Nyreen's Favorite

6 MORE Novel Recommendations for "Trapped in a Webnovel" Fans (ALSO VERY LONG)

Hey, it's me (Simps Dojin) again, back with more novels. Please click to expand!
Again, there will be spoilers, though I've kept everything as vague as I can. Again, NOVEL ONLY... unless otherwise stated.
You can read all of them by searching up “title + Novel Updates” unless otherwise noted. Find my previous recommendations under the comment "7 Novel Recommendations."

Novels w/ a Male MC, No Harem, No Romance:

1-"Second Male Lead Powers Up," aka. "Third Wheel Strikes Back"

A man realizes that he has transmigrated into the body of a character from a novel that his sister was a fan of. He is now the 2nd male lead, a prince who is a "visitor" in name, but is actually being kept as a political hostage to another kingdom, & is fated to die in the 1st male lead's place (he took his place in the war for the female lead's sake). But unlike the character, our MC has no intention of sacrificing himself or going to war. He's going to do his best to live. However, he actually never read the book–only heard it offhand from his sister.

Cons: Slow, fluffy. If you want a vicious MC who face-slaps & curb-stomps, this isn't for you.
Pros: Which is exactly why you should read it. Our MC doesn't talk shite because that's how you get killed when you're in the middle of a semi-hostile kingdom. Instead, he ties himself to a powerful institute (the church), being blessed with an OP priest/cleric skill. Not a genius, but he's got an open mind that allows him to genuinely befriend the original female lead–& even the other male lead (who he has quite a lot of bromance with). There is political intrigue & assassinations, but this story basically goes, "you know, kindness can't solve everything, but sometimes being willing to listen & give other people a chance IS good. Maybe Heart is an awesome power after all."
Fiction-world isekai protagonist who is mentally stable & has 0 interest in romance.
Also, the MC (Jesse) looks like Yuseong, but more blonde. Cedric resembles Kim Dojin, but with red eyes & no vendetta.
Bromance: 0.6 Jonghyuk between Jesse & the other prince Cedric

2-"Count's Youngest Son is a Warlock"
Premise is that a badly behaved young master regains memories of a past life & wants to change developments; namely, he wants to gain strength as a warlock while hiding the fact that he's a warlock, so he can live but avoid persecution.
Cons: some may complain about originality. The MC Lucion is rather like the original Cale & Choi Yuseong, pre-transmigration. A rich young master with a bad temper and mental health issues, who picked fights but "never once laid a hand on his servants."
Pros: This IS NOT plagiarism, y'all, despite what the haters on the forums say. Similar concept, different execution. It's not entirely fresh, but we're here for similar novels, yeah? The plot is different enough that it's not just copying. There are some major differences:
Lucion struggles with self-destructive behavior & voices in his head more. Unlike most other MCs of this genre (Choi Yuseong, Cale, Kleio), he's NOT A TRANSMIGRATOR. He was born in this body & lived in it without knowing anything for years, then bam! He remembers his past life, so now he knows he must change... but. Lucion still is the same person, & his behavior speaks of that.
There's also an overlying layer of darkness. Lucion occasionally says things like “I have no choice” & “even if the world considers darkness a plague, I must learn it” & "I'll never let him go again" (spoken to Lucion's teacher, who died to save him in the established plotline). He justifies any unhealthy/irrational behavior by mentioning "the plot," but they are also halfway born of fear/guilt/clinginess.
If "Second Male Lead Powers Up" is a light & fluffy work, "Warlock" is more melancholy. This is set in a world where magic isn’t entirely positive; those who are favored by darkness have to become warlocks if they want to stay alive/sane, but the moment they are revealed to be warlocks, they are persecuted.
Not a downer novel, though. Lucion makes conscious efforts to behave differently, treat the servants better, respect his teacher, try to repair whatever is left of his relationship with his father, etc.
Bromance Level: 0.3 Jonghyuk, though the direction is vague (no clear ship, just an atmosphere)

2- “How to Live as the Enemy Prince”
It’s about a soldier who dies, but instead of going to heaven/hell, is transported into the body of the young prince of the enemy nation. Cue sibling rivalries, battles for the throne, politics, scheming, deliciously horrific family relationships, & misunderstandings.

