CHAPTER 2 (Grasping the situation)

July 06, 1886

30 minutes after the start of her labour.

"Push, Your Majesty! Push!"

"Aaahh!"

Commanded the doctor while assisting the woman in bed battling to deliver the baby out from her body. Laying in bed at the Imperial Palace of Sella, in the capital city of the Empire of Butuan, Sooraj City, the Empress, Empress Alice of House Pangasinan is giving birth to her first child. Accompanied by her husband and royal doctors and nurses in her delivery chamber to assist her.

"A little bit more, Your Majesty. Push!"

"Aaahhhhh!"

"Waaahhh!!... Waaahh!"

After almost an hour of labour, the Empress finally were able to deliver the baby.

"Congratulation Your Majesties, it is a healthy baby boy."

"Th… Thank you, Doctor"

The Empress replied weakly as she receives the baby from the doctor's arms and gently put him into her embrace.

"He has your eyes, My Dear. What name shall we give him?"

Said the Empress as she put the baby beside her and focus her attention towards her husband who is right beside her bed, watching her as she put the baby right beside her.

"Indeed, he had my eyes, the eyes of the royalty. I am so proud of you, My Love. We shall name him, Siagu, after the name of my ancestor who banishes the invaders, Siagu Alexie of House Shaja."

A smile appears on the woman's face as she hears the of her first child. "What a lovely name. Siagu Alexie of the Empire of Butuan, the heir to the throne. I pray to the Lord that He will bless and guide you." Kissing her baby on his forehead while tracing a cross on it.

'Where am I? Why am I a baby? I was supposed to be dead by now. Did something happen to me? Am I in heaven?... Idiot me, how can I be in heaven if I am a baby?'

"We shall name him, Siagu, after the name of our ancestor who banishes the invaders, Siagu Alexie of House Shaja." Said the tan, good-looking man, wearing a gold-coloured tunic embroidered with different designs that echo elegance and royalty, who is looking at me affectionately.

'Siagu Alexie? Is that my name? You must be my father.'

He thought as he continues to ponder on where is he and how he ended up in his current situation. But the woman caught his attention as she suddenly kissed him and traces a cross on his forehead.

'Mother.'

"Your Majesties, we will be taking the prince now for some aftercare."

"Go on."

A nurse gently carried me towards the nursing side of the room to do some aftercare.

'Looks like I have been reincarnated in the body of a prince. Exciting. I wonder what kingdom I am in right now. Oh, a chandelier, nice.'

Despite being a studious type of individual, Alexis loves to read novels and stories about monarchy and religion. He was so into those novels that he was once so upset because his favourite character in a novel died at the end. He was so upset that he refuses to attend school for almost a week, he was only forced to attend school the following week by his mother.

'Well, since I am here already and dead in my previous world, I better do well on this one and make this lifetime unforgettable and exciting. There is no point in mourning for my family back home, I am already dead and I cannot change what already happened, sure I missed them but accepting the reality is the right choice for reincarnators. I am not like Rimuru Tempest who became a god and goes back in time to save himself.'

Accepting his current situation in a much faster way that even other reincarnators or transmigrators might be put shame.

'Besides, I am a prince in this world, Prince Siagu Alexis, as what my father called me. I might not know yet what kingdom I am in, but it looks like a prosperous one. Besides, who doesn't even want to be a prince? Even the richest man in my previous world wanted to be a prince of some sort. Only an idiot will mourn for not being able to go back to his original world.'

Without even noticing it, the nurses are already done with their aftercare on him. Now back on his parents' side in bed, Siagu was instantly hit by baby tiredness which resulted in him falling asleep under the gazes of his parents.

"Another baby?" *giggles*

Giggling and teasing could be heard inside the chamber as the emperor continued to tease his wife about having another baby.

~ 10 YEARS LATER ~ August 14, 1896

Currently, I am sitting and watching the entirety of the imperial garden on a bench under the Narra Tree planted on the mounded left side of the garden, while being accompanied by my personal attendant. A refreshing feeling enters my body as the fresh blows of the wind touch my body while hearing the chirping of the birds present in the garden.

Just behind the Imperial Palace of Sella, the Imperial Garden with an area of 463 metres of land is considered to be the biggest private garden in the entire empire. With well maintained by the imperial gardeners, planted with a variety of flowers and trees that can only be found in the empire's land, the imperial garden became the default reservation plantation of the plants in the empire. Not to mention the two pavilions at the centre of the imperial garden near the pond, just blend the vibe of a nature garden.

It has been 10 years since my birth as the Imperial Crown Prince of the Empire of Butuan. It was a shock for me actually to know that I have been reborn in an alternate universe, and here I thought I was just reincarnated in Europe or something. Boy, I was wrong, I was reincarnated in a world where the Philippines never came into existence but instead, the Rajahnate of Butuan, currently known as the Empire of Butuan, took control of the whole island and some colonies in other Southeast Asian areas.

The empire established the identity of being a Butuanon after 200 years of promoting this in the 3 main islands of the empire (Luzon, Visayas, & Mindanao), although the promotion of the identity of Butuanon is also being done in its overseas territories, slow progress has been made after the war with the British and the French. But despite its slow progress, stability was still achieved and maintained in the empire.

This is not just the most peculiar thing in this world, the other one is in France, the House Bonaparte still rules the entirety of the country and its overseas territories. Apparently, Napoleon I was never been exiled after his defeat and France never became a republic. So, obviously, his house continues to rule France, gaining popularity from its people every day and having another Napoleon as its ruler, Napoleon IV.

