Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii Wiki
Register
Advertisement
The things that happened a long time ago and the things that happened before I met you ... I want to forget about them.

Livius Orvinus Ifrikia ( 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)) , also known as Livius the First - is the deuteragonist of the story and Emperor of the Sun Kingdom. In short, he has too much rizz for being a kid.

Appearance[]

Livius has dark blue hair that reaches the nape of his neck and blue eyes. It is mentioned several times throughout the story that while Livius looks like a child, his eyes lack any child-like innocence. Despite this, he is considered extremely cute. When forced to cross-dress, his female version has been known to gain many admirers.

Livius is shorter than many of the people in his life and of average height for a child of 11 or 12. However, he is aware that he will eventually grow up and is shown to not be bothered by it.

Though the comparison is unbearable to Livius, who went as far as to destroy every portrait of him, he is the perfect likeness to his father King Leonidas III.

Personality[]

Livius was a quiet, aloof child. He had no interest in power, once stating to Princess Amaluna that his only desire was to escape court with his mother and live-in freedom. After his mother's assassination, Livius grew cold, cruel, and distrustful of everyone around him. Saddled with a kingdom thrust into chaos, the pain from the death of his mother influenced Livius' decision to face the many conflicts with a strong-arm approach, to distract himself from his devastation over losing her.

His isolated upbringing and the loss of the people close to him (first his mother and then his uncle Bardwin, who resigned from his position and disappeared abruptly) rendered him incapable of relying on people. It also developed a possessive streak in him that emerged whenever he felt he was in danger of losing something: his fear manifests into rage and even violence. This possessive streak often emerged due to Nike being kidnapped or accosted by other males (like Bardwin and, in the manga, Prince Tashi) and when anything reminded him of his past crimes. His initial philosophy on living and maintaining order was to apply hate and bloodlust to get back at those who hurt him. However, once he sees for himself how this leads to a repeated cycle of grief and hatred, he feels remorse for how he hurt people and sought to make amends.

Livius was also regarded as outstandingly intelligent from a very young age. He dealt with the Sun Kingdom's budget reports so easily, he claimed they were boring. He has shown an interest in topics such as history, economics and engineering, the latter being how he provided the Sun Kingdom with a sophisticated irrigation system. His ability for political manipulation is well known, often throwing much older and experienced enemies for a loop.

After Princess Nike enters his life, Livius begins to change. He develops empathy for others and starts to work hard to be more merciful and forgiving. Nike also teaches him to live in the present instead of focusing on the next task.

History[]

Livius is the son of King Leonidas III and Sheila, his concubine. Sheila's status as a low-born foreigner resulted in much hatred from the upper and ruling classes towards Livius and his mother, to the point where they had to live in an isolated area of the royal palace. Though his mother tried to make his life happy, Livius lived his first years in solitude. His only friend at court was Princess Amaluna.

Over time, Livius realized he and his mother would always be unwanted in court, so he strove to become stronger to protect her. His dedication and innate talents were noticed by the King, who made him his heir despite that children of concubines are banned from the throne. He had two legitimate half-brothers and a dozen illegitimate half-siblings though the king only recognized Livius. King Leonidas doted on Livius, as he stated the child was the most accomplished of all of his children, though Livius found this treatment suffocating and he loathed his father.

When he was six years old, he began earning the trust of the council and advised them on the kingdom’s problems though he allowed Bardwin to take the credit. His father’s queen, Antonia, became so enraged by Livius’ rise in prominence that she threw him into a sewer drain to kill him but he was saved by Altaria, although Livius was unaware he was his older half-brother by another mistress. The two became close until Altaria murdered their younger half brother Olbia. After the death of his father, 8-year-old Livius worked as an aid to the new king, his older half-brother. However Altaria falsely blamed Sheila for Olbia’s death. His mother dies in a joint assassination attempt on both of their lives, though his uncle Bardwin saves him. His pain and anger over the loss of her, with support from Bardwin (who believed Livius would only be safe in a world conquered by him), lead him to seize the throne by assassinating his older half-brother, his sister-in-law, and the Queen dowager. After his coronation, Livius then took an extremely aggressive approach to ruling: in an amazing show of ability, he purged his own country of corruption, brought political stability, and then conquered the rest of the world. These measures made him very popular amidst the lower and middle classes but earned him the hatred of the priesthood and some factions of the nobility, who were not happy with the way Livius curtailed their privileges. His brutality in dealing with his enemies also earned him a fearsome reputation: Livius has been known to interrogate, torture and even kill his opponents himself.

To make the Ice Kingdom forcibly surrender after a civil war with the Sun Kingdom, Livius led an invasion and destroyed the country, causing the demise of the royal family with the exception of Princess Ursula. He forced her to be his fiancée with the intent on making her bear an heir by any means but the engagement was broken off when Ursula escaped and Livius made no further attempt to pursue the engagement.

Three years after his ascension, Livius was informed about the Rain Dukedom and its royal family's ability to summon the rain, he decided to make an ally of them: he sent them an official dispensation that would allow the Rain Dukedom to remain autonomous in exchange for the hand of one of the princesses in marriage. He and Neil specified that they should send the most beautiful daughter, and appears to be unimpressed when the youngest, Princess Nike Lemercier, is the one who appears. Princess Nike's combative attitude sparks Livius’ interest, as she appears to be one of the few people left who aren't afraid to oppose his requests.

