The Twelve Kingdoms/Characters
Immortals and creatures
Nyokai
- Familiar: Especially those born just as a Kirin Ranka is formed. Normal youma act as this to the Kirin who capture them, though they serve completely loyally and to the point of death, should the Kirin die of any cause their youkai will eat the body.
- Mons: Kirin can "catch" Youkai and force them to obey their will, but it's a risky process since it boils down to a contest of wills that can take hours or days and could end with a dead kirin.
- Monster Lord: Captured nyokai tend to be able to lead packs of similar nyokai on behalf of their kirin.
Sen-nin
- Translator Microbes: Becoming a Sen-nin removes all language barriers.
- Immortality: Of the ageless and imune to disease types. It even takes special enchanted weapons and beheading to kill one.
- Perpetual Motion Monster: Even if starved or dehydrated, a sen-nin will not die. This becomes demonstrated when Atsuyu imprisons his father in the castle dungeon for decades.
Rulers
- Can't Live Without You: A ruler can never outlive the death of the Kirin who chose them. At most, they will live a year or two before dying.
- Cool Sword: Some kingdoms have relics for the ruler, Kei has a sword that grants visions.
- Fisher King: The absence of a ruler causes a World-Wrecking Wave to affect their land, raises the number and severity of natural disasters, and causes a rise in the number of wild nyokai. Just their existence improves all of these and causes a less flashy World-Healing Wave. Insane or evil rulers can be just as bad or worse as the absence of one.
- Immortality
- Made of Iron
- Super Strength
- Translator Microbes
Kirin
- Allergic to Evil: Sort of. Blood is a poison to Kirin, and the mere smell can sicken them.
- Animorphism: Between their true Kirin form and human.
- The Chooser of the One: Kirin can recognize a ruler, but don't technically choose them, heaven does.
- Flight: When in Kirin form, and can be a Cool Horse.
- Fisher Kingdom: On the receiving end, just like the land, to their emperor's Fisher King effect.
- Friend to All Living Things: Their compassion knows no bounds.
- Incorruptible Pure Pureness
- Immortality
- My Country, Right or Wrong: With a dose of Geas, Kirin can not ever disobey an order from their ruler, the only exception being to bow to someone who isn't their ruler.
- Stupid Good
- Synchronization: Along with Fisher Kingdom, they will suffer a debilitating sickness that will eventually kill them if their king becomes evil or insane. Only the repentance, death or abdication of their ruler can cure them. However, unlike how the kingdom suffers in the absence of a ruler, Kirin have no such problems in a ruler-less interim.
The Court of Kei
Youko Nakajima (Queen Sekishi)
Voiced by: Aya Hisakawa (JP), Dorothy Elias-Fahn (EN)
Youko is just your average, shy, Japanese high-school girl. That abruptly changes when a mysterious golden-haired man drops into her classroom and pledges his loyalty to her as his master, dragging her into the alternate realm of the Twelve Kingdoms.
She is actually the displaced ruler of the Kingdom of Kei, and after reclaiming her throne from a pretender, she seeks to renew it to its former prosperity and glory.
- Action Girl: Youko may whine a bit when she first drops into the Twelve Kingdoms, but one wouldn't want to be a demon when she gets going with her sword.
- Adrenaline Makeover: From a mousy Class Representative to a full-on God Empress.
- Brought Down to Normal: In the anime, Youko gives up her Hinman for one fight with Yuka, to drive in the point that Yuka was never meant to be a part of the Twelve Kingdoms.
- Fridge Logic points out that she wasn't brought that far down to normal -- as an Empress, she was still immortal, so Yuka had no actual chance of killing her without a magical weapon. This might have been her point, though.
- Not Fridge Logic; immortal or not, you can still beat a King and injure them, and Yuka wasn't even capable of that much. She would have if she were really the hero, which is the point Youko was trying to prove.
- Fridge Logic points out that she wasn't brought that far down to normal -- as an Empress, she was still immortal, so Yuka had no actual chance of killing her without a magical weapon. This might have been her point, though.
- Class Representative: For several years during her school career, and a part of her initial Stepford Smiler personality.
- Dark-Skinned Redhead
- Driven to Madness: Youko starts to lose it after being betrayed repeatedly by anyone she tries to trust, and the torment caused by the monkey spirit isn't helping things. When she hits rock bottom she's convinced she's as much a monster as the youma attacking her.
- Extreme Doormat --> Action Girl and The Woman Wearing the Queenly Mask --> The High Queen
- Green Eyed Red Head
- God-Emperor
- Heroic Self-Deprecation: "I'm such an useless Queen...!"
- I Choose to Stay: To save Kei, she renounces any plans to return to Japan. It doesn't help that, if she returned, she'd weaken and die in few years.
- Implausible Hair Colour: Youko has red hair, despite supposedly being full Japanese (she's not, of course, but no one knows that). A deconstruction, though—everyone thinks she dyes it, which therefore makes her a Delinquent. This, despite the fact that she has absolutely no other delinquent qualities, and was a spineless wimp until she reached the Kingdoms. Her parents actually want her to dye it, to make it look like she doesn't.
- King Incognito: Travels the lands more than once after being crowned, disguised as a traveling Action Girl named Youshi.
- Parental Abandonment: We are shown Youko's parents back in Japan worrying about her, but this is played depressingly straight when her stodgily traditional father disowns her after being convinced she ran off with a gang.
- Done more sympathetically in the novels. Her father is still overbearingly authoritarian towards her, but it is clear that the disownment stems from his own grief and denial at her disappearance. "Don't you know from watching the news?! In such cases [abductions], have you ever heard of one where [the child] was still alive? That's why I say, she's just run away!"
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: In the anime, Youko's eyes are green, but when using her Hinman or shirei, her pupils will flash red. In either case, it means she's about to kick your ass.
- Red Headed Heroine
- Refusal of the Call: The Call drags her kicking and screaming toward adventure, mostly against her will.
