Moderate Harlequin Alliance

Moderate Harlequin Alliance (中庸道化連) are a group of powerful Majin created by Kagali. They are a jack-of-all-trades that can be hired to do various kinds of jobs and their number one and absolute rule is to never betray their friends and clients. Their defining characteristic is their clown-like appearance with use of various masks.

They currently are in the employ of Yuuki Kagurazaka, who is allied with Kagali, the troupe's founder and leader.

Background
On the ruins of Soma, which was once the Ultra-Sorcery Kingdom of the Elves in the past, the Chaos Dragon appeared and terrorized its surroundings. Sarion Grimwald, the father of Elmesia, who would later found a nation in his namesake, was sent to dispatch it but was defeated in battle. A masked figure in robes approached the dying Hero who had sustained serious injuries from the Chaos Dragon. Kagali, who went by the name Kazalim at the time, offered to resurrect Sarion, with a risk of losing his memories in the process and becoming her puppet. Sarion acquiesced to this. Using the forbidden spell "Birthday", Kagali unified the tens of thousands of corpses in the surroundings to create a vessel to board the will of Sarion. Sarion became an undead, losing his memories in the process. That encounter birthed the "Curse Lord" Kazalim and the "Wonder Pierrot" Laplace.

Tear, Footman, and Clayman were already born by then. Kagali named each of them, and considered them her sweet, lovely children.

Clayman was created with the intended purpose to see if Majin capable of awakening into True Demon Lords could be artificially produced. He was Kagali's most trusted subordinate and she even inducted him into the Demon Lord Council. He was specifically engineered to be a cunning mastermind and a tactical commander, similar to herself.

Tear and Footman were created to have formidable combat prowess that could make them a potential match against a Demon Lord. Even though their intelligence suffered, they compensated with sheer strength. Tear cannot recall her past in significant detail but describes it as a "mixture of memories and feelings". She was once the maidservant to Kagali. While Footman's backstory is unknown, he, like Tear, can't recall his past either.

Forest Disturbance Arc
The group was working under Gelmud and was helping in the creation of a puppet Demon Lord.

Demon Lord Attack Arc
Tear managed to gain the info that Demon Lord Frey feared the return of Charybdis, and shared this info with Clayman. Clayman then offered Frey to eliminate the threat in exchange for a favor.

Footman and Tear incited Phobio to become the host of Charybdis in order to exact revenge against Demon Lord Milim Nava. As a result, Charybdis was eliminated by the combined effort of Rimuru and Milim, and Clayman earned the bargaining chip he desired.

The Octagram Soars Brightly Arc
While Clayman went to the Walpurgis Banquet, Laplace tried to infiltrate the Western Holy Church to try and find out the secret behind it. Footman and Tear helped to observe the war between Clayman's army and Milim's Dragon Faithful against the combined forces of Jura Tempest Federation and Beast Kingdom Eurazania.

Saint-Monster Confrontation Arc
They were seen mourning the death of Clayman.

Majin Behind The Scenes Arc
Kagali and Yuuki went into the ruins together with Rimuru, Milim, Gobta, Ranga, and Shion, as a trap set up by Mariabell Rosso.

Hero Awakening Arc
Together with Yuuki, they conspired with Granbell Rosso in order to steal Luminous' ultimate weapon. They succeeded in unleashing the "weapon" (which is Chronoa), but realized that they've been tricked by Granbell.

Abilities
Every member of Moderate Harlequin Alliance is at least at Demon Lord Seed‘s level in terms of strength. In terms of strength Laplace is leading, while Tear and Footman being not so much behind. Clayman on the other hand was not that powerful compared to his fellow members in terms of raw physical power, but definitely made up for it as the most educated and dexterous of the group through plotting and creating various schemes and tactics.

Trivia

 * Kagali wore a mask and a robe to hide her disfigured face. It was shameful for her to look heavily scarred. That's why all members of Moderate Harlequin Alliance hide their true faces with masks, in order to share in Kagali's suffering and because they stand in solidarity with their master.
 * Kagali's father was cruel and abusive to her, but she didn't let that stop her from pursuing familial bonds in others. She created a new family which loves her and respects her, that's why Kagali considers Moderate Harlequin Alliance to be her real family, even referring to Laplace, Tear, Footman and Clayman as her "children".
 * This group had a much smaller role in the Web Novel compared to the Light Novel. In the Web Novel, it's members except Clayman only appeared during the Tenma Great War Arc, the final arc of the story.
 * Clayman hid his relationship with the Moderate Harlequin Alliance upon becoming a Demon Lord as he feared it could lead to an undesirable outcome in the future. The same applies with Kagali, who, during her tenure as Demon Lord Kazalim hid her relationship with her creations. However, it is eventually revealed that he's a part of the Jesters during Volume 6 where he refuses to sell out his friends and master to Rimuru.
 * Ironically, it's the Clowns' schemes that aided Jura Tempest Federation into becoming a superpower that poses the greatest threat to them, beginning with the Orc Lord's rampage. It's their schemes that forced Rimuru and co. to seek allies and powerup themselves.
 * The Orc Lord incident led to Rimuru becoming a Demon Lord Seed and the formation of Jura Forest Alliance.
 * The Charybdis incident fostered the bond between Tempest and Carrion.
 * The scheme involving the Kingdom of Falmuth resulted in Rimuru awakening as a True Demon Lord instead of Clayman.

Gallery

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