When Nike explains that she will only be able to summon the rain if Livius shows her the beauty of his land, the king at first attempts to shower her with luxury and is taken aback when Nike prefers simple things like flowers. He is further affected when Nike remarks that his inability to appreciate the world he has conquered is "a waste" and agrees to spend some time learning the simpler beauty of the castle's gardens with her. His enjoyment is cut short when Nike pushes him out of the way of an assassin's poisoned arrow and takes the hit herself in the process. Livius takes the episode as a reminder that the world is unkind, despite the budding interest he felt toward's Nike's view of it and declares martial law on the city as he roots out his treasonous retainers. He also ordered Nike be returned to the Rain Dukedom; though Nike felt offendended, Niel explained that it was a sign of Livius' concern over her being in danger.

Livius reversed his decision after listening to Nike's rain summoning song for the first time, when Nike summoned it to control the fire that had been set to the king's rooms by treasonous retainers. The song and the rain confuse him, putting him at peace and at the same time stirring up memories of his mother that Livius would rather remain dormant. He was surprised by the rainbow that appeared in the sky after the rain stopped, even confessing it to Nike when she asked. He starts to spend more time in Nike's presence after this, sneaking into her room to sleep in the bed with her and requesting small favors of her, like letting him rest with his head in her lap.

This is also the moment when Livius starts taking Nike's views into consideration when taking his own decisions. It is on her advice that he refrains from punishing his retainers too severely, and it is with her in mind that he begins visiting orphanages for refugee children. He is particularly gentle with the children, telling them about Nike's love of flowers and how looking at flowers, trees and the blowing wind all remind him of her.

As the engagement ceremony known as the Exchanging of Suns approached, Livius received formal notification from the Ministry of the Priesthood informing him of their opposition to his marriage, based on Nike being a foreigner. While they stated that they would reconsider if the princess underwent the Rite of Illumination, Livius considered it too dangerous, because it meant admitting to the priests that Nike was indeed a foreigner and because "countless princesses" had died attempting to complete the ritual. Though he initially insisted that Nike let him protect her and find another way to proceed with the marriage, he finally caved and let her undergo the ceremony. He gave her Sheila's ring to wear on a chain around her neck for protection, though he didn't explain the significance of it (Sheila had told Livius to give it to the person he loved the most one day).

Though he expressed complete faith in Nike, Livius distrusted the priests, aware that they resented him for how he'd put a stop to their excess. He grew frantic over Nike's safety and escaped the palace, using a secret pathway only known to the royal family to enter the temple. His fears were proven right, as he found Nike fleeing from armed priests that had been ordered to kill her while she was in the temple. He found a way out, but one of the priests managed to tail them and sliced Sheila's ring in half before Livius stepped in and disarmed him. Though Nike stopped Livius from killing the priest, the attempt made Livius lose his composure. He led Nike on a mad flight even though nobody was chasing them anymore, then collapsed into her arms, confessing that he had barely thought things through: he'd merely grabbed his sword and run, overcome by his fear of losing her. He confessed that he could bear losing the throne, but not Nike. Nike manages to calm him down and, as they watch the sunrise, thinks of a way to complete the Exchange of Suns without the rings.

During the Exchange of Suns, when the ring box Nike retrieved from the temple is revealed to be empty, Livius claims that a mere ring is unworthy of the Sun King and explains that Nike will put a ring around the sun itself to signify their engagement. When Nike succeeds and one of the priests, discomfited by the spectacle, reveals that the engagement is still invalid because Livius entered the temple to help princess Nike, Livius reveals that he did it to foil an assassination attempt against Nike. This forces Rani Aristels to confess he was behind it, to avoid too great a retaliation against the priesthood, but to his surprise Livius lets Nike pardon Rani Aristels in exchange for having their engagement approved.

When his uncle Bardwin unexpectedly returns to the capital, Livius is enraged both by his sudden return and how he constantly flirts with Nike. When he finds him and Nike together in an empty room, all of Livius's suppressed rage and fear of abandonment comes rushing forward: he has Bard thrown into a cell and tells Nike not to forget he has the power to burn her entire country to the ground before having her confined to her room. While he doesn't recant Bard's punishment, he quickly realizes he's gone too far with Nike and tries to apologize (though he doesn't let go of his suspicion and jealousy about Bard having touched Nike). He later agrees to talk to Nike in a gazebo, only to find Bard instead. Forced to speak to his uncle when Nike summons a vicious storm to close them in, the two make amends. Livius later reinstates Bard as Prime Minister.

Weeks later, when Nike informs him of a letter from home stating that her grandmother may be dying, Livius quickly arranges everything to accompany her to the Rain Dukedom.