- Shrinking Violet: In the very beginning. She has to shred her shyness away as the story unfolds.
- Stepford Smiler: Starts out as a junior version of this in regards to her home and social life; she reveals later the fear that there was truly nothing inside.
- Tomboy and Girly Girl: The girly girl to Yuka, the tomboy to Rangyoku, Suzu and Shoukei.
- Trapped in Another World
Keiki
Voiced by: Takehito Koyasu (JP), Kim Strauss (EN)
The kirin of Kei. He traveled to Japan in his quest to find Kei's new ruler, and found what he was seeking in Youko. He is stern and rather awkward socially, but cares for others deeply, like all kirin.
When Youko is seated on the throne of Kei, he serves as her confidant and tutor.
- Actual Pacifist: Like all kirin, he is unable to fight directly and gets weak in the presence of blood.
- The Consigliere
- Hair of Gold
- Ill Boy: After Joukaku went nuts, he was stricken with shitsudou - the fatal illness that affects kirin when their rulers reign poorly.
- James Bondage
- Kuudere
- Mr. Exposition
- Mysterious Protector: ...For exactly one episode.
- Non-Action Guy: Although he can order his Seirei to fight for him, blood is a lethal poison to him, so he can't fight personally at all.
- Shapeshifter Mode Lock: Gets stuck in kirin form as part of Joei's usurpation plot. With his horn bound, he's unable to talk or transform back into human form (thus, he can't reveal that Youko is the real queen) until Youko rescues him.
- The Strategist
- Team Dad
- Weaksauce Weakness: Like all kirin, blood is poisonous to him. He also sickens and, eventually, dies if his ruler rules badly.
Queen Joukaku
Voiced by: Toshiko Fujita (JP)
The timid daughter of a merchant family, and former Queen of Kei. After the stresses of rule drove her to slaughter half Kei's population and bring her beloved Keiki to the brink of death, she relinquishes the crown and is struck down by the Heavens.
- Achilles in His Tent: She's so terrified of her queenly duties and insecure about her performance that at one point she locks herself in her room, despite Keiki's pleas and attempts to calm her down.
- Fairest of Them All: In the depths of her madness, Joukaku banished all the other women from her kingdom so that she would be the most beautiful -- and there would be no chance of Keiki paying more attention to them than to her. Those that would not or could not leave were executed.
- Foil: She has a lot in common with Youko, especially the lack of self-confidence. This is most telling when Youko becomes frustrated with Keiki and acts almost the same way Joukaku once did, and Keiki is clearly disturbed by the similarity. Fortunately, Youko gets better.
- God Save Us From the Queen: Jokaku went insane with love for Keiki and slaughtered/exiled most of Kei's female population.
- Heroic Sacrifice: She gave up the crown and immediately died rather than let Keiki succumb to illness, ultimately saving him and the land and opening the path for choosing a new monarch.
- I Just Want to Be Normal: The eldest daughter of a simple merchant from Kei, Joukaku never really wanted to be the Queen and felt she wasn't up to the task.
- Love Ruins the Realm: Her insane love for Keiki led Kei to ruin.
- My God, What Have I Done?: When she realizes how her madness has made everything worse and identifies Keiki's illness as shitsudou.
- Yandere: While normal at first, Jokaku falls madly in love with Keiki. Already unstable from the stresses of an empress job she doesn't feel qualified for, her jealousy makes her snap, prompting her to either exile or execute all other women in Kei in order to remove "competition". Keiki is then struck with shitsudou, making her snap back into sanity. Ultimately, Joukaku is ridden with guilt and decides to sacrifice herself to fix what she had done. And that's when the civil war starts...
Joei
Voiced by: Mami Koyama (JP)
Jokaku's younger sister. She was terribly jealous of her sister having been chosen as the Queen of Kei, believing herself far more capable. This led to her striking a deal with the King of Kou in his schemes, and being installed as a pretender empress.
When Youko allies with the Kingdom of En to retake her rightful throne, Joei is proven a false queen and is killed.
- Envy
- The Evil Princess
- Fake Queen
- God Save Us From the Queen: She was a pretender to the throne, and attempted to steal Youko's rightful place by kidnapping and enchanting Keiki and plunging the nation into civil war.
- Smug Snake
Aozaru
Voiced by: Kosuke Okano (JP), Richard Cansino (EN)
A mysterious monkey-like creature that follows Youko around, taunting her with the hopelessness of her plight.
He is the spirit of Youko's sword, set loose when she lost the sheath in the chaos of her touchdown in the Twelve Kingdoms.
- Trickster: He falls under almost every category—he actively tries to get Youko to kill herself, while also giving her sound advice for survival and tipping her off when someone is going to betray her.
- Trickster Mentor: While it's unclear whether he's doing it deliberately, by the end of the series it's clear that this is the intended purpose of having him sealed into the sword. He does at least seem bored and irritated whenever it seems like Youko is giving up in the face of his manipulations, while getting excited and laughing gleefully whenever she stands up against him.
- Manipulative Bastard
- Maniac Monkey
Seikyou
Voiced by: Seiji Sasaki(JP), Kirk Thornton (EN)
A high-ranked retainer in the court. Actually, a total asshole.
- Evil Chancellor
- Smug Snake
- Man Behind the Man Behind The Man: Most of the crimes Youko faces while incognito are the results of his actions.
The Kingdom of Kei
Enho (Roushou)
Voiced by: Tomomichi Nishimura (JP), Michael McConnohie (EN)
The wise elder of the town Youko has chosen to study and train in. He is actually the legendary sage Roushou.
- Cool Old Guy
- Dude in Distress
- Mr. Exposition: Spends lots of time explaining the setting to Youko, although not as much as Rakushun.
- Mysterious Past: He used to be a great sage...and he was the one to seal Aozaru in Youko's sword.
- Old Retainer
- Secret Keeper: He knows about Youko's King Incognito identity as Youshi the Action Girl and keeps his mouth shut about it.
