Re: Blood and Iron - Chapter 904: Legacy

Chapter 904: Legacy

The 3rd Fallschirm-Panzergrenadiere Division “Falke” had been on alert status for close to a year. German intelligence monitored the situation in Switzerland closely.

The nation found itself embroiled in a state of civil strife that, since the resignation of its President escalated into political violence at nearly every turn.

Riots, sabotage, and assassination were on the rise. And it was Berlin’s prerogative that any act of transgression against their borders would be considered an act of war.

As a result, orders had just come down for the permanent relocation of the 3rd Fallschirm-Panzergrenadiere Division “Falke,” which Generalmajor Erich von Zehntner commanded into North Tyrol.

Henceforth, the Airborne Mechanized Division would officially act as the Riechscheer’s spearhead into any conflict that may potentially emerge on their alpine borders.

The order had been given by German High Command, and Erich’s unit in particular was chosen because his family’s domain being uniquely situated for its relocation.

Tyrol had become what many called the Martial Heart of the Reich. If Prussia was the strategic and political brain of the nation, and Vienna was the cultural core, then Tyrol had replaced Prussia as Germany’s most militant state.

And it was no exaggeration to say that Bruno had intrinsically designed his state that way.

Located at the crossroads between the Mediterranean and Central Europe, and consisting almost entirely of a series of mountain passes, river choke points, and valleys in between. The Grand Principality of Tyrol was uniquely situated to become a “Bastion State” In ways that others weren’t.

However, Erich now had to return home to his wife, Erika, and his children. Explaining to them that they were officially moving to Tyrol.

It was a bittersweet pill for Erich to swallow. This home had been one he resided in during his formative years.

Unlike his siblings, he had not resided in Tyrol for the majority of his formative years, spending much of his adolescence at Prussia’s Cadet Academy. Whereupon graduation, he began his military career at an exceptionally young age.

He spent his early years in deployment or back in the barracks in Berlin. Eventually marrying Erika where he inherited the home he had spent his youth in. Like his father before him.

It was only natural that under such circumstances, when he approached his wife, Erika, she instantly recognized what was troubling him.

“Let me guess… That time has finally come?”

Erich could only smile bitterly while he sighed in relief.

“I honestly thought you would be more upset, isn’t it a bit too early?”

Erika stopped kneading the dough she was preparing for that night’s dinner, washed her hands briefly in the kitchen sink, before trying them off.

She then grabbed her husband’s hands and held him tightly.

“It was bound to happen, eventually. You might be Generalmajor now, but you can’t control all the change that occurs in life. I know you’re attached to this place, but think of it this way, if we never move away, will our son be able to inherit it when he finally grows up and get married?”

Erich thought about his wife’s words for a few moments and broke out into a soft chuckle. His wistful tone gave away his thoughts instantly.

“I suppose it would be more awkward to wait until that day and then suddenly ask my grandfather for his vacation home in Berlin.”

The House von Zehntner held a great many homes. Not quite as many as those ancient families. With the old fachwerk manor in Berlin included, they had three properties in Prussia, one in the Russian Empire, and their esteemed “Grand Palace of Tirol.”

And these were just the possessions of the main line. Bruno’s brothers, sons, and nephews possessed property of their own despite the majority of the House’s members primarily residing in their Grand Palace.

The idea of asking Bruno for one of those possessions wasn’t unpragmatic. Rather, if asked, Bruno would likely give his grandson permanent residence inside one of his choosing.

But it was the idea that Erich struggled to grasp. Because why would he wish to do such a thing when this was the home he was most attached to?

Erika could once more tell his “joke” wasn’t made entirely in the sport of humor, and was quick to remind Erich of something.

“Besides, our children are old enough now that they ought to grow up closer to the family. They should know their roots properly.”. They need to truly know where their roots are tied down, even if their origins are closer to Berlin than Innsbruck.”

There was no argument that Erich could make that was logically sound enough to dispel his wife’s. He could only accept his fate and shake his head. Looking at the level of flour and cornmeal he was now covered, Erich couldn’t help but mock his wife for cleaning her hands before her initial hug.

“Honestly, dear, if you were just going to coat my uniform in flour anyway, what was the point of washing your hands?”

Erika slightly tapped Erich’s nose with her wooden spoon, itself caked in half finished dough, before pouting and turning back to her bread.

“Don’t question my strict attention to culinary hygiene! Go wash yourself off, the girls will take care of your uniform while you soak. At dinner, we can tell the children together that we will be moving within the month.”

Erich could only sigh and do as his wife commanded, he knew better than to make fun of her any further. She took cooking very seriously, and that included sterilization of cooking instruments and the constant washing of her hands.

It was absolutely a sore spot to keep pressing on, even in jest, and thus he walked up the stairs and entered the bath. By the end of the month Erich and his family would move into the Grand Palace that his children had only ever visited during annual gatherings for the family.

As for Erich, he would leave his life in the quaint old family manor behind. And begin his life in Tyrol. Whatever was happening in Switzerland, he prayed it wouldn’t require his intervention any time soon.