Rain Dukedom

When they arrive in Nike's homeland, Livius is taken aback by how laid back the royal family is: their welcome committee is simply Nike's sister Kara and an old man, and Nike's other sisters Mira and Nia, unconcerned with Livius's status as Sun King, carry him off to be dressed up and posed for pictures. After resting, he observes the stars and is joined by Nike who made him porridge. While he doesn’t like her country, he says it is important to him because it’s her home. This leads their first mutual kiss, which embarrasses them. He is however very suspicious of Nike's grandmother Tohara, who is not near death at all: while she claims she merely threw out her back and someone misreported this to Nike, Livius finds it strange that such a formidable woman would make such a fuss over slight back pain. His suspicions are proven correct when he and Niel are offered drug-laced tea; both pretend to fall asleep until a man comes and and attempts to hypnotize Livius, at which point Neil attacks him to give Livius a chance to escape.

Livius is led to the Black Lotus Tower by Kara, who confirms there is a plot in motion to keep Nike in the Rain Dukedom. All the royal family are involved in it, but the plot did not sit right with Kara, knows she will be punished but wishes to make things right by her sister. Before Livius can attempt to enter the Black Lotus Tower, he is attacked by Tohara, who reveals the plot: the idea had been to persuade them to part, but once it became clear to Tohara that Livius had deep feelings for Nike, she arranged to drug him and use hypnosis on him for three days until all memory of Nike was erased. Tohara tells him Nike's engagement was a mistake, as she is the most powerful manipulator in the entire country and should be kept in the Rain Dukedom for hers and the world's safety. She claims power like that could be used to destroy the world someday, if not by Livius, then by someone else in the future if any of his and Nike's children inherit her powers.

Livius agrees that Tohara's concern is valid, but refuses to give Nike up. When Tohara says she will relent if Livius can find her royal key amidst the mud and water of the lake, Livius jumps in and begins his search despite Tohara's taunts. He doesn't try to escape, even when Tohara summons a rainstorm that fills the lake and washes him away. Livius is saved by Nike, who resuscitates him after he nearly drowns. Once he is fully awake, he reveals that he managed to find key and cheekily asks Tohara if she will back down now.

Livius forgives the royal family, stating that since the matter was personal and not political, there will be no retaliation by the Sun Kingdom. He and Nike have a second engagement ceremony with her family, though her grandmother and cousin Kitora decline to attend. During the celebration, Livius is asked if he fell in love with Nike at first sight. He refuted this and embarrassed Nike by explaining how he threw her in the dungeon. Her uncle asks Livius to kiss Nike, which he does and vows he will love and always protect her. He makes amends with Nike's cousin Kitora, who'd participated in the plot due to his love for Nike, to the point where they engage in complicated discussions about engineering. He persuades Nike to try and speak with her grandmother before they leave, and even speaks to Tohara himself through a closed door, insisting that she should see this person she loves as one of the people he wants to see, he can never see again (referring to his mother).

Back in the Sun Kingdom, he and Nike are swamped with work that Bard has been putting off, which keeps them away from one another for days on end. This eventually leads Livius to travel to the Elad Canyon when a negotiation stagnates, but he is seen to have trouble sleeping. In the anime, Livius temporarily abandons the inspection trip without telling anyone where he is to go back and see Nike. In the manga, Livius completes the inspection but travels all night in order to be home and see Nike as fast as possible.

Nike tours the Sand Kingdom

Livius entertains a diplomatic visit from Prince Tashi of the Sand Kingdom. Despite his efforts, the prince and his bodyguard are unimpressed - even Nike's Rain Summoning prompts such hostility from them that a few of the people present in the even faint. When Nike informs him she will return to the Sand Kingdom with the prince to assess the situation, Livius is deeply concerned, but does not impede her.

Livius is profoundly distressed when a message arrives from the Sand Kingdom implying that Nike has died in a sand storm. Unwilling to give up, he immediately sets out for the Sand Kingdom's capital. He arrives there to find Nike alive and well, accompanied by a contrite prince Tashi. The prince confesses that he allowed his retainers to go forward with a plot to keep Nike in the Sand Kingdom by having him think she'd died. The revelation disturbs Livius (who can tell that Prince Tashi has developed feelings for Nike) and he is prepared to deliver retaliation. At Nike’s urging, Livius forgives Taishi and offers them mercy. He also reveals that he'd long had a plan to build an aqueduct bridge into the desert through the Sun Kingdom's southern mountain range, and that he will proceed with the plan more quickly given the Sand Kingdom's difficult circumstances.

However, Livius is jealous that Nike didn’t outright reject Taishi and how she allowed him to get close to her. He ignores for a few days, refusing to see her and sleep in the same bed with her. She finally get frustrated and confronts him, saying she never stopped thinking about him while she was gone. Livius feels bad for ignoring her and they reconcile.

Journey to the Ocean Kingdom

After Nike's safe return, Livius receives a visit from Princess Luna, who comes to request his and Nike's help: her parents have arranged to marry her off to a Duke Claude Fortis when she comes of age. The man is over thirty and Luna actively dislikes him. When Livius's attendant Sororu reveals that there are rumors about the duke being a sexual deviant, he agrees to help her. While he can't interfere with the engagement directly, he offers to travel back to the Ocean Kingdom with her and attempt to discourage Fortis.