- Wizard Beard
Rangyoku
Voiced by: Tomoko Kawakami (JP)
Enho's housekeeper; a young woman determined to provide a good life for her younger brother in the recovering Kingdom of Kei. She is killed by assassins searching for Youko.
- Dying Moment of Awesome: Poor Rangyoku got cornered and horribly killed, yeah, but she still managed to hide the Seal of Kei from the assassins.
- Every Girl Is Cuter With Hair Decs: Wears a big yellow bow in her hair.
- Girl Next Door
- Heroic Innocent Bystander
- Les Yay: She seemed pretty interested in Youko disguised as "Youshi", even after she learned that "he" is a "she"...
- Promotion to Parent
- Stuffed Into the Fridge
- Team Chef and Team Mom: As Enho's housekeeper.
- Yamato Nadeshiko
Keikei
Voiced by: Julie Ann Taylor (EN)
Rangyoku's cheerful younger brother.
- Cute Shotaro Boy
- Dead Little Sister: Or rather, he gets a Dead Older Sister.
- Fan Nickname: "Cakey"
- Innocent Bystander
- James Bondage
Gahou
Voiced by: Kazuhiro Nakada (JP), Dave Mallow (EN)
- The Dragon: to Seikyou..
- Man Behind the Man: to Shoukou, while he himself has another man behind him in turn.
Shoukou
Voiced by: Tohru Ookawa (JP), Tom Wyner (EN)
- The Dragon: To Gahou.
- Face Death with Dignity: He shows no fear when it appears Asano is about to kill him, and outright demands that Youko execute him in the name of divine justice when he realizes who she is.
- For the Evulz: He's in this only to commit lots of atrocities. Lots and lots of them.
- Good Eyes, Evil Eyes: Just look at them and tell me which side he's on.
- Graceful Loser: Once he realizes that he has lost, he submits willingly.
- Hunting the Most Dangerous Game: One of the many evils he mentions doing is hunting humans for sport.
- Not So Different: One of his aims in life is to find out if the Heavens exist. Later it is shown that Youko has the same dilemma.
Koukan
Voiced by: Kenji Nomura (JP), Terrence Stone (EN)
- Last-Episode New Character: Although his deposition has been a major plot point, he doesn't show up until the last episode of the arc. And only for like three minutes.
- Malicious Slander: He's the victim of it, as he wasn't the traitor that Youko heard he was. In fact, he was the only Kei governor who did NOT support Joei.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Not only he was loyal to Youko's plight, but he was kind to marginalized groups like the hanjuu.
Kantai
Voiced by: Yasunori Matsumoto (JP), Paul St Peter (EN)
A roguish Kei military leader who is supportive of the resistance effort. He is fiercely loyal to Governor Koukan, who is one of the only non anti-hanjyuu officials in Kei, and who gave him a chance as his lead officer.
- Animorphism: Born a hanjyuu, he can turn into a massive bear.
- I Owe You My Life and Undying Loyalty: To Koukan
- La Résistance
- Reasonable Authority Figure: A military leader from the Baku province, as well as Number Two to Governor Koukan.
- Ship Tease: With Shoukei. He helps her run away from guards after Youko saves her, takes her in as his housekeeper, and then lets her into La Résistance.
- Simple Staff: His Weapon of Choice.
- Tall, Dark and Handsome
Koshou
Voiced by: Rintaro Nishi (JP), Jamieson Price (EN)
A large, boisterous man who is a member of the resistance and a protective older brother to Sekki.
- Blade on a Stick
- Boisterous Bruiser
- The Big Guy
- Humble Hero: He never demands any rewards once La Résistance triumphs. His only request is a scholarship for his little brother Sekki, so he can have an education and a good future.
- Promotion to Parent: Apparently, for Sekki.
- La Résistance
- Rebel Leader
- Sleeves Are for Wimps
Sekki
Voiced by: Kenji Nojima (JP), Yuri Lowenthal (EN)
Much more sensible and thoughtful than his older brother Koshou, he is the brains of the resistance.
The Kingdom of Kou
King of Kou
Voiced by: Takaya Hashi (JP), Bob Papenbrook (EN)
The ruler of Kou, and the one behind the Kei usurpation plot. His insecurity regarding his own performance as king led him to grow envious of the prosperous, taika-led kingdom of En, and caused him to lash out at Youko.
In the anime, he dies shortly after accidentally killing Kourin in a rage. The novels have him die after Kourin dies of shitsudou.
- Beta Test Baddie: His feelings of inferiority towards the taika king Shouryuu lead to his attempts on Youko's life, as he fears that another taika-led kingdom would overshadow his.
- Fantastic Racism: Hanjyuu and Kaikyaku in Kou tend to have a very bad life as a result of his laws.
- Manipulative Bastard
- My God, What Have I Done?: After accidentally stabbing Kourin in his berserk rage against Youko, the full weight of his actions throughout the arc seem to settle in.
- The Rival: Considers Shouryuu and Youko this.
Kourin
Voiced by: Yuko Sasaki (JP), Wendee Lee (EN)
The kirin of Kou. She can only helplessly carry out the King of Kou's orders, no matter how evil. In the anime, she dies by protecting Youko from her king's sword; preventing him from making such a horrible mistake. In the novels, she dies from shitsudou.
- Hair of Gold
- My Country, Right or Wrong: As a kirin, she physically can't disobey the King of Kou, no matter what he does or what she feels.
- Taking the Bullet: One from her king, in the anime. Also a bit of I Cannot Self-Terminate, as she had shitsudou thanks to his actions.
Rakushun
Voiced by: Kenichi Suzumura (JP), Jim Taggert (EN)
A kind, intelligent hanjyuu from Kou. After nursing the half-dead Youko back to health, he accompanies her to En, and eventually manages to get her an audience with Shouryuu and Enki one he pieces out that she was chosen by Keiki.
After Youko is installed as queen, they maintain friendly correspondence while Rakushun attends En's top university.
