The World Is Still Beautiful
| The World Is Still Beautiful | |
 Cover of Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii volume 1 published by Hakusensha. | |
| それでも世界は美しい (Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy, Comedy, Romance, Supernatural |
| Manga | |
| Written by | Dai Shiina |
| Published by | Hakusensha |
| Demographic | Shōjo |
| Magazine | Hana to Yume |
| Original run | 2012 – present |
| Volumes | 19 |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Hajime Kamegaki |
| Produced by |
Marina Sasaki Shiro Ishihara Tomohiro Shindō Toshio Nakatani Yuka Ooshima |
| Written by | Shinzo Fujita |
| Music by | Kousuke Yamashita |
| Studio | Pierrot |
| Licensed by | |
| Original network | NTV, FBS, STV, CTV, SUN, BS Nittele |
| Original run | April 6, 2014 – June 29, 2014 |
| Episodes | 12 |
The World Is Still Beautiful, in subtitle as Still World Is Beautiful (Japanese: それでも世界は美しい Hepburn: Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii, lit. "Even So, The World is Beautiful") is a Japanese manga series by Dai Shiina, serialized in Hakusensha's shōjo manga magazine Hana to Yume from 2012. Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii was first published as a one-shot in the same magazine in 2009, with a second one-shot published in 2011. It has been collected in 14 tankōbon volumes as of October 2016. An anime television series adaptation by Pierrot aired between April 6, 2014 and June 29, 2014 on NTV.[1]
Plot
Nike, the fourth princess of the Rain Dukedom, possesses the power to call forth the rain. She travels to the Sun Kingdom to marry Sun King Livius for the sake of her country, despite her own reluctance. She soon discovers that the King, who conquered the world in only three years after his ascendance to the throne, is still a child. Furthermore, for trivial reasons, he has demanded that Nike call forth the rain, and when she refuses, he has her thrown in jail. The story follows the two who, while at first are a married couple only in name, gradually begin to establish an emotional bond with one another.[1]
Characters
Main characters
- Nike Lemercier (ニケ・ルメルシエ Nike Rumerushie)
- Voiced by: Rena Maeda
- The fourth and youngest princess of the Rain Dukedom. She is the main protagonist of the story. She has the power to call forth the rain when she sings. She is sent, against her wishes (and because she lost a game of rock, paper, and scissor against her older sisters), to the Sun Kingdom to marry Sun King Livius so that her country can retain its autonomy. She discovers that the Sun King, who conquered the world in only three years after he ascended to the throne, is still a child. Although, initially distraught by her fate, Nike comes to love Livius and accepts her future as the "Sun Queen".
- Optimistic, understanding, and stubborn but caring, Nike quickly gains the affection of the peoples as well as Livius, who clearly loves her. She is said to be more popular than Livius among the people in the Sun Kingdom as she seems to interact with them on regular basis and helps them out when she can. Nike is also very strong, as shown when she beat up four of the palace guards. She will also avenge herself, if she believe that any wrong has been done to her. For example, although Rani originally wanted to kill Nike and almost succeeded in doing so, Nike forgives him, but she also beats him up for carrying out the attempt on her life.
- Livius Orvinus Ifrikia (Livius I) (リヴィウス・オルヴィヌス・イフリキア(リヴィウス一世) Riviusu Oruvinusu Ifurikia (Riviusu-Issei))
- Voiced by: Nobunaga Shimazaki, Haruka Kudō (younger)
- Livius is the king of the Sun Kingdom. In the three years following his enthronement he was able to conquer the rest of the world. While he is rumored to be a monster of some sort, he is actually still a child. Although his father was the former king, his mother was a commoner. While she was still alive, the two of them lived an isolated life in the castle because of his mother's low social status. Livius began his campaign to take over the world after his mother's death. He has a loyal butler who seems to understand him.