Livius goes along with Luna's plan, including passing Nike off as a male Sun Kingdom soldier called Kanaris Micaine, Luna's 'real' fiancé. Nike at one point mentions to Luna that Livius is annoyed that the plan calls for "Kanaris" to sleep in Luna's room, to feed palace gossip.

When Luna plans to leave Fortis stranded in a deserted island in Ariado Lake for a couple of days, Nike and Livius agree to go with her. The plan goes awry when Nike and Livius's boat is carried off by the wind and Nike, overcome by the climate, the use of her powers and the bodice constricting her chest, collapses. This leaves the four of them trapped on the island. Livius and Fortis clash at first, as Fortis declares himself in charge, being the only adult present. Livius, unused to being ordered around by others, chafes at this, but slowly warms up to Fortis when he teaches him how to fish. Livius takes to the lesson quickly. His good intentions towards Luna further recommend him to Livius.

When Fortis reveals his engagement to Luna was a ploy to infiltrate the royal family, due to Fortis having captured a ship carrying Black Rizeria flowers (a narcotic) to their stores, Livius is the only one who reads between the lines: in private, he tells Fortis that he noticed that to have had pirate ships be so comfortable around his own armada means that Fortis has probably engaged in privateering in the past. However, Livius expresses that he doesn't care. In response, Fortis reminds Livius of the time he sent troops to Mirabar and Ressa (another autonomous state). Fortis then segues into a story about the Black Rizeria, which is beautiful despite its narcotic properties: just as the flower cannot be only beautiful, Livius can't keep hiding his actions during the war from Nike. The comment makes Livius lose his composure: distraught, he insists that Nike doesn't need to know as Fortis exits the room.

Despite this, Livius doesn't hesitate to reprimand Luna when she laments over the end of her engagement, and suggests she go after Fortis. He also offers her the support of the Sun Kingdom army to intercept him before he leaves the Ocean Kingdom.

Ursula's Revenge

As his birthday approaches, Livius and the entire kingdom are swept up in a whirlwind of preparations for a lavish celebration involving foreign dignitaries. One day, while visiting Nike in her room, Livius sees a finely made medicine container on a table. He recognizes it as belonging to the Ice Kingdom's royal family, and immediately loses him composure. A seriously discomfited Livius demands Nike tell him where it came from; his discomfiture only grows when he recognizes Nike's "friend" as Ursula, his former betrothed who is out for revenge. Livius remembers the princess calling him a murderer over the bodies of her family (who died on Livius's orders) and yells that he had no choice. He pins Nike down on the bed and warns her that he will kill those she cherishes, with the exception of her family, if she leaves him before leaving a frightened Nike to confer with Bardwin over security measures.

As the date of the celebration approaches, Livius spends a lot of time alone in his room attempting to gain a grip on his emotions. When the night of the celebratory ball finally arrives, he is not surprised when Ursula appears. After a brief altercation, Ursula lunges at Livius with a blade - only to stab Nike instead. Livius has the rebels captured and imprisoned as he sees to Nike. He goes down to interrogate them, followed by Nike (who refuses to let him apply torture), but doesn't get anything worthwhile from them. except confirmation that they want him dead.

The castle comes under attack that very night: allies of Ursula's fill the torches with poisonous herbs, unleashing clouds of smoke over the castle that cause paralysis and sickness in those who breathe them. Trapped in the palace and with the royal guard greatly incapacitated, Livius can only take the royal party to the upper floors and barricade himself there.

Livius is in a precarious mental state: he wants Ursula and her bodyguards executed the very next morning, then intends to raise an army and march on the north. Despite his terrifying display of bloodlust, Nike stands up to him, warning him that she can’t follow his path of revenge but urging him to keep the peace he'd worked so hard for before and assuring him that she'll stay by his side. Her words ease Livius, and Nike excuses herself to summon a rainstorm and dispel the poisonous smoke. After she leaves, Livius recalls that her skin was unnaturally cold and, overcome by a bad feeling, runs after her.

When Livius reaches the tower where Nike is singing, he finds Nike singing in a strangely bestial way and not responding to anyone's words. Despite being surrounded by a wall of cutting wind, Livius leaps through and holds onto Nike as the storm grows larger and more violent. Nike's sister Kara arrives unexpectedly and, using a long necklace of Black Lotus stones and a counter-song to Nike's melody, brings her back to her senses. Nike collapses shortly after coming back to her senses.

The royal physician reveals to a horrified Livius that a slow acting poison had been administered to Nike, and that none of the known antidotes are working. Nike is also suffering violent fits that further deteriorate her health, forcing Kara to put her in a magic-induced sleep. Desperate, Livius summons three former advisors: Lords Wodan, Catesby and Ratcliff, the latter being famous for having a world wide network of contacts known as the Spider's Web. After Livius humbles himself, Ratcliff reveals that there is a witch named Cassandra deep in the forests of the Sun Kingdom that may be able to cure Nike. However, Livius must travel to see her alone and without pretense, as the witch is famously apolitical and will only help him after measuring his personal worth.

After entrusting the kingdom to Bard, Livius, under the guise of a commoner, leaves Ginitarix in search of the witch. He is unaware that a masked girl is following close behind.

