As one popular VK blogger (handle: @morozny_korol) put it: "Cardan is not cruel because he enjoys it. He is cruel because softness was beaten out of him. And Jude loves him not despite the scars, but because she has the same map of wounds." Of course, the phenomenon has its critics. Some literary purists argue that the VK fandom has "flanderized" the character, reducing him to a leather-clad sad boy who smokes cigarettes in the rain. Others worry about the romanticization of genuinely toxic behavior—emotional manipulation, public humiliation, and weaponized neglect.
“I know he is bad,” writes user @lilith_crow. “But he is bad in a way that explains why I am so tired.” cruel prince vk
In the dim glow of a phone screen, past midnight, a specific kind of fairy tale is unfolding. It is not the sanitized Disney version where the prince arrives on a white horse. This prince has blood on his collar, a smirk that borders on a sneer, and a throne made of lies, daggers, and political maneuvering. As one popular VK blogger (handle: @morozny_korol) put
If you have scrolled through BookTok, Bookstagram, or the depths of Russian social media platform VK (Vkontakte) in the last 18 months, you have met him. His name isn't really "Cardan" or "Jurdan"—though he borrows their DNA. He is simply known as And on VK, he is a king. Some literary purists argue that the VK fandom
The "Cruel Prince" fit like a glove.