- His abilities as a king are considerable. Not only was he able to cleanse his kingdom's government of corruption soon after his coronation, but he then methodically defeated each opposing nation one by one. Nike has noted that although Livius is just a boy, his eyes are those of an adult. He granted the Rain Dukedom autonomy, but in exchange, he told them to send a princess to become his wife. Nike was sent to him and he is fond of her and grows to love her.
- After his mother's death, Livius grew cold and cruel and became distrustful of everyone around him. Neil, his butler, stated that this is because he doesn't know how to reach out to people, a trait he developed because he was constantly surrounded by enemies while growing up. This came about because of his mother's low social status. He and his mother lived a quiet, isolated life in his father's palace and were only able to rely on each other for support. After his mother's death, Livius began to show his true potential and he flourished, not stopping the expansion of his influence until the world was conquered. In a way, his campaign can be seen as a diversion to distract him from the pain of his mother's death.
- As the story progress, Nike's presence and efforts to help the young King slowly begin to change him. On several occasion in the series, Livius can be very childish. Livius can also be very protective and violent when people that he cares about are threatened. He didn't hesitate to raise his sword against a person who attacked Nike, although Nike stopped him from killing the man. Later on, Livius reveals that he still harbors a much colder and crueler and if not an extremely jealous side. He imprisoned his uncle Bardwin and confined Nike to her room because he thought that Bardwin had seduced Nike and that she had fallen for Bardwin. He even threatened to burn her home kingdom to ashes, when Nike talked against him for sending Bardwin to prison.
- Neil (ニール Nīru)
- Voiced by: Tomokazu Sugita
- 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 (Bard) (バルドウィン・シシル・イフリキア (バルド) Barudouin Shishiru Ifurikia (Barudo))
- Voiced by: Takahiro Sakurai
- 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 restablish their relationship as family thanks to Nike, Livius reappoints Bard as the Prime Minister again.
- Sheila (シーラ Shīra)
- Voiced by: Keiko Han
- 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 passed away, which affected Livius's entire world.
- Ranra (ランラ), Sūnya (スーニャ), Mikia (ミキア)
- Voiced by: Ruriko Aoki (Ranra), Mizuki Ōtsuka (Sūnya), Uki Satake (Mikia)
- 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 Vuōdan), Ratcliff (ラトクリフ Ratokurifu), Catesby (ケイツビー Keitsubī)
- Voiced by: Shūichi Ikeda (Vordan), Kōsei Tomita (Ratcliff), Issei Futamata (Catesby)
- Royal advisors of the Sun Kingdom.
- Rani Aristes (ラニ・アリステス Rani Arisutesu)
- Voiced by: Daisuke Namikawa
- 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)
- Voiced by: Kenji Nomura
- 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)
- Voiced by: Yoko Soumi
- The reporter of the Sun Kingdom's Royal Family Bulletin.
- Carl (カール Kāru)
- Voiced by: Takeharu Ōnishi
- 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)
- Voiced by: Chisa Yokoyama
- The narrator of the series. 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 Rumerushie)
- Voiced by: Toshiharu Sakurai
- 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)
- Voiced by: Michie Tomizawa
- 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 Rumerushie)
- Voiced by: Mariya Ise
- 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 Rumerushie)
- Voiced by: Ai Kayano
- 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 Rumerushie)
- Voiced by: Yuka Terasaki
- Kara is Nike's third older sister. She is the third princess of the Rain Dukedom & specializes in mentation (medicine).
- Kitora (キトラ)
- Voiced by: Takayuki Kondō, Massa Kobayashi (child)
- 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)
- Voiced by: Norihiro Inoue
- Aki is member of the royal family of the Rain Dukedom and Tohara's nephew.
Others
- Amaluna Luirasael (Luna) (アマルナ・ルイラサエル (ルナ) Amaruna Ruirasaeru (Runa))
- Voiced by: Yuki Matsuoka
- 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.
