Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts (贄姫と獣の王, Niehime to Kemono no Ō) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yū Tomofuji. It was serialized in Hakusensha's shōjo manga magazine Hana to Yume from November 2015 to October 2020. It is licensed in North America by Yen Press. An anime television series adaptation produced by J.C.Staff aired from April to September 2023.
Contents
Plot
The King of the Beasts and Demons regularly receives female human sacrifices to eat in order to assert the dominance of his people over the human race. However, for the 99th sacrifice, the human girl brought to the capital, Sariphi, intrigues the Beast King. In fact she isn't afraid of him or any other beast and even accepts her death without begging or crying as she has neither home nor family to return to if she were released. The King finds her intriguing and let her stay at his side as his consort despite being human. This is the story of how Sariphi will become the queen of the demons and beasts.
Characters
Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts
Sariphi (サリフィ, Sarifi)
Voiced by: Aoi Yūki (drama CD), Kana Hanazawa (anime) (Japanese); Emi Lo (English)
A girl sacrificed to the King of Beasts, nicknamed "Sari" and future Queen of Beasts. She is a kind and compassionate girl with an upbeat and positive attitude on life. She loves Leonhart very much.
Leonhart (レオンハート, Reonharuto)
Voiced by: Kenjiro Tsuda (drama CD), Satoshi Hino (anime), Yumi Uchiyama (young) (Japanese); Ray Hurd, Kiba Walker (young) (English)
King of the kingdom of Ozmargo. Born as half-breed from beast father and human mother. Despite his stoic and aggressive behavior, he is a gentle and benevolent king who cares about his subjects and loves Sariphi very much.
Clops and Cy (ロプス & キュク, Lops and Kyuku)
Voiced by: Rie Takahashi (Clops; drama CD), Yui Ogura (Cy; drama CD), Natsumi Fujiwara (Clops; anime), Yuka Nukui (Cy; anime) (Japanese); Kristian Eros (Clops), Lisette Monique Diaz (Cy) (English)
A duo and the youngest of the cyclopian clan. Cy is the eye and speaks few words. Clops is the mouth and does most of the speaking. Clops can see through Cy's eye and they can communicate with each other over great distances. Both were born deformed to the cyclopian clan, but were abandoned for their unnatural state; only to be taken in by King Leonhart who accepted them for their abilities, becoming two of his personal advisers.
Anubis (アヌビス, Anubisu)
Voiced by: Takahiro Sakurai (drama CD), Takuma Terashima (anime), Rie Kugimiya (young) (Japanese); Tom Laflin, Jad Saxton (young) (English)
White Rabbit and the Prince of Beasts
Richard (リチャード, Richādo)
Voiced by: Sayumi Suzushiro
Son of Sariphi and Leonhart. A very rambunctious and energetic boy, he switches from human to beast form randomly. He enjoys training with Lante and wants to be as strong as his father.
Subaru (スバル)
Ravi (ラヴィ, Rabi)
Kemomo (ケモモ)
Bishia (ビーシア, Bīshia)
Edward (エドワズ, Edowādo)
Media
Manga
The manga started serialization in Hakusensha's shōjo manga magazine Hana to Yume on November 5, 2015, and it ended on October 20, 2020. The manga was part of the initial lineup in Hakusensha's online shop selling series-themed goods. Yen Press announced that they had licensed the manga at Anime Expo 2017, releasing the first volume in May 2018.
The manga is also licensed in South Korea by Haksan Publishing, in French by Pika Édition, in Germany by Carlsen Verlag., in Thailand by Siam Inter Comics, in Italy by Magic Press, and in Spain by ECC Ediciones. A special edition of the sixth volume of the manga contained a CD of an audio drama adaptation of the series.
A spin-off manga, titled White Rabbit and the Prince of Beasts, was serialized in Hana to Yume from August 20, 2022, to February 20, 2024. Yen Press announced that they had also licensed the spin-off manga at Anime NYC 2024 under the title Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts Heir: White Rabbit and the Prince of Beasts.
Anime
An anime television series adaptation was announced in the fourth issue of Hana to Yume on January 20, 2021. The series is produced by J.C.Staff and directed by Chiaki Kon, with scripts written by Seishi Minakami, character designs handled by Shinya Hasegawa, and music composed by Kohta Yamamoto. It aired from April 20 to September 28, 2023, on Tokyo MX and BS11. For the first cour, the opening theme song is "Saku no Nie" (朔の贄; "Sacrifice During the New Moon") by BIN, while the ending theme song is "Only" by Garnidelia. For the second cour, the opening theme song is "Love Infinity" by Hinano, while the ending theme song is "Call Your Name" by Katagiri. Crunchyroll has licensed the series.
Musical
A musical adaptation is set to run in Tokyo and Osaka in 2025. Yukio Ueshima is writing the screenplay, directing, and choreographing, Sayaka Asai is the lyricist, and Shigeru Yahata is in charge of music. It will star Daigo Kato as Leonhart, Kokoro Kuge as Sariphi, Tomoya Fukui as Anubis, Waku Kyoten as Jormungand, Hikaru Imamaki as Lanteveldt, Yume Nagatoshi as Amit, Judai Shirakashi as Fenrir, Gaku Matsuda as Gleipnir, and Yūsuke Yata as Set.
Reception
Rebecca Silverman from Anime News Network said that "Beauty and the Beast is alive and well in Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts – it's almost a by-the-book retelling of the classic fairy tale. That's definitely part of the appeal of this initial volume, because the Beauty of folklore isn't always as spunky as she could be, often winning over the Beast with her gentle ways and calm demeanor." Richard Gutierrez of The Fandom Post saw the story as more than a retelling, saying that the author "has sincerely crafted a narrative which engenders the reader on many fronts", complimenting the pair's relationship and its innocence. Sean Gaffney of A Case Suitable for Treatment noted that the manga has nostalgic scenes that reference other series, liking the characterization of the characters and especially the protagonist, but was wary of her young age.