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. He was wearing a worn-out army uniform, a rifle slung over his shoulder and ammunition stuffed into every visible pocket.
His fair complexion was smeared with dirt, his black hair was all coated in mud, and his eyes were completely red.
Max, his only friend who was alive till now in this godforsaken battlefield, was leaning over the trench, trying to peek and record a badass video for his social media followers.
"Chill, dude," Max said, shrugging as he wiped his phone screen with his rough hands. "No one's firing bullets over some stupid-ass generals who revoked the ceasefire just because one of them joked about the other's pecker. Besides, the battle will end soon. He can't get away forever after disobeying his superiors, even if he is an old fart."
It was exactly as Max had said. Their general had indeed removed the ceasefire to restart this long, gruelling battle after the enemy general mocked him by saying, 'You must definitely have a small dick.'
"Arghhh… that general of ours even disregarded the fucking higher command, saying it doesn't matter," Leonel groaned.
"Don't you know?" Max said casually. "People start losing screws when they grow old. He's turning 60 this year."
"That's exactly what I am saying!" Leonel snapped. "That idiot thinks he will die peacefully if he kills the guy who insulted him. Did that old fuck forget that we are fucking young and the ones dying out here? And the funny part is? HE'S NOT EVEN IN THIS BATTLEFIELD! MOTHERFCKR!!!!!"
Leonel shouted, his voice cracking with fury as he slammed his fist against the dirt.
"Man, what's with you?" Max said. "If anything, I should be the one worrying about dying. My wife's pregnant with our second kid."
Leonel froze.
"Ahh… Just thinking about them lifts my mood," Max continued with a soft smile.
While Max drifted into his thoughts, Leonel suddenly started sweating.
Wasn't this a fucking red flag?
Max kept on.
"You know my wife even…"
He was abruptly cut off when Leonel grabbed him by the shoulders and started shaking him violently.
"You family man! I am single, and on top of that, a freaking virgin! And what were you saying about your wife? STOP GIVING RED FLAGS, YOU IDIO…!"
Leonel stopped mid-sentence.
His eyes widened, and his pupils shrank to the size of a needle tip as he noticed that a mortar shell had just landed behind Max.
Reacting almost purely on instinct, Leonel shoved Max down and shielded him with his own body just as the mortar exploded.
The blast roared through the trench, shaking everything in the vicinity.
The shrapnel exploded and directly tore through Leonel's body from multiple directions.
When the dust and debris finally settled, Leonel noticed Max was holding him, his face twisted in horror as tears streamed down his cheeks. Max was shouting something, but Leonel couldn't hear a word.
Slowly, Leonel raised a trembling hand and touched his chest. The instant his finger touched his chest, it felt as if warm liquid was pouring out and flowing between his fingers.
He looked back at Max and tried to speak, but no sound came out of his mouth. Only his thoughts remained.
"Hah! Serves you right, bastard… well, at least you will get to meet your wife again…"
Then his thoughts stopped.
"Wife… what a dream come true word…" Then automatically, tears began streaming down his face too.
"Damn it… I didn't even lose my virginity. I swear, if I get another life, the first thing I will do is to find a smoking hot girl… and second, get into a powerful position so I can teach general like… people… a… less… huh?"
Then, his vision started blurring.
He looked once again at Max's blurring figure, the man who was clutching him and crying his eyes out.
"Bastard… you really were the only one who made it to the end, huh… looks like you won the bet…"
Somehow, with the last of his strength, Leonel reached into his blood-soaked chest pocket and pulled out a folded note.
Then his vision went completely black.
_____
Max watched as Leonel's vital signs finally faded and his sobs grew even louder.
Leonel had been his last friend who remained alive after everything they had endured together. But when it was finally time for them to leave the army and supposedly finally go home, his only friend died.
"NOOO! LEOOOOO!!" Max screamed at the top of his lungs, clutching his friend's lifeless body. "Why the fuck would you do that?! Was it because of my wife, you bastardddd?! Why… why…?! I only brought it up to lighten the mood, you idiot…"
Max knew Leonel had always cared deeply for him and for the friends they had lost along the way.
You even impersonated me while I took your part of the leave… just so I could spend some more time with my wife… and now… now you even give me your life.
Max wiped the tears from his face, but new ones quickly fell again.
How am I supposed to live with this burden, you fool? I don't even know where your familylives…
Max's gaze finally fell on the blood-stained note Leonel had pulled out of his pocket before dying, and he slowly reached for it.
As he read the words written inside, he couldn't hold himself any longer.
His voice broke into a raw cry.
Several soldiers rushed over and quickly covered his mouth, trying to quiet him, but none of them scolded him. Losing a dear friend was something most of them understood all too well.
So, they simply let him cry as they carried Leonel's body away to a safe place.
_____
Well, that was the last thing Leonel actually remembered.
But now?
Now he stood in a narrow alleyway, wearing a bloodied tunic.
"What the fuck?"
Leo stood up straight and took a proper look at himself and his surroundings.
He wore simple trousers and a tunic, along with a pair of worn shoes. The clothes were roughly tailored but still looked decent, if not for the blood splattered all over them.
He could feel that his body was aching, but not so much that he would require immediate medical attention. This much pain was bearable for his soldier-trained mind.
What bothered him more were the surroundings.
The houses were built from stone bricks and wood, and even the ground beneath his feet was paved with stone bricks instead of tar, cement, or those modern block tiles.
He was still trying to make sense of everything around him when a sudden headache assaulted his mind.
"Arghhhh... "
He clutched his head.
"It feels like someone's knocking from inside of my head…"
"Huh… wha… what is this?"
He stared blankly ahead, speaking as he looked at nothing.
"Is this what people call transmigration? And I have already died once…? No wait… if I count this one… that makes two."
He muttered to himself as fragments of memories began to surface.
Leo glanced around once more before looking down at his poorly tailored clothing again.
"To be honest… they don't seem that bad anymore… if the things I suddenly happen to recall out of nowhere are actually true."