- Animorphism: As a hanjyuu, he can turn into a big rat. Or to be precise, he's a big rat that can turn into a very Bishonen human.
- Flat Earth Atheist
- Mr. Exposition: The audience gets most basic information about the world from him.
- Odd Friendship: With Youko and Shoukei, not to mention Enki.
- Platonic Life Partners: With Youko, Ship Tease notwithstanding.
- Southern-Fried Genius: He has a bit of a hick accent, coming from backwater Kou. He's also brilliant.
- Scholarship Student: Even with his incredible mind, his poor background and hanjyuu birth made it hard for him to seek schooling in Kou. Thankfully, after migrating to En and gaining the friendship and patronage of Youko and Enki, he is able to attend a top school.
- The Smart Guy
The Kingdom of En
Komatsu Saburou Naotaka (Fuukan, King Shoryuu)
Voiced by: Masaki Aizawa (JP), Lex Lang (EN)
The cunning, charming King of En. He is a taika, born in the age of Feudal Japan as the son of a samurai lord. After being spirited away from a losing battle by Enki, he takes the throne of En, and has ruled it ever since.
- Action Guile Hero: Very skilled and badass fighter. Very cunning manipulator.
- Alternate Character Reading: "Shoryuu" comes from an alternative reading of his Japanese first name, "Naotaka".
- Big Brother Mentor: To Youko.
- Handsome Lech: What he seems to be.
- King Incognito: His favorite pastime. He stays up-to-date on the goings-on in and his kingdom by hitting up bars and brothels in disguise.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: The main way he defuses national crises.
- Samurai: What he used to be. We actually see him wearing armor and all in the flashbacks regarding how he came to be the king.
- Tall, Dark and Handsome
- Trapped in Another World: He was a fallen war lord from feudal Japan, before Enki brought him to this world.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: With Enki.
- The Wise Prince: In the flashbacks to his past in Japan.
Enki (Rokuta)
Voiced by: Kappei Yamaguchi (JP), Dave Wittenberg (EN)
The kirin of En. Similar to his king Shouryuu, he was born a taika in Feudal Japan—however, he was born to a desperately poor peasant family, and saw firsthand what the horrors of war can do to the common people. He came to distrust government figures as the ones who start wars, but eventually warmed up to Shouryuu once he proved his devotion to the welfare of En's people.
- Adults Are Useless: Thinks this way due to his bad experiences with authority figures in the past. Shoryuu generally disabuses him of it, though he's still not too fond of people in power.
- Bratty Half-Pint
- Cute Shotaro Boy: Has tried to play up his youthful looks to get out of doing his paperwork, though it rarely works—all the government workers know full well he's older than he looks.
- Deadpan Snarker
- Dude in Distress: Catches a BIG Distress Ball in the arc towards the end.
- Incorruptible Pure Pureness
- Parental Abandonment: He was abandoned by his human family in the woods during a time of famine. His nyokai managed to find him before he starved to death, and brought him back to the nyosen at Mount Hou. The psychological damage was already done, tho.
- Power Limiter: The magical cord he gets put on towards the end, which seals his horn and powers away. Ribi manages to cut it off, only to die.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Loves to loudly munch on peaches while talking to people.
- Vitriolic Best Buds: With Shouryuu.
Atsuyu
Voiced by: Joe Cappelletti (EN)
The beloved, accomplished governor of En's most prosperous province. He has little faith in the newly-installed Shouryuu's competence as king, and is concerned for En's future. It's all mostly thanks his massive ego and superiority complex deluding himself into thinking he'd be a better king. After years of manipulation and abuse of everyone in his surroudings (and specially of Kouya and of his own father), he is killed while cheating in a duel against Shouryuu.
- Ambition Is Evil
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing
- Death by Irony: He manipulated Kouya into killing people with his demon, so he could gather power and usurp Shoryuu. When he is finally unmasked and snaps, Enki's shirei deals him a fatal injury, so Shoryuu has to Mercy Kill him.
- Evil Mentor: To Kouya.
- Evil Redhead
- The Rival: To Shoryuu.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Or so he'd like you to think.
- Sarcastic Devotee: What he seemed to be. In reality, he is a...
- Smug Snake
- Stepford Smiler: His province is the picture of order and prosperity, and he himself cultivates an image of saintly wisdom and acceptance. Nope.
- Villainous Breakdown
Kouya (Genrou Shinkun)
Voiced by:
Child Kouya: Emi Motoi (JP), Megan Hollingshead (EN)
Adult Kouya: Akira Ishida (JP), Scott Page-Pagter (EN)
A cunning, manipulative young man in the service of Atsuyu, who saved his life when he was young. After years of psychological abuse from his master, Kouya finally comes to terms with his master's evil ways, and self-exiles himself to Mount Hou to wait for Shouryuu to make a kingdom where both he and his youma friend are welcome. During his stay there, he has become the God of Travelers, Genrou Shinkun.
- Chekhov's Gunman: He is introduced as a minor character in Taiki's arc, and then he is not even mentioned until his backstory is fleshed out in the last arc.
- The Dragon: To Atsuyu.
- Evil Counterpart: To Enki.
- Karma Houdini: Played with. He did repent of his horrible actions in the end, but Shoryuu and Enki let him go without any punishment. However, he did self-exile himself to the very dangerous Mount Hou, so even if he wasn't punished by others he is seeking for punishment himself.
- Kid with the Leash: Regarding his demon.
- My God, What Have I Done?: His reaction after his first kill. Of course, Atsuyu tells him it doesn't matter.
- Name's the Same: After befriending Enki, Kouya starts referring to his demon with Enki's human name, "Rokuta", to not forget the name of his first real friend.
- Parental Abandonment: Similar to Enki, he was abandoned in the woods as a child during a time of famine. He was raised by a youma and eventually found and taken in by Atsuyu.