Media
Manga
| No. | Title | Release date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 01 (それでも世界は美しい 1) | December 20, 2011[2] | ISBN 9784592188728 |
| 2 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 02 (それでも世界は美しい 2) | June 20, 2012[3] | ISBN 9784592194729 |
| 3 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 03 (それでも世界は美しい 3) | December 20, 2012[4] | ISBN 9784592194736 |
| 4 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 04 (それでも世界は美しい 4) | April 19, 2013[5] | ISBN 9784592194743 |
| 5 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 05 (それでも世界は美しい 5) | August 20, 2013[6] | ISBN 9784592194750 |
| 6 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 06 (それでも世界は美しい 6) | January 20, 2014[7] | ISBN 9784592194767 |
| 7 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 07 (それでも世界は美しい 7) | April 18, 2014[8] | ISBN 9784592194774 |
| 8 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 08 (それでも世界は美しい 8) | September 19, 2014[9] | ISBN 9784592194781 |
| 9 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 09 (それでも世界は美しい 9) | January 20, 2015[10] | ISBN 9784592194798 |
| 10 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 10 (それでも世界は美しい 10) | June 19, 2015[11] | ISBN 9784592215707 |
| 11 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 11 (それでも世界は美しい 11) | October 20, 2015[12] | ISBN 9784592215714 |
| 12 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 12 (それでも世界は美しい 12) | February 19, 2016[13] | ISBN 9784592215721 |
| 13 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 13 (それでも世界は美しい 13) | June 20, 2016[14] | ISBN 9784592215738 |
| 14 | Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii 14 (それでも世界は美しい 14) | October 20, 2016[15] | ISBN 9784592215745 |
Anime
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. "Farewell Rain" in episode 12, sung by Nike's grandmother is performed by Chisa Yokoyama.
Episode list
| No. | Title | Original airdate[16] |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | "The Sun Kingdom" "Hare No Taikoku" (晴れの大国) | April 6, 2014 |
| Nike, the fourth and youngest princess of the Rain Kingdom, arrives in the Sun Kingdom after losing a bet with her sisters to become the betrothed of the Sun King, who is rumoured to be a merciless monster that conquered the world just three years after his ascend to the throne. Things, however, do not get of on the right foot. Immediately after she arrives, her things are stolen leaving her without any means to reach the palace and the people of the kingdom are hostile and rude to her due to her country being less well-developed than the Sun Kingdom (resulting in its currency being at a low rate). Thankfully, a kind family of commoners take her in and Nike resolves to repay their kindness. When the elder sister of the family is kidnapped by mistake, Nike rushes in to save her and uses her power over the weather to defeat the lecherous men before forcing them to take her to the palace. However, when she arrives, she is shocked to discover that the Sun King, the man who conquered the entire world and is now her betrothed, is a mere child. | ||
| 02 | "The Rain Princess" "Ame No Kojo" (雨の公女) | April 13, 2014 |
| Livius I, the Sun King, turns out to be a boy leaving Nike shocked. After finding out that Nike is the Rain Princess, he orders her to bring forth rain for his amusement. Enraged that he wants to use her gift for entertainment, Nike tells him that she cannot call the rain without first experiencing the beauty of the world. Livius provides an assortment of things, from dresses to a wonderful meal but she still refuses. Nike tells Livius that she meant the world as in the nature surrounding them. As time goes on, Nike discovers that Livius sees no beauty in the world and becomes determined to show him what beauty really is, however, things do not go as planned. An assassination attempt is made against Livius and Nike pushes him out of the way only to get hit herself. Thankfully the arrow did not hit anything vital. Livius is shocked though and sends Nike away by carriage for safety. After Nike leaves another assassination attempt is made, this time by burning down the palace with Livius still inside. Nike sees the smoke and runs back to the castle. There, she summons her rain in order to save Livius. Upon seeing the rainbow that forms after the rainfall, Livius smiles. | ||
| 03 | "Chancellor's Declaration" "Kanpaku Sengen" (関白宣言) | April 20, 2014 |