Cons: The author is dead, so don’t expect an end to this; it’s on indefinite hiatus. However, what exists is worth reading.
Pros: Dynamics between the MC & his siblings, especially one of his older brothers. Also, it’s not grimdark; though there is neglect & bad parenting, MC has mentors & friends who care deeply about him. MC himself also calls out BS, and if he has to take it, he damn well is getting justice later.
Bromance: 0.4 Jonghyuk

3- “Lord of the Mysteries”
MC transmigrates into the body of a dead man, but not into a novel/game/established world. B/c there’s so little info, & no source book or show that he can reference, he doesn’t have cheats such as knowing the future… but he does have access to a mysterious space above the fog, a talent for bluffing, & a strange Lovecraftian power. He’ll need it, as the setting of the world is basically a Cthulhu mythos + Industrial Revolution/late Victorian-era Europe + dark, vicious systems of magic that have severe backlashes + hostile eldritch gods.

Cons: Rushed ending. Author suddenly finished at a point that basically no one was happy with.
Pros: No romance, no harem (as are the previous 2 series). Also, an unusual tarot-based magic system that doesn’t have any godforsaken numbers/XP/game system boards, but instead a series of “pathways,” each with limited abilities tied to their tarot themes
Bromance: 0.2 Jonghyuk (barren of bromance, but the Chinese fandom sure writes a lot of fanfiction)

I hesitate to recommend… Male Transmigrator MC, but has romance:

4 - “My Death Flags Show No Sign of Ending” (both novel AND manga)
MC transmigrates into Harold, a villain in a game. He tries his hardest to maintain the Stokes territory, support the main characters, & avoid death.

Cons: The romance made me drop it. Felt very forced.
Pros: Harold is not a bad person, but the world literally edits his words to sound villainous/mean, so even when he’s doing nice things, he comes off as a male tsundere. It’s superb.
Bromance: 0.1 Jonghyuk (this field is barren, I see nothing)

And now for some ACTUAL BL…

5 - “Circumstances of a Fallen Lord”
Enemies-to-lovers BL. Our MC, Luisen, flees a besieged castle & lives years on the streets; he is helped out by a pilgrim, but eventually wastes away. Instead of dying though, he returns back to the day of the siege & resolves to surrender himself this time… and runs into the enemy, the noble-hating mad mercenary/knight Carlton. Through a series of bluffs, manipulations, & character developments, they gradually grow closer.

Cons: Carlton is a bit… well. Some people may not like him.
Pros: Sort of like in “Son is a Warlock,” MC doesn’t magically become a wonderful person. However, Luisen has certainly become smarter. He relies a lot on verbal attacks, armor-piercing deductions, & literally talks the (absolutely bonkers & violent) ML into not murdering him. Great to see a weak character obliterating a much stronger opponent with mere words. Also, this has the “are we allies? I want to use you but you pose a danger to me” sort of dance on both sides, which “Trapped in a Webnovel” fans like.
Bromance: This is literally BL


6 - “Is the Villain Role Over?” aka. 악역의 역할은 끝났는데요?
Due to complicated circumstances, MC regresses & redoes his death 99 times, each time having to fake being a villain & getting killed by his best friend, who he is trying to save. But after the 100th time, his best friend remembers the previous loops & realizes, with horror, that he’s repeatedly killed the one person willing to sacrifice himself. ML then becomes high-key yandere & resolves to murder the world if he must, in order to save our MC. MC is now the only person able to hold his leash.

Cons: NO TRANSLATION AS OF 7/8/2021. You can find paid raws on Ridibooks, though.
Pros: Regression? Villains? Fantasy? Yandere male lead courting a skittish protagonist? Yeah, this has all the stuff that “Trapped in a Webnovel” shippers like.
Bromance: It is folly to measure actual BL with Jonghyuks