I crave a good redemption arc. There’s something electric about waking up in a doomed body, flipping the script, and making fate blink first.Villainess manhwa feed that hungerbetter than any other corner of webcomics.
They hand a would-be antagonist the author’s playbook, then dare her to break every rule inside. I spend chapters cheering clever gambits,side-eyeing schemers, and swooning whenever ruthless strategy meets razor-sharp romance.
10 Best Korean Manhwa You Should Definitely Read
If you’re new to the genre of Korean Manhwa (comics), check out the best series and runs that Manhwa has to offer!
Below are the ten titles I keep recommending, rereading, and quoting in group chats based on their impact and overall genius.They’ll convince you to trade halos for tiaras.Ready? Start here.
10Villains Are Destined to Die
Hard-Mode Otome, Soft-Core Panic
Penelope Eckhart’s world is alethal dating sim, and I can practically hear the “Game Over” jingle every time she breathes.The otome HUD locks her dialogue, the affection meters bleed red,and survival means charming men who’d gladly string her up.
I love watching Penelope weaponize foreknowledge while trauma still stains every decision. She plays nice, then pivots to icy manipulation the instant a blade glints.Each choice feels like cracking a safe with trembling hands, and the manhwa ramps the tension until I’m sweating right beside her.
The art? Dazzling. The stakes? Brutal. The payoff when a death flag fizzles out?Chef’s kiss.No villainess starter kit is complete without this high-wire act.
9Your Throne
Queenslayer Chess at Its Prettiest
Medea Solon doesn’t ask for the crown, she also calculates the angle, steals the board, and tells me to keep up.A sudden body swap with the pristine Psyche Callista turns the palace into a two-woman war room, and every side glance hides a forty-move strategy.
Politics usually bore me; here, I’m hunting background details like clues in a heist. Medea’s ruthlessness collides with Psyche’s awakening grit,flipping friendship, rivalry, and revenge in a kaleidoscope of emerald gowns and poisoned teacups.
Romance simmers, but the real heartbeat is power: who owns it, who deserves it, who’s about to lose it in spectacular fashion. I finish each episode humming like I’ve watched a masterclass in cunning.
8Kill the Villainess
Death Wish Meets Narrative Whiplash
Eris Miserian wants out - out of the novel, out of politics, out of life.Her mission is literal self-exit, and that bleak determination feels refreshingly raw.
Where most transmigrators chase happily-ever-after, Eris torches bridges, mocks suitors, and begs the gods for an off-switch. I find myself equal parts horrified and impressed.
The manhwa digs into existential dread with gothic flair, yet slips in razor humor that cuts the gloom before it smothers.
What nails it is the honesty: if I landed in a scripted tragedy, I might spiral too. Watching Eris wrestle despair instead of destiny expands the genre’s emotional range, and jolts me awake every chapter.
7The Villainess Turns the Hourglass
Revenge, Rewound and Refined
Execution ends Aria Roscente’s first life; an enchanted hourglass rewinds her second.She replays childhood scenes like a speedrunner hunting exploits,bending etiquette and economics alike to destroy her scheming stepsister.
I relish how Aria savors payback. She counts every social slight, filesevery future scandal, then smiles sweetly while the dominoes topple.The thrill is purely in the precision; watching a former pawn master the game that once crushed her.
Pastel artwork belies a story sharper than cut glass. If “cold dish revenge” is your comfort food, Aria’s banquet will leave you perfectly stuffed.
Silk-Gloved Carnage in a Snake Pit
The Agriche estate drips venom, yet Roxana struts through it like a cat in a garden party.She’s elegance coated in poison, protecting captive Cassis Pedelian while pretending loyalty to her murderous clan.
You get hooked by the duality: soft whispers to Cassis in moonlit cells, ruthless schemes against siblings before breakfast.Every gesture carries layered intent, andthe gothic visualspaint cruelty as disturbingly beautiful.
This is a survival ballet. I hold my breath with every page, wondering whether Roxana’s next smile will save a life or end one.
5The Villainess Lives Again
Political Redemption with Calculated Grace
Artezia Rosan once greased the wheels of tyranny; betrayal burned her alive. A forbidden spell rewinds the clock, and she pivots,now I watch her invest brains, not blood, into crowning a worthier ruler.
She drafts alliances over breakfast, neutralizes scandals by lunch, andturns patriarchal sneers into stepping stonesbefore dusk. Romance exists, but agency steals every scene.She’s competence incarnate.
The intrigue spins dense, yet never messy; following her blueprints feels like paging through an architect’s masterpiece. I finish arcs fist-pumping, certain I witnessed pure strategic art.
4Not-Sew-Wicked Stepmom
Fairy-Tale Fix-It with Needle and Thread
Abigail Freidkin wakes as the infamous stepmother, yet my cheeks hurt from smiling every episode.She’d rather sew ball gowns for Princess Blanche than plot wicked schemes,and the domestic wholesomeness sparkles.
There’s tension (court whispers, icy royal dad) but Abigail deflects with tailoring flair and unnatural affection.Watching her stitch reputation and family togethermade me realize villainess tales can heal as well as thrill.
Bonus points for adorable art that makes pastries look magical. Whenever palace politics elsewhere exhaust me, I revisit Abigail for a warm hug and color palette therapy.
3Beware the Villainess!
Comedy, Carnage, and Calling Out Trash
Melissa Foddebrat awakens inside a cliché reverse harem and immediately decides the male leads are garbage.She punts plot armor into the sun with biting sarcasm and expert pistol aim.
I cackle every chapter. Melissa’s roasts land harder than most villains’ death traps, andher alliance withthe true heroineflips sappy tropes on their backs.Action scenes hit like shōnen cameos, but never steal focus from her relentless takedown of toxic romance.
If you’ve ever shouted “Girl, dump him!” at a screen, this manhwa answers with fireworks and a mic drop.
2The Villainess Is a Marionette
Strings Cut, Throne Claimed
Kayena Hill remembers a past life as the imperial puppet; this time she’s holding the strings.Courtrooms turn into stages where she designs betrayals with a single raised brow,and I’m front row, popcorn in hand.
Kayena is patient, really patient, and lets opponents think they’re winning, thenflips their schemes like cards in a royal flush.Every jeweled panel gleams, underscoring victories delivered with velvet cruelty.
10 Best Manhwa To Read On Webtoons
From Tower of God to Lookism, here are some of the best Korean Manhwa that you can read on Webtoons!
The pacing feels luxurious, the stakes steadily ratchet, and the payoff, when a manipulator discovers they’re the true puppet, never gets old.
1A Villainess for the Tyrant
Power Couple Sparks and Imperial Snark
Princess Cecile walks into an arranged marriage with a blood-soaked emperor anddecides villainy might be the safest dress code.Her brazen demands stun the court; Estian’s deadly curiosity turns into sizzling respect.
I delight in their volley of audacity. Gifts arrive dripping rubies, threats sound like flirting, andthe empire’s nobles realize too late they’ve invited wolves to dinner.Rather than tame the tyrant, Cecile matches his madness step for step.
The chemistry crackles, the politics duck for cover, and I close each chapter grinning at how chaos becomes romance when two villains sync agendas.