The Forest of Wonder

Livius travels to the region of Tristatt, south of Ginitarix, and comes to the village of Ecoat, which borders the Forest of Wonder. When the townsfolk are wary of him, Livius pretends to "reveal" himself to be a cute girl, which leads them to be more sympathetic. He tries to blend in with the locals but finds it socially awkward as he’s never interacted with anyone but those close to the royal family. He's told that the forest, dangerous in and of itself, has also become home to a band of robbers who kill trespassers. After a man manhandles him, Livius is saved by a young man called Jishin. He offers to take "Bianca" to speak with the chief of the thieves who inhabit the forest - if Bianca agrees to go on a date with him. Livius reluctantly agrees.

Though the date isn't terrible, Jishin corners Livius at the end of it, revealing that he knows something is off about Bianca: though "she" claimed to be a farmer's daughter, her hands are smooth and she doesn't know about planting seasons. Livius knees Jishin and attempts to escape Ecoat, only to be waylaid by Jishin's friend Kimataki, who offers to lead "Bianca" to the thieves' hideout anyway. He leads Livius through some historical ruins, but hits him in the back of the head and renders him unconscious.

Livius wakes deep in the thieves's hideout, under the care of a little girl named Kana, and attempts to escape. Though he manages to avoid the thieves for a while, he is eventually cornered. Jishin emerges, revealing that he is the thieves's leader and that they are in league with Cassandra: Jishin would love to help Bianca, but as 'she' has lied to him before and is a noble, he doesn't want to allow any visits to Cassandra. The conversation is interrupted when the masked girl who'd been seen following Livius appears and attacks, telling Livius to flee.

Kana decides to help Livius and leads 'her' through to a tunnel that leads to the forest. On the way she explains that the thieves and the people of Ecoat all work together to protect Cassandra and the forest, as the healing herbs that grow there are many times more powerful than those of other places and the area's nobles keep trying to seize it for their own profit. They also lead witch hunts against Cassandra to appear pious.

The masked girl reappears, this time attacking Kana; Livius protects her, receiving a shallow wound in the process. Jishin catches up to them and wards the masked girl off, then agrees to guide Livius to the forest - however, he still hasn't agreed to lead him to Cassandra. While Jishin carries Livius there, the young king remembers past advice from Nike about relating to people. He decides to reveal his identity to Jishin: although he is 'beartbroken' that Bianca doesn't exist, Livius's honesty persuades Jishin to help him. Livius is surprised when his honesty also prompts Jishin to tell him his life's story.

Jishin leads Livius through the forest, which is full of various pockets of miasma. On the way, they run into the masked assassin again, now weak and disoriented from walking through the miasma. Despite this, she attempts to set off an explosion to kill them; when that fails and Livius restrains her, she sets herself on fire and ensures the flames spread to Livius. Jishin gives him hurried directions towards a lake: Livius, with the assassin in his arms, makes it just in time. A woman appears and greets him by his name: it is the witch Cassandra, whose house lies beside the lake.

Cassandra takes Livius in kindly, feeding him and explaining that she is the latest in a long line of women who take up the name. She sets Livius a few tasks to test his character: she makes him clean her exaggeratedly messy room, then sets him to cut down herbs with a scythe. Throughout these tests, she also gives Livius advice about his feelings, leading him to develop some emotional stability in the midst of the crisis. At some point, the masked assassin wakes up: she tells Livius that her task was to help him in his quest, then step in and kill him when he got close to the end. Though she doesn't name her employer, she tells Livius that he knows exactly who would do something like that to him.

After a few days, Cassandra sets Livius his final test: he must travel through the Dragon's Mouth caves at the center of the Forest of Wonder. If he can collect an egg from the creature that nests in its depths and make it out the other side, she will leave with him to Ginitarix and save Nike - if he fails, it's likely he will die in the depths of the cave.

Livius follows Jishin to the mouth of the cave and receives a gift of smoke bombs from him in parting. He is also joined by Shikanda, Cassandra's owl. He traverses secret passages and a snake pit, finally reaching the center. He finds the nest empty and quickly packs away one of the eggs. To his shock, he hears someone tell him not to take things that aren't his: Livius turns to find his mother Sheila standing behind him. The apparition is warm and solid, and Livius begins to feel too light-headed to think of anything but what is immediately in front of his eyes.

After an emotional reunion, Sheila asks Livius why he let her die and complains about her life in the palace, which makes Livius suspicious as the mother he remembers was always cheerful and optimistic. Nevertheless, "Sheila" tells him that now that they've met again, Livius can forget everything and stay with her. When "Sheila" tries to take the Black Lotus stone from around his neck, Livius' memories slowly reawaken. When Sheila doesn't recall the rain song from the east, Livius is again shaken: the memory of rain abruptly brings back the memory of Nike. Aware that he's being manipulated, Livius cuts himself with his own sword: the pain fully wakes him, and he tells the specter of Sheila that though life will be very hard from now own, he chooses to confront it in order to stay with Nike. Livius strikes it and vision ends, revealing a gigantic golden eagle behind it. He informs Shikanda that he hasn't killed the eagle, and instead thanks the unconscious creature for letting him see Sheila again. Finally accepting the death of his mother, Livius tearfully bids her farewell, referring to her as ‘Mother’ rather than her name.

