If you caught up to Endless Yearning (오매불망) and are left waiting for the next update, you know how addictive Chae Do-young and Seo Ki-hyun’s story is. Written by author 2L, the series thrives on a specific emotional formula: a female lead who loved unselfishly, a calculating male lead who used her while devoted to someone else, and the high-voltage shift when the female lead draws boundaries and leaves him to deal with his own regret.
Finding webtoons that replicate this exact blend of high school trauma, workplace reunions, and unrequited passion isn’t easy. Here are seven of the best manhwa that capture the psychological depth, regretful male lead arcs, and intense angst of Endless Yearning.
1. Dreaming Freedom (꿈에서 자유로)
The Match: Same Author (2L) · Psychological Obsession · Calculating Male Lead
For those who wish to get the true story of Endless Yearning, Dreaming Freedom is required reading.
The series, authored by the same writer, has the same psychological intensity, complex characters’ motives, and slow-burn, obsessional tone of Ki-hyun and Do-young’s interactions.
- The Plot: Jeongmin is a lonely high schooler who’s tormented by bullies. She meets a mysterious boy named Siyoon in her lucid dream which has become her guardian within her dreams. Siyoon’s protective instincts are distorted into extreme calculation of obsession as they infiltrate the real world.
- Why It Matches Endless Yearning: Both webtoons have male protagonists that have dark, calculated temperaments but appealing faces. Author 2L has a knack for crafting female leads who are consumed by the feeling of great loneliness as they deal with male leads whose love is fervent and overwhelming.
2. Glass Wall (유리벽)
The Match: Cold Rejection · Social Class Divide · Desperate Regret Arc
Glass Wall is often referred to as a gold standard in the “arrogant male lead rejects female lead, then desperately regrets it” section of reader discussions.
- The Plot: Lilliel, a high-born noble woman falls in love with Edward, a brilliant man who has a deep resentment towards the aristocracy. Edward misunderstands Lilliel’s motives and is cold and rejects Lilliel’s affection. Once she is left destitute, Lilliel establishes an emotional barrier and continues to live. Edward finds himself pursuing a girl he is not interested in, for too late to realize.
- Why It Matches Endless Yearning: Lilliel completely emotionally distances herself from Edward. As the man who was once cold finds out that he destroyed his own opportunity for true love, watching it happen in a once-cold actor shows how the future of Ki-hyun’s Endless Yearning will play out.
3. My Beloved Oppressor (사랑하는 나의 압제자)
The Match: Doomed Historical Angst · Traumatic History · Emotional Distance
If you are an Endless Yearning fan, for the emotional content and the tragic story, My Beloved Oppressor provides constant angst and tension.
- The Plot: Annette is the daughter of a royal military commander, and she falls in love with Heiner, a man that grew up with military secrets and secretly hates the regime of her family. Heiner shows his resentment towards the government when it is toppled in a revolution, which breaks Annette’s spirit. Years later, when Annette is emotionally shut down, the guilt, the trauma and unacknowledged love consume Heiner.
- Why It Matches Endless Yearning: Both series have female protagonists whose love was taken for granted, much like they were second nature. It’s a really fulfilling, angsty read because of the character of the male lead, who’s resentful of the situation until the female lead gives up.
4. Olgami / Trapped (올가미)
The Match: High-Stakes Manipulation · Enemies-to-Obsession · Mutual Leverage
Those who like to enjoy the game of mind calculation between Ki-hyun and Do-young in high school hall will surely enjoy the psychological game of Olgami, which is one of the most intense in the history of webtoon.
- The Plot: A quiet cab driver named Chae-a comes face-to-face with a secret of the mysterious Park Yoon-soo, an immoral vampire who is playing a virtuous gentleman. The two become ensnared in a tangled web of blackmail, murder charges, and mutual leverage and are caught up in a dangerous game that neither can afford to walk away from.
- Why It Matches Endless Yearning: Ki-hyun’s mild-mannered demeanor and sharp and calculating disposition are the same as Yoon-soo’s public goodwill. At first, neither male lead treats the female lead softly, and every slight step toward real obsession seems earned; it’s explosive.
5. 101st Confession (101번째 고백)
The Match: Unrequited Love · Confession Rejection · Desperate Regret & Chasing Arc
101st Confession is a prime example of the “sincere FL gives up, cold ML panics” trope that fans of Falling For It and Endless Yearning crave.
- The Plot: The female lead confesses her love to the cold male lead 100 times throughout their school years, only to be turned down every single time. On her 101st attempt, she decides she has reached her limit, stops chasing him, and treats him like a complete stranger. Unprepared for her sudden emotional detachment, the male lead panics and undergoes a desperate, regretful chase to win her back.
- Why It Matches Falling For It & Endless Yearning: It captures the exact satisfaction of a female lead drawing a hard boundary after being taken for granted, forcing a once-indifferent male lead to desperately regret his past coldness.
6. Lemon Tree Forest (레몬트리 포레스트)
The Match: Unrequited Crush · Cold Misunderstanding & Rejection · ML Regret Arc
Lemon Tree Forest is widely recommended across romance manhwa communities for readers looking for the exact unrequited-to-chasing dynamic found in Endless Yearning.
- The Plot: The female lead falls deeply for the male lead, but due to a harsh misunderstanding, he cold-shoulders and rejects her feelings. Realizing she can no longer endure the one-sided pain, she steps back and erects an emotional boundary. Once he realizes what his coldness caused, the male lead is forced into an intense, regretful chase to win her back.
- Why It Matches Falling For It & Endless Yearning: Just like Do-young demanding to bury the past in Endless Yearning, this story centers on the female lead walking away after a cold rejection, forcing the male lead to face the consequences of his actions.
7. Falling For It
The Match: Initial ML Hostility · Unrequited Sincerity · Deep Regret
Falling For It addresses the exact complaint many readers have in the early chapters of Endless Yearning: a male lead who acts like trash at first, forcing readers to wait for his downfall.
- The Plot: The story focuses on the character of a woman who is unwavering in her integrity and kindness towards a man who’s being coldly indifferent. When the female lead reaches her breaking point, and, emotionally, checks out, the male lead takes a dramatic turn, changing from cold hostility to the overwhelming and obsessive regret.
- Why It Matches Endless Yearning: It’s the reader’s need for a “regretful male lead” with the female lead taking the initiative after being treated poorly at first.
Summary Comparison Table
| Manhwa Title | Key Tropes & Dynamic | Best For Readers Who Want… |
|---|---|---|
| Dreaming Freedom | Same Author (2L), Dark Yandere, Dream Connection | Psychological intensity & obsessive ML |
| Glass Wall | Arrogant ML Rejection, Class Divide, Regret Arc | FL drawing boundaries & ML regretting |
| My Beloved Oppressor | Historical Angst, Marriage Trauma, Emotional Withdrawal | Heavy emotional weight & angst |
| Olgami (Trapped) | Vampires, Mutual Blackmail, Enemies-to-Obsession | High-stakes mind games & leverage |
| 101st Confession | Confession Rejection, FL Gives Up, ML Regret Arc | 100% match to Falling For It chasing trope |
| Lemon Tree Forest | Unrequited Crush, Cold Rejection, ML Chasing | Satisfying ML regret & FL boundary arc |
| Falling For It | Cold ML to Regretful Yearner, FL Boundary Arc | Satisfying payback and ML regret |
Where to Read Officially
To support author 2L and the creators behind these webtoons, always read through licensed platforms such as Naver Webtoon & WEBTOON.
