Yona of the Dawn

Yona of the Dawn (暁のヨナ) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Mizuho Kusanagi. It has been serialized in Hakusensha's manga magazine Hana to Yume since August 2009, with its chapters collected in 44  volumes as of June 2024. It is set in an East Asian fantasy world, notably a fictional kingdom called Kouka, which made up of various regions and tribes, and is also heavily inspired by and takes elements from Korean and Chinese cultures. It follows Princess Yona, who flees her home after a coup d'état and embarks on a journey to save her kingdom.

A 24-episode anime television series adaptation produced by Pierrot aired between October 2014 and March 2015.

Plot
2000 years ago, the fictional nation of Kouka was founded by the Crimson Dragon God (Hiryuu), who came down to Earth from the Heavens as a human, deemed the Crimson Dragon King (King Hiryuu). As a result, humans forgot about their god and became evil, seeking power. The Crimson Dragon King was eventually forced to fight against these humans, and just as he was about to be killed and the world was on the brink of extinction, four other Dragon gods, imbued with the dragon blood, joined his side as human warriors, and helped him. After clearing Kouka of evil, the Crimson Dragon King died. The four Dragon warriors mourned his death and walked separate ways from his castle, leaving the country to develop over the centuries into 5 Tribes: Sky, Earth, Water, Wind, and Fire. As countless generations flew by, this history became a famous founding myth.

2000 years later, the story commences with Yona, the sole princess of Kouka, ruled by her pacifistic father King Il under the Sky Tribe. Yona lives a lavish, sheltered life from the harrowing reality outside of the walls of the Crimson Dragon Castle, her only friends being her bodyguard Hak, general of the Wind Tribe, and Su-won, her crush of 10 years and the son of King Il's brother, Yu-hon. But contrary to this peaceful illusion, Kouka is once again on the verge of destruction and about to undergo a political upheaval.

A week before a party celebrating her sixteenth birthday, Su-won visits to pay tribute to her. Upon revealing her intention to someday marry him to her father, Yona is shocked and dismayed when King Il forbids her from choosing Su-won as a husband. On the night of her 16th birthday party, Yona visits her father's chambers again, determined to change his mind. Instead, she walks in on Su-won driving a sword through King Il's chest, revealing that he would planned a Coup d'état and would become Kouka's next King. Yona and Hak become fugitives and are forced to flee to Fuuga, the capital of the Wind Tribe. Under the suggestion of Hak's adopted grandfather and prior Wind Tribe General Son Mun-deok, Yona and Hak search for a priest of several expelled from the Sky Tribe capital by Su-won's father, Yu-hon. The priest tells Yona about the Crimson Dragon King and four dragon warriors who unified the nation. Guided by the founding myth, Yona begins a journey to find these dragon warriors in order to survive and save her country.

