Honestly I'm such a fan of when the villainess actually behaves like a villainess... Nothing like a good revenge-to-redemption story!

Been following this one on Mangadex as well as the raws. Good to see peak make it over to Dynasty!

Gosh, the art is gorgeous and I'm loving the main character's design.

The first few pages seem familiar.
Maybe I've seen a similar plot elsewhere?

The first few pages seem familiar.
Maybe I've seen a similar plot elsewhere?

Definitely some similarities to this author's oneshot in terms of character design, dress, look, etc

This is awesome. The art is gorgeous, the worldbuilding is interesting, and the characters are all fun in their own ways. And did I mention the art is gorgeous?

This might be the first "Villainess" story I've ever come across where the Villainess in question seems like a genuinely bad person. She's so incredibly self-centered and doesn't seem to have much empathy or compassion for anyone but herself regardless of the situation, constantly making every issue about herself either externally or internally. (That poor maid! What, was she supposed to throw out the literal crown princess and her entire retinue by herself?)

She also seems strangely dumb in regards to people. Like, her only source on "beasts" being sadistic murderers is the prince whom she despises mentioning it while banishing her, yet she doesn't second-guess it no matter how clearly she can see the "beast people" living civilized lives around her. Maybe the man who slandered, banished and tried to assassinate you wasn't a very reliable source of information, huh?

Dog waifu is too good for her at this point, and she's an actual kidnapper, hopefully she grows a heart eventually.

Did anyone else find it strange that her sister, the crown princess who allegedly came there to have her killed, was just sent away from her castle with no fuss by the maid without even making an appearance or requesting to meet the Villainess first?

Nevermind the maid doing it, would the Villainess herself even have the authority to do that against her sister's will? It seemed really contrived that it worked and very strange that the story even included the plot element of her sister coming there in the first place just to not have her even make an appearance and immediately leave off-screen.

last edited at Dec 25, 2025 4:14AM

The art style is great but I might need some time to warm up to the story. The flow feels a little off.

One of my recent favorites. The storytelling is really intriguing and doesn't follow the typical beats while seeming very intentional in its design. I've gained a lot of trust for the author already.

Kawano Akiko really likes having introductory panels where some dude is hollering some lady's a Gundam name in the ballroom, saying they'll never get married, huh

last edited at Dec 29, 2025 1:20PM

Karaoke Akiko really likes having introductory panels where some dude is hollering some lady's a Gundam name in the ballroom, saying they'll never get married, huh

That's just a genre convention. It's the one unifying event of all the Villaness stories, either because they explore its aftermath or it being the one thing to prevent from happening.

Reshtoka should be beefier.

Introducing a brand-new POV character after a time skip is a bold narrative choice that is more common in novels than in manga. The last one I've read was in Claymore...

This might be the first "Villainess" story I've ever come across where the Villainess in question seems like a genuinely bad person. She's so incredibly self-centered and doesn't seem to have much empathy or compassion for anyone but herself regardless of the situation, constantly making every issue about herself either externally or internally. (That poor maid! What, was she supposed to throw out the literal crown princess and her entire retinue by herself?)

...

Nevermind the maid doing it, would the Villainess herself even have the authority to do that against her sister's will? It seemed really contrived that it worked and very strange that the story even included the plot element of her sister coming there in the first place just to not have her even make an appearance and immediately leave off-screen.

I think you are being too harsh on Karina here. She is clearly traumatized by the way she was treated at home and at the royal court, and has learned to cope with it by pretense and manipulation. This world is not kind to young women (exhibit A: Juno almost getting gang-raped for her pastor's profit), and Karina's experience has seriously warped her sense of right and wrong. Besides, what evil deeds has she committed so far? Being mean to servants and lower nobility is par for the course of nobles. Embezzling money for parties -- do we even need to count this? Lastly, demolishing a piece of real estate that belonged to her was well within her rights; and it was only loaned to her by the royal family, it was an act of rebellion, to be sure, but I know where my sympathies lie in that case. Note that she had even let all the maids to evacuate from the castle before letting Reshtoka bury it. Given all of that, Karina is definitely not a good person, but I just cannot see her as a "bad person", either.

