How to Live as a Villain

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How to Live as a Villain stands out as one of the more unique manhwas in the isekai genre. The mix of gods, quests, and a structured survival system gives the world a sense of depth that feels both exciting and dangerous. The story isn’t predictable because the main character doesn’t follow the typical “kind hero always wins” formula. Instead, he’s manipulative, cunning, and ruthless, which makes every decision feel tense and refreshing.

The art style fits the darker tone perfectly. Expressions, action scenes, and the atmosphere all highlight the constant struggle for survival. Characters aren’t flawless or overpowered; they have strengths, weaknesses, and make choices ... that feel realistic in their desperate situation.

This series will likely appeal to readers who are tired of overly perfect protagonists and want something darker, clever, and more strategic.

Overall 7/10
Keeping the promise from the title 11/10
Characters 6.5/10
Plot 6.5/10
Worldbuilding 4/10

Pros:
- The main, if not only reason to read - it's a real villain plot of good (even if not great) quality.
It's a nice change to have a proper MC like that. Never acting like a hero (sometimes pretending), evil to the bone.
Doing anything if it benefits him, putting morals aside from the start to the end.
... - The MC is OP, but on par with a few other characters and not brute-forcing through everything.
He indeed heavily depends on hit-and-run tactics, scheming, and (ab)using allies.

Cons:
- The world is pretty typical, without nearly any specific characteristics.
MC development has some interesting turns, yet nothing really catching.
- The end also cuts it in a moment when (vague to avoid spoilers) worldbuilding/some very important characters, with low screentime could start to shine. I was kind of counting on it from the start and got really disappointed in the end.
- Even considering ^ - the ending seems rushed. It's okay, but could have been done with more details, and IMO - at least one more arc and/or a longer, deeper epilogue.
- The characters other than MC are not very deep - a few with quite a nice idea for them, yet not deep enough to be truly satisfying.

5.8/10


From the initial six chapters that I’ve read, I’m very curious and confused on why people aren’t bashing the plot more; it feels like I had missed a chapter in between since nothing is ever explained such as: why did the mc do this, how did he determine that, why is he like this, etc. I’m fine with a classic villain story sporadically, but a story with most of the introduction and reasoning skipped is where I draw the line.

It seems the manwha is going for a setting of learning along with the main character in an unknown death game, accidentally or purposely. I’ve ... read many of these tropes with little to no information at the beginning, but they ultimately develop the setting while garnering interest and mystery. However, this does not do that. Instead, things are quickly brushed over and nothing of the world is explained except for a brief introduction of entities called “gods” mentioned one time.

To note on the main character, I find him as one of the more ridiculous things in this story. None of his motives are ever explained besides for the classic “this is the best option,”… but why? Was it decided on a whim? As a previous reader has stated, the main character is supposed to act as an antihero, but antiheroes are supposed to have ideals/worldviews that they believe in being the morally right/noble option, usually contrasting from the typical heroic hero’s. Which, you might’ve guessed by now, the mc doesn’t really have said morality since he is a psychopath to put it simply. Nor does he have any correct noble worldview/idea he believes in but rather he does whatever will benefit him, which does not classify him as an antihero. Along with being a psychopath, he is portrayed as “smart” but every scenario of his “smartness” is extremely forced.

I can see how this manwha may appeal to some, but from a logical point of view, I just can’t seem to enjoy it due to the sheer quantity of plot holes. I’m sure it gets better, but I would rather read another manwha at that point or a manga that does this exact concept but better.

PS: I can not stress this enough that I think I might’ve missed a chapter since nothing is explained. I mean, for God’s sake, they glossed over the tutorial arc! The f*cking tutorial!

Reading Rankings (Portnoy inspired & A Huang Teizan Original)
10 – God’s penmanship
9 – Must-read. Drop everything else.
8 – Instant bookmark
7 – Entertaining
6 – Good to pass time
5 – Why are you reading this?
4 – Bad.
3 – Typical garbage.
2 – My head hurts.
1 – Retirement is a thought.
0 – “Did they even give you a story?!”