Livius meets Jishin outside. Though he tells Jishin he had a terrible time, he says the vision helped him realize he was still clinging to a lot of anger, and that he now believes he'll be able to live in a world without Sheila. They set off back to Cassandra's house in triumph with an egg of the eagle. To everyone’s surprise, it hatches and the chick imprints on Livius as it’s ‘mother’, much to his chagrin.

However, Livius is greeted by terrible news: despite Bard and the others covering for him, the Sun Priesthood has discovered Nike's illness and Livius's quest. They have moved into the royal castle to keep an eye on things. They intend to accuse Livius of heresy for both contacting a witch and bringing her to Ginitarix, a city considered holy to the Sun God, which will force him to abdicate, the marriage to Nike will be annulled, and will leave Nike to die without Cassandra's help. Even if Livius were able to sneak Cassandra in, the priests's constant presence in the castle would render her unable to treat Nike. Their presence would also put Cassandra herself at risk of a witch hunt.

Though overcome at first, Livius comes up with a plan. He has Jishin take him back to the thieves's hideout and delivers a rousing speech, promising them his protection if they help him now, and sends a thick letter full of instructions back to Bard. Livius dresses the thieves richly and arranges them into a caravan, with an elaborately dressed Cassandra following them in an open carriage. They make their way to Ginitarix like that, making a big production of the journey. When the party finally arrives at the castle, Livius presents Cassandra as his concubine: Livius argues that the king's wife has to be approved by the priesthood, but that concubines are chosen at the king's sole discretion, channeling his father to lend credibility to this move (as it was widely believed that Nike was his only love.) As he has convinced the whole country of this with his caravan, High Priest Reedus has no choice but to let him through. High Priest Reedus is impressed with Livius's cunning and quietly asks himself if he is truly just a boy.

After examining Nike, it is determined that one of three antidotes may help her. If neither of the three are a match, however, there is nothing else to be done to help Nike. When the first two fail, Livius asks Cassandra to let him feed Nike the third one himself, to have contact with her in case everything fails. Livius prays as he administers the medicine: Nike finally wakes up and happily welcomes him back. He breaks down into tears and embraces her. She also reveals that she'd been able to telepathically follow him throughout his quest. As Cassandra orders more of the antidote prepared for more dosages, Livius allows Nike a moment alone to recover. Once he is alone, Livius breaks down in tears, relieved that Nike is safe.

Throughout Nike’s recovery, Livius never leaves her side, often sleeping next to her and tells her about his journey. When Nike hears about Cassandra being a concubine from the maids, Livius nervously explains the cover story to her. She understands the whole situation, as he used it to save her, and Livius is overcome with relief by her understanding. He also vows to never love another woman other than her and how happy it makes him that she is his wife. Once she is well enough to get out of bed, Bard suggests Livius and Nike show Cassandra wound the capitol. Disguised as a family (Neil and Cassandra as the parents and Livius, Nike, and Jishin as the children), they explore the city. However Nike runs away due to her jealousy of the citizens talking about Cassandra being his concubine, and Livius chases after her. Once she explains her feelings, Livius is quick to assure his love for her. They meet a small child asking for food from them, and Livius feels empathy as he understands the effects of poverty. When his disguise is revealed to a group of people, Livius takes the opportunity to publicly announce he is repudiating Cassandra and intends to be faithful to Nike.

Livius draws up preparations to have a memorial built in honor of his mother. He explains to Bard that he has held onto the past by clinging to the pain he feels of her death but by accepting she is gone, he can move forward. But as he is no rush for the construction, he doesn’t right away ask for Bard’s signature on the order form. Nike is devastated when she discovers she has lost her summoning ability and stays in her room. To cheer her up, Livius surprises her by announcing he is building a garden for her, which makes her very happy. When Livius panics at caterpillars crawling on him, Nike subconsciously summons the wind to blow them away, though Kara explains her rain summoning will return at some point.

After granting the Forest of Wonder autonomy in appreciation and bidding Cassandra farewell when she leaves the city, Livius and Nike decide to take a vacation to the village of hot springs. Along the way they stop at his mother’s homeland, where he names the chick Yoru (which means song in the language of his mother’s tribe) and proposes to Nike and suggests they have their wedding in the upcoming spring, which embarrasses her but she accepts. They then visit the village of hot springs. While Nike goes shopping with Galta, Livius selects several revealing bathing suits for her to wear but he is disappointed when she prefers a more moderate one. As they bathe, Nike asks if he can wait on them consummating their relationship until she feels ready and he agrees.