Aside from these two major changes in history, nothing much is different from my previous world. The success of the Union against the Confederacy, the scramble for Africa, the fall of the Habsburg and its fragmentation, the Russian Empire, the fall of India, and other more. With these developments around the world, I am now sure that the world is heading towards its first world war.

The latest world events show that the world is about to experience another war, much more devastating and damaging. Unlike the wars before, fought with swords, arrows, cavalries, siege weapons, and many more… the coming war will be fought with more deadly and nightmarish weapons than the world has ever seen.

The ambition of the German Empire to unite all German-speaking populations isn't a secret to all, their call for unity with Austria under the German Empire resounded throughout Europe. Gaining the animosity of France and Britain, who don't want to see a much more powerful German Empire.

'What a mess' I contemplated. When I said that I wanted an exciting life, I never meant to be in an era entering the first world war! This is too much; I might die in this world before reaching the age of 21! I can't, I just can't… I needed to survive; the empire needed to survive. Should I abandon the empire and left for the Americas?

No. I can't, I cannot leave my family here, my father and mother, not to mention my siblings and other relatives. They are my family now and I need to protect them, I might not be able to do it perfectly, but at least I tried.

"Radhesh."

"Yes, Your Imperial Highness?"

I called his attention while continuing to focus my gaze on the garden.

Radhesh Huang, wearing a plain black and white business suit embroidered with the pattern of leaves on its sleeves depicting the unspoken symbol of the empire. He is one of the hundreds of imperial courtiers working under the imperial family. He is currently 21 years old and has been my personal attendant since I was a kid, trained in martial arts and sword fighting, people will have a harder time defeating him. He is a mix-ethnicity between a Butuanon and Han Chinese giving him the East Asian feature but a tan skin tone.

Okay, I needed to do this, for the empire and my soon-to-be people.

"Please inform my uncle, to see me within this week. I have some important matters to discuss with him."

I look at him and saw that he nod his head.

"Yes, Your Imperial Highness. The message shall be delivered after lunch, I would also like to remind you that you will be meeting your tutor for today at your private library in a few minutes."

He said while looking at a stopwatch in his hand.

I nod and started to walk towards the main building of the Imperial Palace while he trails behind me.

Over the years, despite the stigma against Western people, the Empire of Butuan and the Kingdom of Siam were still able to learn to tolerate some of them. Both nations even manage to adopt clothing from the West, comfortable clothing. Especially as it is more practical to use in many jobs, like factories. My grandfather even opted to wear a more modernised version of our traditional clothing and only required members of the Imperial Household to wear the traditional garments on important occasions.

It has been 10 years, but I am still in awe while watching the whole structure of the imperial palace. Passing the different portraits and tapestries depicting different events of the empire and its rulers in the hallway. Intricate wall and column designs are visible, radiating calm and elegance.

The Imperial Complex is located a few metres away from the main road of the capital city, facing southeast. Surrounded by towering walls reaching a height of 15 metres with 15 towers placed in every corner and strategic locations. The towers are 24/7 being guarded by Imperial Household Guards armed with muskets guns, ready to protect our family.

My ancestors must have been so into nature that the design of these palaces is more inclined into balancing nature and infrastructure. The Imperial Palaces resemble those palaces or temples in Thailand. The Imperial complex boasts elegance and power, made out of several buildings that serve different purposes.

The Palace of Sella, the main residence of the monarch and his family, is the oldest of all the palaces in the entire complex and was made under the reign of Rajah Siagu II in honour of his mother. The palace is located at the centre of the Imperial complex, this palace has been the house of the Rajahs since the reign of Rajah Siagu II in 1550. A 5-meter-wide island shrine was put at the centre of the grounds while being surrounded by water, adding elegance to its surrounding. A 4-story building that houses different administrative offices, our family's private chambers, audience halls, and ceremonial spaces.

The second building is the mansion of Tessa, commissioned by Rajah Siagu V, is the second oldest building and the smallest out of the three main buildings in the complex. Located on the left side of the Palace of Sella, this mansion houses several rooms that are reserved to be used by foreign monarchs and dignitaries, officially invited by our family.

The Mansion of Minbury, commissioned by Rajah Silongan III in dedication to his wife, is the third oldest building in the complex and is where all balls and social events are being held in the Imperial Complex.

The Residence of Michael. The newest of all buildings in the complex, located far behind the Tessa Mansion, this building accommodates all of the workers in the complex, from maids to butlers and drivers to gardeners, and even the imperial guards who guarded the complex stayed in this residence.

Without knowing it, I already arrived at my private library where I would be attending my class. After a few minutes of waiting my tutor finally arrives.

"Forgive me for my tardiness, Your Imperial Highness. And good morning" My tutor said while bowing his head.

"Don't mind it, Doctor Rizal, it is not like this is our first meeting, is it?" I said while smiling at him as wiped his sweats off, 'he must be running coming here'

Yes, He is José Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda, commonly known as Doctor José Rizal.

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Hi everyone! Author here.

Thank you for reading my story, this story is purely out of my wanting to write a story about the genres I love the most. I will make sure that this story will be diving more into the monarchy and its institution, as few stories have done this trope. Although a lot of stories revolve around the monarchy, but they usually have harem types of genres which I hate the most. So, obviously, this story will not be a harem type.

Again, historical dates and individuals are not accurate on this one but I am trying to make this historically accurate as much as possible.

Chapter updates will not be fixed as I am still busy with my last year in college. Thank you for the support and feel free to point out some grammatical mistakes, thanks.