The World Is Still Beautiful

Main characters

• Nike Lemercier (ニケ・ルメルシエ)
• [3]
• The fourth and youngest princess of the Rain Dukedom, Nike can summon rain through song. Forced to marry the Sun King Livius after losing a game to her sisters, she resents her fate but later grows fond of him upon realizing he is still a child. Kind yet strong-willed, she wins public admiration through compassion and physical prowess, even defeating palace guards. Though she forgives Rani for attempting to kill her, she retaliates by overpowering him.
• Livius Orvinus Ifrikia (リヴィウス・オルヴィヌス・イフリキア) / Livius I (リヴィウス一世)
• Livius, the child king of the Sun Kingdom, conquers the world within three years of his reign. The son of the former king and a commoner mother, he lived isolated in the palace until her death. A skilled ruler, he eliminates government corruption and defeats rival nations. He demands Princess Nike as his bride in exchange for sparing her homeland, eventually developing affection for her. Raised among enemies, Livius grows cold and distrustful after his mother's death. Though often childish, he reacts violently when those he cares about are threatened. His jealousy leads him to imprison his uncle and threaten Nike's homeland when suspecting betrayal, revealing his lingering capacity for cruelty.
• Neil (ニール)
• Neil is Livius's butler and tutor who often accompanies Livius during his travels. He seems to understand Livius and he cares about him a great deal. When Nike arrives it is he who provides her with pertinent information and helps her fit into her new life as Livius' prospective Queen.

Sun Kingdom

• Bardwin Cecil Ifrikia (バルドウィン・シシル・イフリキア) / Bard (バルド)
• Bard (short for Bardwin) is Livius's uncle and the former Prime Minister of the Sun Kingdom until he fled mysteriously. Apart from that, he is also flirty and likes to tease Livius, causing the two to have a shaky relationship and to disagree a lot. After they manage to reestablish their relationship as family thanks to Nike, Livius reappoints Bard as the Prime Minister again.
• Sheila (シーラ)
• Sheila is Livius's mother and consort of the former king of the Sun Kingdom. As she and her son were both discriminated by the people due to having a lower social status and coming from a "low-class", both of them lived a quiet life together until she died, which affected Livius's entire world.
• Ranra (ランラ), Sūnya (スーニャ),and Mikia (ミキア)
• Nike's personal maids who take joy in dressing her. They often tell her about the affairs in the castle.
• Vordan (ヴォーダン), Ratcliff (ラトクリフ), and Catesby (ケイツビー)
• Royal advisors of the Sun Kingdom.
• Rani Aristes (ラニ・アリステス)
• The high priest from the Ministry of Priesthood of the Sun Kingdom and is in-charge of Livius's and Nike's marriage and engagement affairs.
• Jaina (ジャイナ)
• The royal chef of the Sun Kingdom and head of the kitchens. He sometimes treats Nike to food despite Carl's insistence for her to lose weight.
• Miranda (ミランダ)
• The reporter of the Sun Kingdom's Royal Family Bulletin.
• Carl (カール)
• The Sun Kingdom's top designer. He has a firm belief that his designs will make anyone look beautiful and is mainly in charge of putting together Nike's ballgowns for prestigious occasions.

Rain Dukedom

• Tohara (トハラ)
• Tohara is the previous sovereign of the Rain Dukedom, Nike's grandmother, and rain-summoning teacher. Even though Teteru is the reigning duke, Tohara is the true decision-maker, her words being law that even the royal family cannot go against.
• Teteru Lemercier (テテル・ルメルシエ)
• Teteru is the reigning duke of the Rain Dukedom, Nike's father, and Tohara's son-in-law. The "Duke" is only a title, however, as Tohara is the true mastermind of the Rain Dukedom.
• Iraha (イラハ)
• Iraha is Nike's mother and the daughter of Tohara. She has always been sickly and often seen on her sickbed.
• Mira Lemercier (ミラ・ルメルシエ)
• Mira is Nike's oldest sister. She is the first princess of the Rain Dukedom & specializes in making rain.
• Nia Lemercier (ニア・ルメルシエ)
• Nia is Nike's second older sister. She is the second princess of the Rain Dukedom & specializes in making wind.
• Kara Lemercier (カラ・ルメルシエ)
• Kara is Nike's third older sister. She is the third princess of the Rain Dukedom & specializes in mentation (medicine).
• Kitora (キトラ)
• Kitora is Nike's cousin. He lost his parents when he was a child, so he and Nike were raised together by Tohara. Kitora was unable to use his powers when he was a child and gave up quickly; he admires Nike for being able to push through hardships in order to be able to summon rain. It is implied that he has romantic feelings for Nike.
• Aki (アキ)
• Aki is member of the royal family of the Rain Dukedom and Tohara's nephew.

Others

• Amaluna Luirasael (アマルナ・ルイラサエル) / Luna (ルナ)
• The first Princess of Sea Kingdom (with two older brothers) and Livius' childhood friend. Before, she was in love with Livius but realised that Nike was a more suitable match and is currently engaged to Marquiz Fortis, Duke of The Autonomous State of Fortis.

Manga

Written and illustrated by Dai Shiina, The World Is Still Beautiful started with three one-shots published in Hakusensha's manga magazine Hana to Yume on March 5 and June 5, 2009, and September 5, 2011, respectively.[6] It started its regular serialization in the magazine on December 20, 2011,[7] and finished on May 20, 2020.[8][9] Hakusensha collected its chapters in 25 volumes, released from December 20, 2011, to August 20, 2020.

Volumes

Anime

A 12-episode anime television series adaptation, produced by Nippon Television, VAP, Hakusensha and Pierrot, aired on Nippon TV from April 6 to June 29, 2014.[35] It was directed by Hajime Kamegaki, with Shinzō Fujita handling series composition, Ichirō Uno designing the characters, and Kousuke Yamashita composing the music.[37][38] The opening theme is "Beautiful World" by Joanna Koike, while the ending theme "Promise" and the insert song "Amefurashi no Uta: Beautiful Rain" (アメフラシの歌 ～Beautiful Rain～) performed by Rena Maeda.[38] "Farewell Rain" in episode 12, sung by Nike's grandmother is performed by Chisa Yokoyama.

In North America, the series was licensed by Sentai Filmworks, which released the series on home video format on October 6, 2015.[39][40]

Episodes