Nike is kidnapped by Nephero, prince of the Grand Sky Dutchy. Livius recruits the massive navy fleet to find her but fails even though she was actually close by, forcing him to return to Ginitarix. He learns she was kidnapped by members of the Rebel/Klauss Faction, which seeks to destroy his kingdom. Although he wants to track down the kidnappers and kill them, he decides to rescue her as her safety is more important. During the search, he meets Nephero’s brother Catra who joins Livius to not only save his brother from being executed by Livius as a traitor but to help Nephero see the errors of his way. Livius reunites with Altaria, and Livius realizes he is targeting her. Nike is manipulated into creating catastrophic storms that destroy several villages and Livius, upon finding her, tries reaching through to her, but she is only brought back to her senses when a black Loctus stone makes contact with her and the two tearfully embrace. Nephero saves Livius and Nike from debris. Livius was willing to let Nephero die if Nike showed any hint of feelings for him but she retorted she simply can’t let him die, and Livius helps her rescue him. Nephero loses his sight and ability to use his limbs. Livius feels pity for Nephero and decides against seeking vengeance, as Nephero’s condition is punishment enough.

They arrive at the Ice Kingdom and are welcomed by Tamba, the country’s Governor-General. However, members of the faction (including Ursula and Nero) surprise Nike and Livius, as the nobles of the kingdom are in league with the faction. To protect Nike, Livius offers to let Ursula kill him but she won’t right away. He also tries to rationalize with her but she refuses to listen. The two, along with Galta escape while Neil is taken hostage. They seek shelter with former members of the original faction and Livius decides to deal with them alone and Nike gives him a lock of her as protection.

At the ice towers, Ursula attempts to activate the catastrophe code to destroy the Sun Kingdom and kill Livius. Livius arrives to confront her and Altaria, but because he has a lock of Nike’s hair with him, the code activates and all the countries begin experiencing catastrophic weather. Livius, Ursula and Nero are trapped as the cave collapses while Altaria escapes. Nero is critically injured and Ursula refuses to leave him and refuses Livius’ help. However, he helps revive Nero and convinces her to escape and gives Nike’s hair to her. Livius nearly drowns and Ursula, despite still wanting him dead, rescues him. The three then escape and regroup with Nike and the others. Livius allows Ursula to brutally beat him for his crimes until she grows exhausted and wishes him happiness.

To reconcile with the Ice Kingdom, Livius calls for a meeting with the nobles and rather than have her executed for her crimes, he appoints Ursula as Governor-General and vows to support her unconditionally. They travel further north to the Twilight Kingdom to locate the main system of the catastrophe code, as it can stop the destruction from being completed, and stay with Ain and his family. Livius and Nike discuss their future and having children once they marry. Livius, Nike, and their crew follow Altaria once they learn he plans to destroy the world. They follow him to the ‘equipment’ within the ice walls that Altaria intends to use for his plot. He activates it, awakens Sidon, who begins the destruction of the world. Livius is enraged at Altaria, as so many people have died and more was lost due to his actions, and tries to kill him but Sidon prevents him. Nike and Livius try to stop the destruction and Livius manages to delay it for a while. However, as the group tries to escape from the collapsing ice cave, they fall into a dark void. Waking up in a hyperspace world, Nike, as her ancestors had been responsible for causing and preventing the catastrophe, meets the original protector and she knows she will have to become the world’s protector due to her being the most powerful summoner. She agrees to become the protector and requests one last meeting with Livius. He can see through her calm expression and she admits that, as protector, she can’t go back to the real world. Livius becomes distraught and says he can’t live without her. Nike refutes this as he is alive and asks him to live on before declaring her love for him and kissing him. Livius lashes out at Altaria that his actions has caused him to lose the one he loved and breaks down.

Livius distracts himself from his grief by working and others start to worry he will return as his old self. In regards to Altaria, Livius goes to see him and finds that he uses the same medicine Livius used to sleep. Altaria begs for Livius to kill him but Livius says that as much as he despises him, Altaria’s punishment will be to live with the burden of his crimes for the rest of his life in confinement rather than execution. Livius tells Neil that he can’t give up in Nike and has decided to continue searching a way to bring her back. Sidon, the former ruler of the kingdom of darkness, tells Livius the history of her past thousands of years ago when she met the previous protector and how she longs to reunite with him before her powers created calamity and her body was divided within monument stones across the world. It is decided that they will locate the stones, let Sidon regather her body/powers, and become the new protector. However, since they can’t find the stones in the current lifetime, Livius appeals to the citizens of the other countries.

Six years pass when all the stones have been found. During that time, Livius has built a garden for Nike and continued leaving flowers in her room. An older Livius thinks about Nike as he stares at the sky. He hears her singing and is surprised when she appears in front of him. He jokingly remarks he has gotten older than her and they embrace as she says she came back to be his wife.

Six months later, Livius and Nike finally get married and have a luxurious wedding celebration, which had been planned while Nike was gone.

Relationships[]

Nike Lemercier[]

Livius was shocked by Nike since their first meeting. Though he didn't consider her very pretty at the beginning, he was impressed and amused by how she didn't seem afraid of him, opposing his wishes and even attacking him. He considered her a plaything at first, to be used for his personal amusement, evident when he threw her in the dungeon and laughed at her. He tried showering her with luxury when she asked for him to show her the beauty of the world and brushed off her preference for a flower. Nevertheless, he shows her the garden and sees nothing special about flowers, making Nike to criticize him for having the world but not appreciating its beauty and calls it a waste.

