Max had thought long and hard about how to save his Captain Ravan persona from being sniffed out as Max Rajput, and in the end he had an ingenious idea.
Summoning all the troops stationed in the Paratus capital, Max planned to give a mass speech where he would introduce the new commander general of the rebel forces in Max Rajput.
Standing on the stage as he looked down on a few odd 250,000 soldiers Max felt a sense of accomplishment at the growing size of his army.
For security reasons he could no longer attack other plants with his full military might, as it would leave his conquered planets defenceless.
Currently 250 thousand soldiers were stationed in the Paratus capital, about 50 thousand on Greensoil planet and 100 thousand on the mining planet.
" Soldier's! We have already won two of the five planets controlled by the dastardly Kingsman clan and the time to eliminate them completely is drawing near.
We have lost some brave soldiers along the way, but we have also gained new friends.
I'm proud to say that our army has expanded significantly and we are no longer a small rebel group that can be ignored.
We have land, we have men and we have Destroyer ships!
Nobody can ignore us anymore….. " Max dressed as Ravan said as the crowd broke into cheers.
Everyone could visibly see the changes around them, there were new brigades forming everyday, the training grounds and drills improved significantly, and the size of the army kept expanding.
These changes brought a breath of fresh air to the army, as the troop morale was soaring high.
Max raised his hand to demand silence, and once the crowd was sufficiently quiet he said " Every army needs a capable commander, I'm a good strategist, a quite crazy one at that, but make no mistake men, I'm no commander…..
I can lead you all bravely into battle, but I can't pull you out of it should something go wrong.
With the expanding size of the army, after a lot of deliberation I've decided that it would be best if I brought a capable commander to share the burden of leading you fine men into battle and by King Regus's grace I found the perfect person for this job.
In recent times, you men must have heard tales about Shakuni the terrifying, the tier7 god who killed thunder monarch Thor, the undefeated warrior who completed Omega with a tier6 evaluation, the ultimate strategist who has never lost a war.
While that great man is dead, I have the privilege of calling his younger brother as my sworn brother.
He is the best warrior I have ever faced in my life and a man who I'm sure will lead this army to great heights...
Men, greet Field Commander Max Rajput "
The crowd clapped lightly, as Max's clone walked onto the stage.
The clone was dressed in loose earth styled clothes, as he wore an arrogant look on his face and scanned the crowd with contempt
Apart from his neck and face, the clone's body was fully covered in clothing as he wore thick rubber gloves around his hands even when the temperature outside was warm.
Max did not want anyone to see the clone's skin and determine that they were the same person, as he made sure to give the clone contact lenses to change the hue of red in his eyes, and a scar tape which when applied to his cheek made it look like he had a faded scar mark on his face.
Max's real looks were incredibly handsome, with a charm value of 88 he was instantly able to draw the attention of many women soldiers on the battlefield, while the men felt intimidated by his cool and calm gaze.
The clone patted the real Max on the back, before taking the podium as he said " I'm a man of few words, I don't like to come to the centre stage of universal affairs, but since my brother Ravan requested me to help him settle some affairs I agreed.
You all may think why do we have to accept this man who is not related to us in any way suddenly as our commander?
It's a great question, and the answer is because I'm the strongest one in this army, I'm the best strategist, the best warrior and the best person to lead you into battle while ensuring that the loss of life is minimal.
If you think I'm arrogant, then you would be right, I'm arrogant, that's pride in the Rajput that I am, the mighty warrior of the human race.
If any single one of you have objections about my abilities or think you don't wish to serve under me, this is your chance to come challenge and best me in one vs one battle
If not, hold your peace forever "
The clone spoke these words in a perfect Rudra like accent as even Max felt goosebumps go down his spine when he saw the acting of his clone.
" I do! This is dogshit, I follow Captain Ravan based on his achievements, I ain't taking shit from someone I don't know, I'll test your so-called mighty strength " One of the soldiers said as he stepped forward to challenge Max's clone.
The clone calmly put his hands in his pockets before walking down the stage to face the guy one vs one.
The soldiers all huddled around the two men giving them space to fight as while the soldier who stepped up to fight the clone drew a sword, the clone only sighed deeply and did not even bother taking his hands out of his pocket.
" You don't want a weapon? " The enemy asked, as the clone rolled his eyes in a comedic fashion and said " Just get this over with "
The enraged soldier charged at the clone who with his over 6200 points in agility easily outpaced the tier3 opponent like it was nothing.
For 3 minutes straight, the enemy soldier thrusted and slashed at full power but was never able to even scratch the shadow of the clone who had his hands in his pockets.
" Boring " The clone eventually said as he roundhouse kicked the sword out of the man's hand with his left leg and followed it up with another roundhouse kick to his face with his right leg.
*Splat*
The soldier spat a mouthful of blood as his sword that went flying out of his hand landed in the soil beside him.
" A 1000 of you are not my match " the clone said as he looked down on the man in contempt before turning his back and walking away.
The soldier who was enraged by this public humiliation pulled his sword out of the soil and prepared to unleash his strongest sword strike on the clone, when the clone simply removed one hand from his pocket and snapped his fingers without even turning to face his opponent.
A terrifying thunderbolt suddenly fell down from the sky and hit the ground beside the soldier who began quaking in his boots at the crazy power of the attack.
Had the attack been a few centimetres to the left, he would undoubtedly be dead at the moment but the general had mercifully decided to spare him.
It was at this moment that the entire army was convinced of the clone's strength as a faint chant of "Long Live Commander Max" started amongst the troops.
Max smiled looking at the developing situation as this was exactly what he wanted.
/// Chapter 5/40, a new day a new goal ///