( Planet Zandar, the victory banquet )
Max felt out of place in the banquet, he had never attended such an event and did not know the proper etiquettes for greeting others.
Almost everyone asked Max why he wore a mask, and suggested that he should reveal his face to the rest of the military men so everybody present knew just how the new rising star looked, however, Max politely refused the offer saying that he was hideously scarred under the mask and hence did not wish to show his face.
Surprisingly, Anna and Asiva were really good at the event while Severus had decided to not attend.
The two girls had a royal upbringing and had often attended such event's, giving them the necessary social skills needed to manoeuvre through the night flawlessly.
That left Max with Sebastian, the two buddies who were both clueless idiots as they shook hands with everyone who approached them and raised their glasses to say " Cheers " at every small compliment.
Major Ratty was especially happy at the banquet as he laughed and greeted everyone telling them stories of how the operation was his plan all along.
It was kind of shameless how Ratty hogged a lot of the spotlight, however, Max did not mind as he had bigger fish to fry.
General Zest, the main guest of the evening had not yet arrived, and all the official proceedings were only going to start once he was settled in.
General Zest was a tier5 warrior who would have long became a god if not for a setback he faced when fighting a barbarian on the Eastern frontline where his mana veins became majorly damaged.
The enemy had used some high grade mana poison, one that was unknown and untreatable at the time and unfortunately in trying to save his life Zest had to compromise the integrity of his mana circuit as he locked the mana poison in one portion of his circuit and contained it there so that it did not spread to the rest of his body.
In doing so, Zest managed to save his life, however, he was never the same warrior again.
Everyone in the military knew that zest was capable of becoming a two star general in the army if he wanted to, but Zest never accepted the promotion because in his mind only tier6 god's were qualified to hold that post.
Hence, he stayed back as a one star general and continued to serve the military with all his devotion.
He was a legend amongst the troops and a feared name for all Titus clan enemies.
About 50 minutes after the banquet officially started a small lean man walked into the banquet hall and everyone became deathly silent as they saluted the man who walked past them.
Max had a feeling that this might be general Zest and hence he followed the mob mentality and greeted the general the same way as the others.
After hearing such legendary tales about the man, Max had not expected Zest to be a 5 feet tall vampire with little to no muscle mass over his entire body.
He looked frail, like somebody could blow him away with a huff and a puff, however, his eyes were incredibly sharp, as when his gaze met with Max's, Max felt a chill run down his spine.
" Greetings general Zest, thankyou so much for coming here today " Ratty said as he had a big smile on his face.
" Who are the boys? " Zest asked, completely uninterested in Ratty and his brown nosery.
" Oye, Ravan, Sebastian, come here " Ratty said as he wrapped his hands around Max's shoulders once he came and greeted the general trying to show how close he was to the man.
" That idea of blowing the townhall up, it was out of the box and brilliant. I admire your uncanny genius, it's a rare trait and a must for leadership" Zest said curtly as he pinned the medal of excellence on Max's uniform.
" I assume you must be the one who executed the plan? " Zest asked Sebastian
" Yes sir, the entire crew executed the plan, but according to Garrison Commander, I did the most " Sebastian replied humbly.
" Good " Zest said as he pinned the medal of valour on Sebastian's uniform.
Finally looking at Ratty, general Zest said " Good job finding these lads Ratty, I'm impressed"
Major Ratty wanted to gloat at the compliment and boast about his superior sense of scouting, however, before he had a chance to say a single word, Max interrupted him by starting a conversation with Zest.
" General, if I may… I have a small request to make today " Max said as he waited for Zest's response.
Zest raised an eyebrow at the statement as he cautiously said " Go on… "
Zest had given Max the benefit of the doubt that he would not ask for anything ridiculous, however, if Ratty said the same line he would have probably cut the conversation off by now.
" General, I want to serve the Titus clan on the Eastern frontlines, it's been years since we have gained an acre of land there but if you give me the chance, I'll definitely prove my worth on the big stage " Max said with confidence as Zest's eyes widened in disbeleif.
It was common knowledge that life in the Eastern frontlines was the toughest, the living quarters were horrible, fights broke out anyday and only ⅓ soldiers who spent more than 5 years deployed at the place ever came back alive.
In all his years of serving as the general, this was the first time someone had requested Zest to be deployed on that hellhole voluntarily.
Zest looked into Max's eyes only to see a fiery passion burning inside them, a passion that was hungry to prove its worth, a fire that Zest had in his own eyes in his younger days before his tragedy.
Zest could not help but feel moved by Max's words and attitude as his lips subconsciously parted to show his teeth as he said " Well, are you sure? "
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/// A/N - This bonus sponsored by patron Cervantez91 please thank him in the comments for this one.
Also we have reached top10 in GT rankings! And have created a slight gap Between ourselves and number 11, great job team!
Unfortunately I'm down with high fever and writing chapters is very difficult for me at the moment, so release of bonuses will be slightly slower than usual ///