- Poisonous Friend: Kouya appears to be one to his mentor and leader, Atsuyu. He murders dissidents regularly (like Ribi's best friend, the girl who helps Enki escape from Atsuyu's manse) and claims to have "exiled" them when Atsuyu asks. It's subverted, as Atsuyu is actually a Manipulative Bastard who abuses Kouya's extreme loyalty to get away with atrocities while keeping his own hands clean.
- Psycho Sidekick: Kouya could also be considered this in regard to Atsuyu, if Atsuyu wasn't evil himself.
- Released to Elsewhere: His favorite method of exiling people is through the digestive system of his demon.
- Used to Be a Sweet Kid: The sweet boy whom Enki befriended grows into a very cruel teen. He gets better.
- Wild Child: He was abandoned in the woods during a time of famine and raised by a youma. Before being taken in by Atsuyu, he could only communicate in animal noises.
- Walking the Earth: After Atsuyu's defeat and death.
Ribi
Voiced by: Masako Katsuki (JP)
A calm, intelligent civil servant, and very loyal to Shouryuu. She is imprisoned as part of Atsuyu's plans, and sacrifices her own life to free Enki.
- Badass Damsel: So calm and collected that she released Enki, also a prisioner, at the cost of her life.
- Brainy Brunette
- Good Is Not Dumb: Trusts Shoryuu a lot, questions Atsuyu more than once. And is imprisoned because of that.
- Guile Heroine
- Heroic Sacrifice: In the last arc, she and Enki are wearing magical red cords that react to each other, with Enki's cord sealing his horn and his powers. To free him, Ribi snaps Enki's cord, clearly knowing that this will tighten her own cord and fatally injure her. Once she does so, the cord slices her head in half, killing Ribi instantly. Thank God we don't get to see it..
- The Ojou
- Spanner in the Works: By releasing Enki at the cost of her own life, she derails a good part of Atsuyu's plans.
The Kingdom of Tai
Kaname Takasato (Taiki)
Voiced by:
Child Taiki: Rie Kugimiya (JP), Terry Sutton (EN)
Adult Taiki: Kousuke Okano (JP), Johnny Yong Bosch (EN)
The kirin of Tai. His dark hair marks him as an incredibly rare black kirin; a herald of prosperity. He is a taika, and was spirited away from his abusive family by the efforts of Enki and the Mount Hou nyosen. He struggles to come to terms with his power and identity as a kirin in an unfamiliar world.
After being attacked by a treacherous general during a usurpation plot, he was flung back to Japan with a damaged kirin horn and amnesia of his time in the Kingdoms. After years of further confusion and abuse, he was finally located by an international search squad organized by Youko and brought back to the kingdoms. Whether or not he will find the missing Gyousou and save Tai is, unfortunately, an ongoing cliffhanger.
- Abusive Parents
- Beware the Nice Ones: Terrifyingly powerful youma or not, if you threaten his king, prepare for a showdown.
- Badass Adorable: See above.
- Cute Shotaro Boy
- Demoted to Extra: In the novels, he and Youko share the mantle of main character, and get roughly the same amount of books. In the anime, he gets a five-episode arc that is never properly concluded.
- Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: When the yet-untamed Gouran threatens Gyousou, Taiki becomes the first kirin to ever conquer and tame a toutetsu.
- Expository Hairstyle Change: He's got shoulder-length hair as a kirin, but when he's trapped in our world, he wears it much shorter.
- Everything's Better with Sparkles: He puts on quite the light show when transforming into kirin form...
- Friend to All Living Things: He charms vicious animals, bloodthirsty demons, and socially inept kirin with ease.
- Kid with the Leash: Regarding his shirei, Gouran.
- Naive Newcomer: Since he lived 10 years in Japan, the poor kid was incredibly lost when he was returned to the kingdoms. This causes him lots of angst.
- Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette: Actually a plot point, as he's one of the very rare dark-haired kirin.
- Parental Abandonment: With a dash of Abusive Parents. Though he still lives with them for the majority of Demon Child, the Takasatos have all but abandoned him thanks to the jinx that seems to follow him - actually, his shirei lashing out in insane panic at anything they perceive as a threat. His mother says that she wants nothing to do with him right in front of him, and regrets not having killed him outright in an inner monologue. After Hirose takes Taiki in, though, Gouran and Sanshi settle their business with his parents... bloodily, to say at least.
- Shrinking Violet
- The Woobie
- Trapped in Another World
- Trauma-Induced Amnesia: The reason why he can't remember his stay in the Twelve Kingdoms. He was attacked by a treacherous general, resulting in his kirin horn - the source of his power - being cut off. He managed to escape back to Japan before the physical trauma wiped out his memory. Feeding a kirin meat, as his father insists on, doesn't help.
- Trauma Conga Line
Saku Gyousou
Voiced by: Keiji Fujiwara (JP), Chris Kent (EN)
A highly-respected general in Tai, and the man Taiki chooses to be its ruler. He is a skilled and shrewd leader, though a bit impatient, and is confident in his ability to restore Tai to prosperity.
His hastiness to purge the government of long-standing corruption makes him a lot of enemies, which leads to an usurpation plot led by a rival general. Though he is still alive, his whereabouts are currently unknown.
- Authority Equals Asskicking: Thanks to being a badass general before being chosen as king of Tai.
- Cool Sword: Won as a prize from Shoryuu, for being the only person who almost managed to defeat him in a duel.
- Dark-Skinned Blond
- Dirty Business: The mass purges of corrupt officials in the Tai court.
- Four-Star Badass
- Knight Templar: When he is crowned king, his eagerness to purge the court of Tai of long-standing corruption leads him to order mass dismissals and executions -- although it needed doing, Gyousou's hastiness made him lots of enemies, which led to the usurpation...
- Morality Pet: Taiki serves as his, balancing out his sternness. Gyousou's desire to keep Taiki's adoration leads him to hide the government purges from him by sending him on a diplomatic trip to Ren.