Also, I am still very curious regarding Aurora's role in all of this. We've only seen her as an adult once, and all of her actions towards Karina are highly ambiguous IMO.

last edited at Dec 26, 2025 3:45PM

Eve's fluffy ears are so cute aaaa
...
Now.
Surely nothing bad happens to Juno now
Right ?,, (double revenge story ?)

The art style is great but I might need some time to warm up to the story. The flow feels a little off.

That's how I feel. I was intrigued by the first few chapters but the perspective switch so early feels really odd to me.

Introducing a brand-new POV character after a time skip is a bold narrative choice that is more common in novels than in manga. The last one I've read was in Claymore...

This might be the first "Villainess" story I've ever come across where the Villainess in question seems like a genuinely bad person. She's so incredibly self-centered and doesn't seem to have much empathy or compassion for anyone but herself regardless of the situation, constantly making every issue about herself either externally or internally. (That poor maid! What, was she supposed to throw out the literal crown princess and her entire retinue by herself?)

...

Nevermind the maid doing it, would the Villainess herself even have the authority to do that against her sister's will? It seemed really contrived that it worked and very strange that the story even included the plot element of her sister coming there in the first place just to not have her even make an appearance and immediately leave off-screen.

I think you are being too harsh on Karina here. She is clearly traumatized by the way she was treated at home and at the royal court, and has learned to cope with it by pretense and manipulation. This world is not kind to young women (exhibit A: Juno almost getting gang-raped for her pastor's profit), and Karina's experience has seriously warped her sense of right and wrong. Besides, what evil deeds has she committed so far? Being mean to servants and lower nobility is par for the course of nobles. Embezzling money for parties -- do we even need to count this? Lastly, demolishing a piece of real estate that belonged to her was well within her rights; and it was only loaned to her by the royal family, it was an act of rebellion, to be sure, but I know where my sympathies lie in that case. Note that she had even let all the maids to evacuate from the castle before letting Reshtoka bury it. Given all of that, Karina is definitely not a good person, but I just cannot see her as a "bad person", either.

Also, I am still very curious regarding Aurora's role in all of this. We've only seen her as an adult once, and all of her actions towards Karina are highly ambiguous IMO.

i had the same thoughts too. like, other than heresay and rumors, other than being mean to the maid what has she ACTUALLY done? sounds more like the royal family warped everything about her. She's definitely got some hang ups, but hopefully she'll outgrown them with the power of wuv. Also, her sister is super suspicious, and likely at the root of everything. Likely she's the real villainess and has just been manipulating everyone as she got older. Would explain the change in karina's personality too.

i had the same thoughts too. like, other than heresay and rumors, other than being mean to the maid what has she ACTUALLY done? sounds more like the royal family warped everything about her. She's definitely got some hang ups, but hopefully she'll outgrown them with the power of wuv. Also, her sister is super suspicious, and likely at the root of everything. Likely she's the real villainess and has just been manipulating everyone as she got older. Would explain the change in karina's personality too.

It's unreliable narrators all the way down.

It's a common trope in this type of villainess stories for the prince, with the help of other nobles, to falsify evidence so he has an excuse to denounce the villainess and marry the girl he wanted instead.

Karina too, is so obsessed with revenge that she's assumed the whole world is her enemy, but we don't know what her sister's stance actually is. She might have been involved in the plot, or maybe the prince did everything of his own accord.

IMO, the sister is a botch in sheep's clothing, a manipulator that toys with others to get what she wants. She influences others to give her what she wants (the stuffed toy thing) and if they do act in her stead, she can stand on the sidelines, smile innocently and deny all involvement/guilt.

But maybe the truth is something different altogether because all we have is Karina's POV.

last edited at Dec 31, 2025 2:10PM

Nice to see this on Dynasty!