Clive Jr.

'Can you take me with you the next time you leave? I promise I'll be useful.'

He always stood behind his father, gazing at the village nestled among the woods where he was born and raised.

He was young, yet determined. He dreamed of the day he would inherit the Moonlight Sword and become a worthy Gravekeeper.

But by the time he gained the strength to bear that duty, he was a lone wolf.

It was a rainy night, the Lupine Forest drenched in a downpour unseen for decades. Clive Jr. was born into such an unsettling night, where conspiracy and chaos shattered the happy, complete family he might have had.

The roar of thunder drowned out his feeble cries. But by some fortune, he met Clive. Clive Jr. once told me that, though the memory was faint, he still recalled an embrace—one that reeked of blood, cold and hard, much like the role Clive would play in his life for many years to come.

Compared to his foster father, Uncle Gadric, Clive's close friend, was more like a real father to Clive Jr. He would often climb onto Gadric's shoulders and gaze across the Lupine Forest together, hearing about Uncle Gadric's adventures. In these tales, he could imagine himself just being as free and brave.

There’s another secret, known only to those involved, and myself. When Clive Jr. was still young enough to speak without fear, he once asked Gadric if he could take him away. Whether Gadric sensed the unease and resentment hidden behind those words, he only patted the boy's head in silent comfort.

Clive was always absent, and Hati took on the role of parent. If Gadric was the father figure in this family, then Hati was the real mother, with Clive Jr. always affectionately by her side.

Hati's talent for sewing developed while raising Clive Jr. After all, in a household of a distant father and a willful child, someone had to be the glue holding things together. Yet even with all Hati's efforts, there remained an unmistakable distance between Clive and Clive Jr.

The dagger that gleamed under the silver moon was proof of direct descent from the Ganelon family. It would grow stronger as Clive Jr. grew, and vanish when his life came to an end. It was also his only solace—that he shared a deeper bond with his foster father than his sister ever did.

He dreamed of the day his dagger would become a great sword. But when that day finally came, he understood the look in Clive's eyes—a gaze filled with pity, mourning the youth forever trapped in this endless cycle...