- Panthera Awesome: Is commonly associated with tiger imagery, especially in the books. In both the books and anime, he is the proud owner of a massive white tiger that serves as his mount in battle.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Though he does tend to go too far at times.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: An utter workaholic. He immediately starts hammering through budget and government reforms when he takes office, and during his first year in office he manages to pray to Heaven to create a new plant, just for Tai, that burns well enough to serve as a superb source of heat in the icy land.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: Lampshaded, then averted. Taiki is initially afraid of Gyousou because of the man's red eyes. In reality, Gyousou is a pretty nice guy, and his red eyes are not a mark of anything evil...it's just all part of the Twelve Kingdoms' technicoloring scheme.
Haku Sanshi
Voiced by: Masako Katsuki (JP), Julie Ann Taylor (EN)
Taiki's nyokai and surrogate mother. She is utterly devoted to his care and protection.
- Godiva Hair
- Hybrid Monster: Torso, arms, and head of a White-Haired Pretty Girl. Fish eyes. Leopard lower body. Lizard tail. Here she is, ladies and gentlemen.
- Mama Bear: For Taiki. Justified, as nyokai are specifically bred and trained to be Parental Substitutes to young kirin, even before their eggs hatch; as soon as she was born and learned about her mission, Sanshi was seen hugging Taiki's ranka egg and happily saying his name. But as she and Gouran panic and get corrupted on Earth, that brings a lot of trouble: they attack everyone and, since they're invisible to humans there, poor Taiki is blamed for it.
- White-Haired Pretty Girl: Erm, sort of.
Gouran
Voiced by:
A changeling demon known as a toutetsu; horribly powerful by any standards, enough to make even a Physical God think twice about tangling with him. Taiki brings him under his control as his shirei when he threatens Gyousou and Risai in his lair.
- Big Badass Wolf: His preferred form when watching over Taiki is this, but...
- Precious Puppies: Taiki usually wills him into being a Shiba Inu puppy instead.
- Hell Hound
- Eldritch Abomination: Several of the forms he enjoys phasing into can be described only as this.
- Papa Wolf: Is very protective of Taiki, whether out of fondness or duty. As in Sanshi's case, this goes horribly, horribly wrong when the amnesiac Taiki gets stranded in Japan.
Risai
Voiced by: Naomi Shindo (JP), Michelle Ruff (EN)
An up-and-coming military officer in Tai. She is determined to see Tai restored to its former glory, and is loyal to Gyousou and Taiki.
- Cool Big Sis: To Taiki.
- Graceful Loser: She's not chosen as the Queen of Tai, but takes it pretty well.
- Lady of War
- Les Yay: Quite a bit in the novels, with fellow Gyousou-loyal judge Kaei.
- Scars Are Forever: In the books she loses an arm after her flight from Tai to Kei.
The Kingdom of Hou
Shoukei
Voiced by: Houko Kuwashima (JP), Kate Higgins (EN)
As the daughter of its former ruler, she is the deposed princess of the Kingdom of Hou. Spoiled and haughty, she must adjust to her new life as a peasant and come to terms with her father's tyrannical reign.
- Break the Haughty: First she loses her parents and princess status, then she's forced to live as a peasant and is almost excuted when discovered, only Shushou's intervention saving her from an horrible death. And that's just the beginning...
- Brought Down to Normal: Shoukei experiences this, going from a life of luxury to one of poverty, starvation, and near-merciless persecution almost overnight.
- Damsel in Distress --> Action Survivor
- Earn Your Happy Ending: After all her hardships, Youko listens to her plight and takes her in as a lady-in-waiting.
- Fallen Princess
- Family-Unfriendly Death: Almost. She was about to be dismembered by angry peasants when Shushou saved her.
- Ironic Echo: Her peasant caretaker, Gobou, once told her how her son was killed for protesting against an unfair execution by throwing stones at the executioners. Shoukei herself does exactly the same thing later to stop a man's crucifixion, and Youko has to save her.
- Purple Eyes
- Royal Brat: Pre-Character Development. Spoiled and sheltered by her Knight Templar father, the Emperor of Hou, the Break the Haughty that followed hit her hard and it took her a LONG while to get better.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Attempts to deal one to Gekkei after he orders her to be spared from the peasants. He calmly takes it and just tells her to leave Hou.
Sonken (King Chuutatsu)
Voiced by:
The former King of Hou. His Knight Templar behavior led him to enact incredibly strict laws, which eventually led to his deposition.
- Jade-Colored Glasses: As a Self-Made Man government officer, he witnessed such corruption in his years before becoming King that he became a...
- Knight Templar: His absolute sense of justice caused him to slaughter a large portion of his own population for minor offenses. He, his wife, and his kirin Hourin were eventually overthrown and killed.
- Overprotective Dad: He kept his daughter Shoukei completely sheltered and shielded from all the hardships that Hou went through. Boy, did that screw her up once he was executed.
- Unholy Matrimony: With Kaka, who was just as much of a Knight Templar as him.
Queen Kaka
Voiced by:
The wife of the former King of Hou. Self-centered and haughty, her actions are among those that bring Sonken's fall.
- Driven by Envy: Kaka ordered one of Shoukei's ladies-in-waiting and her mother (one of her own court ladies) imprisoned and executed solely because the poor girl was prettier and more talented than Shoukei, falsely accusing the mother of corruption while knowing that both of them would get offed because of that. Gekkei does not forget to call her out on it before he has her killed, and Kaka's Famous Last Words are her denial of such accusations.
- God Save Us From the Queen
- Hot Mom: Though she does look older than the standard one.
- Knight Templar
- Moral Event Horizon: See Driven by Envy.
- Noblewoman's Laugh
- Off With Her Head: How she was executed. In front of Shoukei.
- Rich Bitch
- Unholy Matrimony
Hourin
Voiced by:
The former kirin of Hou. She is killed during the deposition of the king, as punishment for having chosen him in the first place.
- Face Death with Dignity: When Gekkei is about to behead her after killing the royal couple, she accepts it quietly and even seems to be a little relieved.
- Ill Girl: She already was in the last stages of shitsudou when Chuutatsu died.
