The Kept Man of the Princess Knight anime unveils its first promo video

Kadokawa used its Dengeki Bunko Aki no Saiten Online 2026 livestream on Saturday to reveal the first full promotional video for The Kept Man of the Princess Knight, the TV anime adaptation of Toru Shirogane's light novel series.

The video confirms MYTH & ROID will perform the opening theme, “True-Taboo.”, while sajou no hana handles the ending theme, “Gika” (Flower Head).

A new key visual, drawn by character designer Hisao Ishii, places Matthew and Arwin in the labyrinth city of Grey Neighbor. The series follows a princess knight and the man she keeps, a relationship the blurb teases as leading either to a bright future or a blood-soaked tragedy.

Three new cast members were announced alongside the video. Rie Takahashi joins as Vanessa, Tetsu Inada as Dezu and Rika Nagae as April. They line up with Junichi Suwabe as Matthew and Mikako Komatsu as Arwin.

Behind the camera, Chihiro Kumano is directing the series at studio BLADE. Hisao Ishii is adapting Saki Mashima's original light novel character designs, with Deko Akao writing the series composition.

The anime is scheduled to begin broadcasting in January 2027. Kadokawa publishes the source novels under its Dengeki Bunko imprint.

Why you should care: The Kept Man of the Princess Knight trades the usual chosen-hero setup for something messier. Its hook is the power imbalance between a celebrated knight and the man who depends on her, and how far that arrangement can bend before it snaps.

Our opinion

A first promo video that already nails down the opening and ending themes suggests a production that is further along than the January date implies, which is reassuring for a series that leans so heavily on tone. The real test is whether the adaptation can hold the tension between its romance and its threat without tipping too far into either.