| A party is held for Livius to present Nike as his bride. A group of foreign nobles enter the garden where Nike is and mock her. Livius sees this and mocks them in turn before using Nike's lap as a pillow. Nike suggests he rest and reduce his workload and they end up arguing. Nike feels hurt and thinks that he does not care. In her room, she sings and remembers her conversation with her mother. She thanks her maids for putting beautiful flowers in her room but they say that the king personally picks them everyday in order to let her feel at ease. Nike smiles and says that he is an idiot. The party goes well but Nike still does not appear. Even Livius does not know where Nike is but is convinced by his butler to have some faith in the princess he chose as his bride. After a moment, they hear a song and Nike enters surrounded by rose petals blown throughout the room by the power of the wind. Nike thanks everyone for attending and sings one more time, summoning rain and mesmerising the quests. | ||
| 04 | "Ring of Tales 1" | April 27, 2014 |
| The Ministry of Priesthood, who have the final say on who can marry into the royal family, cancels Nike's engagement to Livius on the grounds she comes from an undesirable country. Nike and Livius are adamant they will be married so the Priesthood demand that Nike take the "Rite of Illumination" to prove that she is worthy to be the wife of Livius. She must venture into a cave and navigate through an old temple to find an ancient ring to give to Livius as his wedding ring. However, Livius warns Nike that throughout history many princesses forced to prove themselves on the Rite of Illumination never made it out of the cave alive. | ||
| 05 | "Ring of Tales 2" | May 4, 2014 |
| Nike takes the "Rite of Illumination," but upon entering the cave to retrieve the ring she finds the ring is missing and she is surrounded by Ministry of Priesthood members, revealing that the Priesthood has used the Rite of Illumination for hundreds of years as a method of assassinating princesses they deemed unworthy to marry into the royal family. They attempt to assassinate her, but she escapes after meeting Livius in the cave, who followed her using a secret tunnel only he knew about. During the engagement ceremony, neither Livius or Nike have an engagement ring so instead Nike uses her power to create a white rainbow in a perfect ring around the sun. One of the failed assassins furiously reveals that Livius had entered the cave with Nike, which is against the law, also accidentally revealing the truth of their attempted assassination. Though Livius could have the assassins executed Nike chooses to forgive them. The lead assassin tearfully admits Nike has made Livius a better king while the head priest formally recognises Nike and Livius as an engaged couple. | ||
| 06 | "Call My Name" | May 11, 2014 |
| A childhood friend of Livius arrives, Luna of the Ocean Kingdom, who insists that she is Livius' real fiancé, even though Livius has never once asked her to marry him and in fact finds her rather annoying. She makes Nike's life miserable by outdoing her at everything. Luna's jealousy reaches its peak when she sees Livius acting happy around Nike. The next day she challenges Nike to a game of chicken; racing their horses to the aqueduct, first one to stop loses, and if you don't stop you fall and your life is forfeited. Nike accepts and they race. Luna falls after realizing that she cannot compare to Nike, who loves Livius for his weaknesses as well as his strengths. Nike saves Luna by summoning the wind, though it exhausts her greatly. Luna leaves on happy terms. Nike calls Livius by his given name for the first time and he kisses her suddenly. | ||
| 07 | "Wild Waltz" | May 25, 2014 |
| Livius's uncle, Bard, whom Livius has hated since childhood, returns from his travels around the world. He is handsome, popular with women and talented and he immediately tries to seduce Nike. Bard, Nike, and Livius all attend a Banquet hosted by the nobility. While Livius is out on the balcony waiting for Nike, Bard abducts Nike to her room. Nike finds out that Bard does not really want to seduce her, but was testing her to see if she was suitable to marry his nephew. Livius finds them at that very moment and has Nike confined to her room while planning to personally torture Bard to death for adultery. | ||
| 08 | "Shelter From the Rain" "Amayadori" (雨やどり) | June 1, 2014 |
| Nike realizes that she wants to help Livius and Bard reconcile their feelings. She breaks Bard out of prison and sets up a plan to get Bard and Livius alone to talk to each other freely. With some of their past ill will resolved Livius orders Bard to take up his old position as Prime Minister. Bard agrees then immediately begins flirting with Nike again, causing another fight with Livius. | ||
| 09 | "The Principality of Rain" "Ame no Kōkoku" (雨の公国) | June 8, 2014 |