- Hair of Gold
Gekkei
Voiced by: Masahiko Tanaka (JP), Michael McConnohie (EN)
The leader of the coup against the former king of Hou, and formerly one of the most high.ranked government officers there. He genuinely wishes for what is best for the kingdom, and is not proud of the blood on his hands.
- Cincinnatus: Hou sighs in relief when he finally lets himself be convinced that he should rule the kingdom until the next king is chosen.
- If You Kill Him You Will Be Just Like Him: What he tells to the people who almost excuted Shoukei.
- Insult Backfire: He does this when Shoukei confronts him after the peasants almost kill her.
- Jerkass Facade: To Shoukei.
- Knight in Sour Armor: Very, very bitter in regards to his actions.
- Manly Tears: When he gets a letter from the Older and Wiser Shoukei, in which she tells him about her adventures in La Résistance.
- Reasonable Authority Figure
- Rebel Leader: Sort of. He was a governor in Hou, then led the uprising against the King to save the realm.
The Kingdom of Kyou
Shushou
Voiced by: Wakana Yamazaki (JP), Julie Maddalena (EN)
The ruler of Kyou. Despite her youthful looks, she is a shrewd ruler, and has led Kyou into great prosperity.
- A Child Shall Lead Them: Despite being eternally thirteen, she is the highly competent empress of Kyou.
- Blue Eyes
- Bratty Half-Pint: Even with her competence, she's still a young girl at heart and sometimes exhibits rather childish behavior, like kicking off her shoes while discussing things with Kyouki.
- Corporal Punishment: She sometimes slaps Kyouki around, though only when extremely upset (like when Shoukei steals some of her jewelry and clothes before running away from Kyou) and is soon back to her much gentler self ( she caresses Kyouki's face after hitting him, and immediately forgives both him and the Old Retainer that was in charge of Shoukei).
- Every Girl Is Cuter With Hair Decs
- The High Queen
- Jade-Colored Glasses: She's a good person at heart, but she lectures Kyouki for being too compassionate and kind for his own benefit.
- Little Miss Snarker: She never sugarcoats her thoughts and words.
- Manipulative Bitch: She may have influenced the Hou noblemen to revolt against their unfair king, so refugees won't come to Kyou and overwhelm the country.
- The Messiah: In the novels, the Genre Savvy Shushou ran away from home and made a pilgrimage knowing, if she finished, she'd have a chance to be chosen as Queen and help her suffering countrymen. Kyouki chose her.
- Noblewoman's Laugh
- No Sympathy: To Shoukei, thinking she's just a foolish little girl who did nothing to help the people of Hou and wanting to both punish and toughen her up.
- The Ojou: As the daughter of the richest merchant in Kyou, Shushou was this before becoming empress.
- Plucky Girl: Especially in the novels. "No one shall rule this country but me!"
- Super Strength: Can make Shoukei bow forcibly to her...using only two fingers.
- Really Seven Hundred Years Old: Despite looking thirteen, she is over a hundred years old—rulers stop aging once they're chosen, and Shushou was a thirteen-year-old girl when she became one.
- Tsundere: A Type A, due to her child-like mood swings. In the novels, at one moment she dumps hot soup on her maid for questioning her repeatedly, then begs for her forgiveness and lets her borrow one of her own dresses.
Kyouki
Voiced by: Tohru Ookawa (JP)
The kirin of Kyou. His quiet, thoughtful demeanor is in great contrast to his Empress' bombastic outbursts.
- The Consigliere
- Hair of Gold
- Nice Guy
- Odd Friendship: He's the counselor of a girl who goes between The High Queen and a Bratty Half-Pint.
The Kingdom of Sai
Queen Chuukin / Koukou
Voiced by:
The wise and kind ruler of Sai.
- The High Queen
- Team Mom: For the whole kingdom—the people of Sai call her Koukou, which means "golden mother-in-law".
- Yamato Nadeshiko: With emphasis on the subtle will of iron, as she manages to convince Riyo to let Suzu go with words alone.
Sairin
Voiced by:
The kirin of Sai.
- The Consigliere
- Hair of Gold
- Ill Girl: When the previous King Shishou ( Chuukin's adoptive son) governed ineffectually, she got shitsudou. The King then renounced to the throne and killed himself, which let her get better and choose his mother Chuukin as the new sovereign.
- Yamato Nadeshiko
Seishuu
Voiced by: Akiko Hiramatsu (JP), Yuri Lowenthal (EN)
An ill, orphaned young boy that Suzu befriends.
- Break the Cutie
- Dead Little Brother: For Suzu, he's a dead little friend.
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: Youko's, then Suzu cradles his dead body.
- Get a Hold of Yourself, Man!: When Suzu loses herself in angst, he calls her out on how she's not the only one suffering.
- Ill Boy: Due to an old injury, he's got severe headaches and later loses his sight.
- Parental Abandonment: When he was a baby, he and his parents ran away from Kei during Jokaku's chaotic reign. They were good to him and he loved them... but then his father is killed by youma, then his mother gets sick and dies while waiting for the ship to Kei to arrive.
- Trampled Underfoot: How the poor kid dies. More exactly, he gets trampled by Shoukou's carriage because the Jerkass didn't bother to tell the driver to change paths at the sight of a blind boy in their way.
Riyo
Voiced by: Minami Takayama (JP), Juli Grossman (EN)
A vain, tyrannical woman who takes Suzu under her wing to serve as her maid.
- Domestic Abuse: Loves abusing Suzu.
- Jerkass
- Holier Than Thou: Claims to be "punishing Suzu's sins". Yeah, sure.
- The Mistress: She once was a High-Class Call Girl before becoming familiar with one of the former kings of Sai, who made her his lover and an immortal. Chuukin uses this against her when she refuses to let go of Suzu, threatening her with revoking her priviledges.