Despite his initial determination, Livius finds himself caring for Nike. Though unwilling to show her this at first, he worries about her, secretly leaving bunches of flowers in her vase despite not caring too much for flowers himself. Nike's insistence at the beauty of the world also begins to affect his own worldview: he softens his rulings, starts to concern himself with orphanages and even mentions to the children there that "the queen" has woken him up to the beauty of the world. When Nike decides to undergo the Rite of Illumination, Livius gives her his mother's ring for protection. This is a very significant gesture, as Sheila had told him to give the ring to a woman he loved and, before meeting Nike, Livius thought he'd never love anyone more than he loved his mother.

The rite also reveals how important Nike is to him. After Nike enters the temple, Livius is so concerned with her safety that he simply grabs his sword and escapes the palace to go after her, a rash action at odds with his usually calculating personality. It is then that he confesses to Nike that the thought of losing her is unbearable: even losing the throne won't matter as long as he doesn't lose her. He reaffirms this belief many times, risking his life in battle against Tohara to get her to return Nike to his side and going alone on a dangerous, weeks-long journey to seek a cure when she is poisoned during an assassination attempt on him.

Livius is very possessive of Nike, zealously warding off other men and reacting viciously when his claim on her seems endangered (as evidenced when he threw his uncle Bardwin in the dungeons over her). Despite this, it's revealed that he trusts her - he simply distrusts other men around her. His belief is not entirely unfounded, as Nike's kindness attracts many people, some of whom are hell bent on keeping her for themselves. During an emotional turmoil, Livius took his rage out on Nike and threatened to kill those dear to her if she left him. Though after her poisoning, he felt tremendous guilt and she harbored no ill will towards him. It is after this near death experience of Nike’s that Livius becomes more loving towards Nike and displays his affection for her more openly.

Livius has become overly dependent on Nike, as he repeatedly claims he can’t live without her and would give up everything, including letting the world disappear, if it means she will stay with him forever. He also breaks custom of previous Sun Kings keeping concubines by remaining faithful to Nike, as he can never love another woman like does for her. His love and devotion to Nike has grown serious to where he was eager to formally marry her and have children with her.

Livius's Age[]

Livius 15-0

Chapter 13 Page 17

Livius's Age has been a point of contention within the fandom throughout the series. This is due to the contradicting ages found within the manga, ranging from 12 to 15.

Regarding this issue, translators from Fallen Syndicate Scans posted the following notes at the end of chapter 17:

Livius 12 ch40

Chapter 40 Page 13

"I've heard some confusion about Livi's age due to the surfacing of online raws stating his age as 12 in chapter 40. I've also heard suggestions that we translated his age as 15 in error, however, this is not the case. Chapter 13 does indeed state Livi is 15 (confirmed by a second translator. So, the best we can come up with is this: the mangaka flubbed up. We hate to suggest this, but its the only explination for the discrepancy. Hopefully we'll get some clarification as to the characters correct ages with the anime."

So far, there are few direct references to Livius's age within or outside of the manga. Here are the following points which may help determine his age:

Livius 12 Ch61

Chapter 61 Page 21

  • Chapter 13 refers to Livius as being 15 (confirmed to have been an error on the mangaka’s part)
  • Chapter 40 and 61 (specifically the translated manga by timeless scans) refer to Livius as being 12.
  • A blogger by the name of "Guardian Enzo" on the blog lostinanime mentions that in the Japanese wikipedia article for the series Livius is noted down as 12 and Nike as 15. The page does indeed refer to Livius as a boy between 11 to 12.

Trivia[]

  • He prefers to sleep naked, Nike being the only one to see his whole nude body.
  • He did not want to be King until after his mother had been assassinated.
  • He uses medicine every single night to sleep and to prevent from being poisoned after his mother was assassinated, which Neil explained takes a terrible toll on Livi's body. He used the medicine, up until he had Nike, but he does not take the medicine anymore.
  • Livius has shown evidence of physical growth and has celebrated a birthday in the manga
  • Despite his many talents, it is revealed in the manga that he doesn't know how to boil water, clean or cook. However, after a few days cleaning the house of the witch Cassandra, Livius developed a singular talent for cleaning.
  • He is skilled at games, such dart games (which he and Nike are equally good at) and develops a fondness for board games.
  • He has a strong fear of insects and snakes. The only way for him to overcome his fear is thinking of Nike’s chest.
  • He is not good with animals, though his horse and Yoru are the only exceptions.
  • He is adept with a sword.
  • Livius wears reading glasses while working.
  • He has a love for fine clothes.
  • He likes things that are simple and made from good material.
  • Livius often likes to lay his head on Nike's lap and read to her before going to sleep.
  • He was once engaged to Queen Ursula I of the Ice Kingdom; however the two nations went to war just before Livius ascended to the throne
  • Does not like to speak about his father and burned all of his portraits after Livius became king.
  • His name comes from the Rome historian, Livius.

Quotes[]

  • "Since I've begun conquering the world, I've grown bored with no one to oppose me. Will you amuse me?"
  • "In order to live, I must mow down my enemies. Thus my world is different from hers."

Gallery[]

Advertisement