| Nike receives a letter from the Principality of Rain, which says that Nike's grandmother Tohara collapsed and therefore wants to see Nike in case she should die. Nike remains silent about this until after she performs a rain summoning for the Sun King's guests. Livius points out that her rain wasn't as good as it usually was, which leads to Nike confessing what was written in the letter. Livius immediately cancels all of their plans so that he, Nike and his butler Neil can travel to the Principality of Rain to see Nike's grandmother together. However, it turns out that her grandmother is okay and only threw out her back. After meeting her grandmother, Livius meets her sisters. Kitora, Nike's cousin, comes in and plans with Tohara to stop Nike from returning with the Sun King. Also, since Livius did not seem to be enjoying their trip, Nike tries to cheer him up by letting him see the Principality of Rain's stars and making him rice porridge. While talking, Nike realizes she loves Livius and kisses him. This startles both and causes them to blush. Kitora is shown watching the two in the background. | ||
| 10 | "A Righteous Country" "Tadashī kuni" (正しい国) | June 15, 2014 |
| Nike was asked to come and talk by Kitora but was tricked and put into a prison that restrains her rain summoning power. Her grandmother has been plotting to erase the memory of Livius so that she could keep Nike with her. Luckily, Livius had already known this, and tries to find Nike. With the help of Nike's sister, he escapes. He encounters her grandma, and she throws the key to Nike's cell into the lake. She would not acknowledge Livius' and Nike's being together if he could not find the key. Livi is drowned by a huge wave, while Nike is attempting to break free from the cell by throwing her body against it, causing harm to herself and declaring that she loves Livius. Both say that a life and future without each other would be pointless and would be like death itself. | ||
| 11 | "A Passing Wind" "Tōrisugiru kaze" (通り過ぎる風) | June 22, 2014 |
| Unable to bear looking at her pain, Kitora unlocks the cell and lets her go. After escaping, Nike meets her sister who helped Livi because she wanted to think for herself and not just follow. Her sister tells her that Livi drowned trying to prove that he was right to marry Nike. When Nike arrives, it seems as though he is not going to awaken, but when he does, Livius says he has won Tohara's game and found the key. Like Nike, they both triumped. Later on, Nike's other sisters apologize for the things they did to Nike and Livius. Nike and Livius are then dressed up and he meets Nike's mother who has gotten better. They are celebrated by the people of Principality of Rain and Livius declares he will love and protect Nike. After the party, Livius confronts Kitora and lets him alone to talk with Nike. | ||
| 12 | "Homecoming" "Kikan" (帰還) | June 29, 2014 |
| Nike returns to the Sun Kingdom with her grandmother seeing her off. When they return, it seems Bard has slacked off a bit and invited many guests. Livius has to work for many days, as does Nike, since they were gone for so long and so much needs to be done. However, they do not get to see each other at all during the time they work and both get lonely. At last, Livius reunites with Nike in a secret place Livius showed her, and they confess they missed each other and need each other. They kiss and the episode ends showing all the different memories. | ||
References
- 1 2 "Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii Shōjo Manga Gets TV Anime in April". Anime News Network. January 13, 2014. Retrieved January 13, 2014.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 1 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 2 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 3 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 4 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 5 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 6 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 7 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 8 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved June 21, 2015.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 9 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved June 21, 2015.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 10 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved June 21, 2015.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 11 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 12 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 13 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
- ↑ "それでも世界は美しい 14 at s-book.net" (in Japanese). s-book. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
- ↑ "Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii episodes" (in Japanese). Nippon TV.
External links
- Official manga website (in Japanese)
- Official anime website (in Japanese)
- The World Is Still Beautiful (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
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