- Noblewoman's Laugh
- Raven Hair, Ivory Skin
- Rich Bitch
The Kingdom of Han
Go Ranjou
Voiced by: N/A
The King of Han, who has ruled for three hundred years and brought Han great prosperity. He is somewhat difficult to get along with, and butts heads particularly venomously with Shoryuu.
- Ambiguously Gay
- Dude Looks Like a Lady
- The Fashionista: Is an eager patron of Han's arts and fashion industry.
- Paper Fan of Doom: Hits Shoryuu with his fan for being impolite to Hanrin.
- Wholesome Crossdresser
Hanrin
Voiced by: N/A
The kirin of Han, (currently) nicknamed Risetsu by her king. She is a spunky and loyal partner-in-crime to her beloved king.
- Dead Person Impersonation: Accidentally. She has a magical object that disguises her as someone the person looking at her knows; at least one person sees a dead friend.
- Fag Hag
- Hair of Gold
- Princess Curls
Hourai (Japan)
Yuka Sugimoto
Voiced by: Aya Ishizu (JP), Karen Strassman (EN)
An anime-only character who is accidentally dragged into the Kingdoms when Youko is first swept over. She is convinced that she alone was meant to be brought over, and is incredibly jealous of Youko.
- Ascended Extra: Was a mere otaku in the novels, given only a few lines in the very first book; and certainly was never taken into the kingdoms with Youko.
- All of the Other Reindeer: Was bullied at school due to her obsession with fantasy worlds.
- Ascended Fangirl: Subverted. She thought she was one...
- Big Bad Friend
- Easily Forgiven: To her credit, she does help Youko once she's defeated, and finds the amnesiac Taiki after she goes back home.
- Horrible Judge of Character
- I Just Want to Be Special
- Important Haircut: When she's seen again in Episode 15, her already short hair is even shorter, since she's cut off the bangs that framed her face. Her reasoning is that she 'didn't want to hide [her] face anymore' - emphasising how she's more open in real life and less absorbed in her fantasy stories after experiencing it firsthand.
- Jumped At the Call: She jumps so hard she becomes an antagonist instead.
- Ordinary High School Student
- Otaku: She revels in being in a world like the fantasy novels she obsesses over.
- Poisonous Friend
- Psycho Supporter
- Raven Hair, Ivory Skin
- The Rival: To Youko. After losing to her, she helps Youko rescue Keiki from Joei, and is finally sent back home.
- Tall, Dark and Bishoujo
- Trapped in Another World
- Wrong Genre Savvy: Yuka is very savvy about fantasy novels... but is convinced she is the main character.
Ikuya Asano
Voiced by: Yuji Ueda (JP), Joshua Seth (EN)
An anime-only character who is accidentally dragged into the Kingdoms when his old friend Youko is first swept over. He is terribly out-of-place in the unfamiliar world, and does not adapt as well as Youko and Yuka. After being separated from them, he is gradually driven insane from being isolated from all he's ever known.
- Canon Foreigner: He was specially written into the anime storyline; he never existed in the novels.
- Childhood Friend: Youko's, since they've known each other since childhood.
- Despair Event Horizon: As time goes on, the strains of being Trapped in Another World take a HUGE toll on Asano's sanity, to the point of having him losing all reason to keep on living.
- Desperately Looking for a Purpose In Life
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: Shoukei's.
- Expository Hairstyle Change: He has normal short hair at first, then lets it grow shoulder-length.
- Face Heel Turn --> Deadly Change-of-Heart
- Fan Nickname: "The Gunslinger from Kei", due to his Weapon of Choice being a Western gun.
- Go Out with a Smile: Even if it's an ironic one.
- Sanity Slippage
- Shoot the Shaggy Dog: As he really is just an Ordinary High School Student Trapped in Another World, he is ultimately ineffectual in doing any good for himself or for his friends in this strange new world. He eventually becomes a patsy of the enemy. Just when it looks as though he's about to redeem himself by performing a vital, heroic mission for the good guys, he gets intercepted by the villains, who kill him in spite of his being armed with a gun, while they only have primitive weapons. To further rub salt into the wound, Asano, before he dies, learns that his mission was completely unnecessary, since reinforcements were already coming to help the good guys. Harsh.
- Trapped in Another World
- Unlucky Everydude
- What the Hell, Hero?: Given to him by Youko, after they finally find each other during her days as Youshi.
Suzu Ooki
Voiced by: Naomi Wakabayashi (JP), Mela Lee (EN)
A kaikyaku from Meiji-era Japan, she was swept over in a shoku while she was leaving home to work for a local nobleman that she was sold to as a maid. Separated from all she's ever known, Suzu seeks her place in this strange new world.
- Action Survivor
- Butt Monkey: NOT Played for Laughs.
- Break the Cutie: Her mistress, the sen-nin Riyo, was an absolute bitch to her for more than 100 years. She left to live with Queen Chuukin of Sai, but when she went to search for Youko, It Got Worse quickly.
- Chekhov's Gunwoman: Suzu gets a short scene in Taiki's arc, is then left alone for a while and reappears with a vengeance.
- Dead Little Sister: Better said, dead little male friend.
- Desperately Looking for a Purpose In Life
- Despair Event Horizon: She comes this close to it because of the already mentioned harships. Manages to escape, though barely.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: After all her hardships, Youko listens to her plight and takes her in as a lady-in-waiting.
- My Name Is Not Durwood: "My name isn't Mokurin! I'm Suzu! SUZU!"
- Shrinking Violet
- Translator Microbes: Avoided. Not being a sen-nin means that, when spirited away, Suzu couldn't understand the language of the kingdoms until she was taken in by Riyo. That's actually the reason why she put up with Riyo's abuse; in return for her service, she had Suzu's name added to the heavenly roster. One of her favorite taunts for Suzu was that she was free to quit at any time, but would lose her senninhood and therefore her ability to communicate, which after many years of experiencing just that, was Suzu's greatest fear.
- Trapped in Another World: Was a poor farm girl from the Meiji-era Japan, then arrived in the Kingdoms via shoku.
- Unlucky Everydudette