Donovan Desmond

"Our children may share our blood, but they aren’t us. They’re essentially strangers. It is impossible to understand strangers. In the end… people will never truly be sympathetic with each other."

- Donovan to Loid and Damian in Chapter 38

Donovan Desmond (ドノバン・デズモンド) is the Chairman of the National Unity Party of Ostania and Twilight's current target. He is the main antagonist of the series.

Appearance
Donovan is a gaunt man with light skin and his eyes are wide and sunken, seemingly always very widely open so that they appear nearly perfectly circular, with extremely shrunken pupils and a complete lack of irises. His hair is black and combed back, appearing to be closely shaved on the sides of his head, with a lock of gray-white hair on his left. He has a noticeable lack of eyebrows and has a mustache. There is a line of scars at the sides of his head. The only time he is seen surrounded by people, his stature is revealed to be shorter than that of the adult men around him.

He wears a tan brown suit with a black tie that is held together using a brooch with a star-shaped symbol.

Personality
Donovan seems to place great importance on achievements as he is negligent towards his younger son, Damian. When Damian tries to question his father, Donovan simply lets out a long and audible sigh until Damian lets it go. Mysteriously, despite his great emphasis on the Desmond name, he is not offended and even disinterested in the fact that Anya hit his son. He is very cautious and rarely makes public appearances, but he regularly attends social gatherings at Eden Academy for his elder son.

He believes that people can never truly sympathize with each other, even to the point of thinking of his own children as strangers. Loid alludes that this may be why he seeks to cause war, in order to control others through military force instead.

History
His portrait was displayed in Eden Academy along with the other Eden Academy alumni who were also Imperial Scholars; implying that he attended Eden Academy in his youth.

According to Damian, Donovan participated in the last war between Ostania and Westalis, fighting "all kinds of enemies."

Donovan has previously made public appearances, however, he has disappeared from the public eye for unknown reasons and now he only attends to social gatherings at Eden Academy, the school both of his sons attend to. According to Loid, Donovan is a former Prime Minister of Ostania.

Donovan is the husband of Melinda Desmond, as well as the father of Damian and Demetrius Desmond.

Introduction Arc
Twilight is tasked with Operation Strix, where he must stop Donovan from harming truce efforts between the Ostanian and Westalian governments by getting close to him and probing for any seditious activities. However, since Donovan's only public appearances are at private events held by the prestigious Eden Academy, Twilight must marry and have a child who can enroll at the school. Thus, Twilight takes on the alias of "Loid Forger," and creates the Forger Family.

Imperial Scholars Mixer Arc
Donovan attends Eden Academy’s semi-annual event, the Imperial Scholars mixer. His first son, Demetrius, informs him of Damian's message to meet with him at the library courtyard after the mixer. Donovan decides to show up and see his son, where he encounters Loid Forger, a father of Damian's classmate, Anya Forger. Loid tries to talk to Donovan, but his bodyguards tell him to leave. However, Donovan gives him the chance to speak, prompting Loid to apologize for Anya’s behavior towards Damian and introduces himself with a smile.

Donovan recalls the incident at the orientation and apologizes for being too busy to respond personally. Loid offers to bring a token of regret to his manor, but Donovan brushes it off with an uncharacteristically bright smile, startling Loid. Donovan states it is just a spat among kids, but Damian yells that Anya laid hands on him, a Desmond. Loid agrees and insists on making amends after what she did. Donovan smiles again and says it is fine, although he appreciates the sentiment. Loid realizes he is being blown off and withdraws, but not before thanking Donovan for his generosity.

Damian tries expressing his humiliation to his father, who responds with an exasperated sigh, unnerving Damian while Loid watches quietly. Donovan continues this until Damian apologizes to him, and he smiles in response. Loid speaks up, saying Damian’s anger is justified. He proceeds to talk about how exhausting it is dealing with Anya and her bizarre behavior. He then talks about the challenges of raising children and how uncontrollable they can be. Donovan concurs, saying that despite sharing your blood, your children are essentially strangers, people impossible to understand. He says that, in the end, people will never truly be sympathetic to each other. While he says this, Damian is left stunned.

Loid agrees with the statement, saying that as a psychiatrist, he sometimes wonders if he can understand even 10 percent of what goes on in his patients' heads. He adds that it may be arrogant to think that people can understand each other. Nevertheless, he tells Donovan that what is important is meeting them in the middle. Loid admits that despite not understanding Anya’s actions, he acknowledges her and creates opportunities for dialogue, even if it works out or not. He then says that it may have been why Donovan took the time out of his schedule to meet with Damian. Donovan supposes so, which surprises Damian. Loid starts praising Damian's respect for Donovan and shares his thoughts on Donovan's political views. Donovan decides to wrap up the conversation, but not before remembering Loid’s name and saying he enjoyed their conversation. Loid thanks Donovan for sharing his time with him, then takes his leave after chatting with Damian for a bit. As Loid leaves, he and Donovan quietly glare at each other.

Donovan turns his attention to Damian, asking what his son wants from him. Damian starts getting nervous and says it is nothing. Donovan prepares to leave, but Damian shouts out to him, informing him of his Stella Star from the midterms, his 50 on his reading test, and how the griffin he made in art class won first prize. Hearing this, Donovan congratulates him. Damian asks why he agreed to see him, and Donovan says he acted on a whim and tells his son to think nothing of it. As he walks away, he tells Damian to continue striving not to besmirch their family name, and Damian enthusiastically agrees.

Damian Desmond
Despite his distant relationship with Damian, he agrees to meet with Damian after the Imperial Scholars Mixer for unknown reasons. When asked, he only answers that it was on a whim. In addition, although he said that even his own children can be strangers who are difficult to understand, he still praised Damian for the Stella he received when, on Anya's advice, he told his father everything he felt.

Demetrius Desmond
Little is known about their relationship, but it seems that Donovan spends more time with his elder son because he is an outstanding student and a worthy representative of the family. In addition, in the past, he (and his wife) came to Demetrius' orientation when he first entered the Academy and were in a group photo that was not done for Damian, which perhaps indicates some of Donovan's favoritism for his elder son.

Melinda Desmond
Based on Loid's observations, Melinda seems to have an estranged relationship with her husband. Nevertheless, they periodically attend Academy events together for their elder son.

Chapter Appearances

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Anime Appearances

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Trivia

 * Operation Strix (Loid's main mission), the purpose of which he is named after Donovan and has a double meaning:
 * Strix is a genus of owl that seems to be a reference to Donovan's unique bulging eyes.
 * Strix is also a mythical creature that feeds on flesh and blood, which is a reference to the intentions of Donovan and his party to foment a war of two states, which will cause many people to die again.

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Donovan Desmond