Webtoon on Woman's Ruin and Rescue Tops Japan Charts

■ Tears for a Wilted Flower (story and art by Gae, Naver Webtoon)

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By Lee Jae-yong, Senior Reporterjylee@sedaily.com
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Tears for a Withered Flower. Photo courtesy of Naver Webtoon - Seoul Economic Daily Culture News from South Korea
Tears for a Withered Flower. Photo courtesy of Naver Webtoon

The protagonist, Na Hae-su, has fallen to the bottom of her life, carrying her ex-husband's infidelity, the enormous debt he left behind and the deep wound of losing a child. As she struggles through each day shuttling between a barbecue restaurant and a flower shop, a mysterious younger man, Beom Tae-ha, appears — visiting the shop every day to buy roses. But behind his approach lie an undisclosed secret and a powerful background.

The series depicts, through delicate storytelling, the healing and comeback of a woman broken by betrayal and injury, and her dangerous yet captivating relationship with a younger man harboring a secret. The hit title has surpassed 550 million cumulative views worldwide and ranked No. 1 on Line Manga, Naver Webtoon's Japanese-language service, for the full year of 2025 and the first half of 2026.

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Original reporting by Lee Jae-yong, Senior Reporter for Seoul Economic Daily.

AI-translated from Korean. Quotes from foreign sources are based on Korean-language reports and may not reflect exact original wording.

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