Licia, known in the original Japanese as Yaeko Yakko Mitamura, is the protagonist of the anime Ai Shite Knight. She is a teenage girl living in Osaka who works diligently at her father Shigemaro's okonomiyaki restaurant called Mambo while also attending high school. Her background is marked by the loss of her mother, leaving her as the primary support for her father in both the household and the family business, which instills in her a strong sense of responsibility and a hardworking nature.

Licia's personality is defined by her warmth, kindness, and a cheerful, optimistic outlook that draws others to her. She is compassionate and instinctively caring, a trait that is immediately evident when she encounters a lost little boy named Hashizo and his unusual cat Juliano, taking them in and helping them despite the inconvenience. This kindness serves as the catalyst for the entire story. At the same time, she is a typical romantic teenager with a girlish, somewhat naive sensibility, which makes her susceptive to charm and prone to blushing and daydreaming about love.

Her primary motivation centers on finding love and happiness while navigating the challenges of her everyday life. Initially, her heart is set on Satomi Okawa, the handsome and gentle guitarist of the emerging rock band Bee Hive, and she pursues this crush with earnest enthusiasm. However, this initial attraction is complicated by her growing feelings for Satomi's bandmate and Hashizo's older brother, Go Kato, the charismatic and often brash lead singer of Bee Hive. Her motivations gradually shift from a simple romantic fantasy towards a deeper, more mature desire to understand her own heart and to be with the person who truly values her, leading to a central conflict between admiration for Satomi and a burgeoning, genuine connection with Go.

Licia's role in the story is that of the central figure around whom the romantic and dramatic tensions revolve. She is the connective thread that links the worlds of her father's humble restaurant and the glamorous, high-energy realm of rock music. Her arrival in the lives of the Kato brothers brings warmth and stability to their home, as she becomes a maternal figure to the lonely Hashizo, who immediately bonds with her and schemes to have her marry his brother. Her presence also introduces a catalyst for the dynamic within the band, as both Go and Satomi find themselves drawn to her, creating a love triangle that fuels much of the narrative drama.

Her key relationships shape the story profoundly. With Hashizo, she forms a nurturing, almost motherly bond, as the young boy sees in her the affection he craves. With Satomi, her relationship is marked by her initial idealized crush, while he genuinely cares for her in a more gentle and understanding way. Her relationship with Go is the most complex and central, beginning with a comedic, antagonistic meeting and evolving through mutual frustration, jealousy, and misunderstanding into a deep and passionate love. The friendship with Satomi and the eventual romance with Go define her emotional journey. Her relationship with her father, Shigemaro, is loving but comically overprotective, especially regarding her interactions with young men.

Throughout the anime, Licia undergoes noticeable development. She starts as a somewhat starry-eyed girl with a simple crush and gradually matures into a young woman capable of making difficult emotional decisions. She learns to navigate jealousy, navigate the pressures that come with Go's rising fame, and ultimately confront her own true feelings, choosing a love that is more complex and challenging but also more real than her initial fantasy. Her character arc is one of emotional growth and self-discovery, moving from a passive dreamer to an active participant in her own romantic destiny.

While she does not possess supernatural abilities, Licia is notable for her practical skills and her personal talents. She is a capable cook and waitress, vital to the operation of her father's restaurant. Most significantly, she is shown to have a good singing voice, a talent that she occasionally displays, such as when she sings during an episode. This ability connects her, even in a small way, to the rock-and-roll world of Go and the Bee Hive, and it serves as a gentle expression of her own inner vivacity and emotional state.