Main characters

 * (ヨナ)
 * Yona is the princess of Kouka and only child of the late King Il and Queen Kashi. She is of Sky Tribe descent. Having rare red hair and violet eyes, Yona is the reincarnation of the Crimson Dragon King. As the reincarnation, she has inherited his soul, and the four legendary dragon gods' blood will react to it upon laying eyes on her, compelling them to keep to the gods' oath to protect and fight with her. According to King Il, Yona's mother, Kashi, was killed by insurgents when she was 6 years old, but this was later revealed to be the work of his brother Yu-hon, who had hired an assassin, who was later revealed to be Su-won's swordmaster and bodyguard, to kill her mother due to her affiliation with the priests. Sheltered in the Crimson Dragon Castle, Yona was very dependent, spoiled, and naive. Her father did not allow her to touch weapons, leave the castle, nor raise her with political awareness. She spent her days with her childhood friends Su-won and Hak. From an early age, she secretly harbored romantic affections for Su-won, but her father opposed her from marrying him. After Su-won carried out a coup to murder King Il, Yona, who accidentally witnessed the aftermath of the scene, was forced to flee for her life. With Min-su distracting those in pursuit and his timely self-sacrifice, Yona was able to flee with Hak to the Wind Tribe. Instead of hiding in the Wind Tribe, she decided to journey around Kouka to find the Dragon warriors mentioned in the exiled priest Ik-su's prophecy. After opening her eyes to the ruined state of Kouka, she acknowledged and took responsibility for her father's neglect and her own past ignorance. Losing her father, her castle, her throne, and the man she loved in just one night spurred Yona to vow to become stronger, to defend herself, her allies, and to secretly protect her country during her travels by mastering archery and swordsmanship. Over the course of the series, she moves past her romantic affections for Su-won and develops new feelings for Hak, eventually confessing to him. She resolves to someday release Hak of his job and return his "freedom" to him, but Hak vows to stay by her side because he loves her too.
 * While initially reluctant to kill humans and animals in line with her father's pacifistic principles, Yona overcame this against Kum-Ji, the human trafficking crime lord of Port Awa. Over many arcs, Yona's name becomes famous throughout and outside the nation as she gains new allies and becomes worldly-wise, and Su-won's faction is eventually compelled to form an alliance with hers to avoid civil war and protect the dragon warriors, which have become akin to human weapons, from enemy nations seeking their powers. Although Yona does not forgive Su-won, after realizing that he did not usurp the throne merely for revenge, genuinely cared for her and Hak, and showed to be a better king than Il, she decided that fighting against him due to personal vendetta would only plunge the nation into chaos, and now only wishes to understand his motivations. After learning about Su-won's terminal illness and the role her past life played in it, Yona ends up finding his mother's diary which recounts the history of conflict between their parents, and moves forward with this knowledge, wondering what can be done as war with the Kai Empire looms. As the war progresses, Yona takes a prominent position in Kouka's army, and begins experiencing visions of a future where all of her friends have died and she has become the next queen, an ability possibly inherited from her mother, who possessed the same power.
 * While initially reluctant to kill humans and animals in line with her father's pacifistic principles, Yona overcame this against Kum-Ji, the human trafficking crime lord of Port Awa. Over many arcs, Yona's name becomes famous throughout and outside the nation as she gains new allies and becomes worldly-wise, and Su-won's faction is eventually compelled to form an alliance with hers to avoid civil war and protect the dragon warriors, which have become akin to human weapons, from enemy nations seeking their powers. Although Yona does not forgive Su-won, after realizing that he did not usurp the throne merely for revenge, genuinely cared for her and Hak, and showed to be a better king than Il, she decided that fighting against him due to personal vendetta would only plunge the nation into chaos, and now only wishes to understand his motivations. After learning about Su-won's terminal illness and the role her past life played in it, Yona ends up finding his mother's diary which recounts the history of conflict between their parents, and moves forward with this knowledge, wondering what can be done as war with the Kai Empire looms. As the war progresses, Yona takes a prominent position in Kouka's army, and begins experiencing visions of a future where all of her friends have died and she has become the next queen, an ability possibly inherited from her mother, who possessed the same power.


 * Son Haku (ソン・ハク)
 * Hak is Yona's childhood friend, bodyguard, and love interest, as well as the former general of the Wind Tribe. He is known as the "Thunder Beast" for his astounding lightning-fast fighting skills, earning him the title of the strongest soldier in Kouka or "man with the strength of 1000 men", though he is not very famous outside the Sky and Wind Tribes. His talent in combat had been recognized as a child, and he was the first person to defeat a general at his age. He was orphaned as a toddler during a war between Xing and Kouka 17 years prior before the start of the series, and was found and adopted by the previous Wind Tribe general, Son Mun-deok, as his grandson and heir. After Su-won's betrayal, he was falsely rumored to be the murderer of King Il and potentially Yona, and forced to cut ties with his tribe. However, this claim was eventually proven false once Yona's faction allied with Su-won's and they returned to the Crimson Dragon Castle. While once extremely overprotective of Yona, Hak later takes pride in her determination to become stronger and her fiery side. After Yona and Hak eventually confess their feelings to one another, they become a couple.
 * Hak is usually sarcastic and nonchalant, often found teasing Yona, but secretly harbored an unrequited love towards her since they were children. Despite not originally wanting to associate with the royal family, he eventually vowed to protect Yona on King Il's orders at all costs three years prior to the beginning of the story, but admits later on to her that he would have stood by her side regardless if it was ordered or not. He also was loyal towards King Il, considering him a brave man despite the popular opinion, and regretted not being able to protect him from death. He also considered Su-won his best friend before his betrayal, looking up to him as a brother and only being willing to serve the next king if it was him. Knowing that Yona had feelings for Su-won and wishing for Su-won to be the next king of Kouka, Hak suppressed his own feelings in favor of Yona and Su-won living happily together. He vowed to be Su-won's right-hand man if Su-won were to marry Yona and become king, and had resolved himself to serving them both for the rest of his life. Being a deeply loyal and straight-forward person, he was severely traumatized by Su-won's betrayal, describing it in a monologue as "his dream for Su-won to be king coming true in the worst way possible", and nearly kills him and his subordinates once encountering him in the Water Tribe, screaming and crying; he has arguably had a harder time coming to terms with the betrayal than Yona. At one point, Yona describes Hak's past affections towards Su-won to Lili: "because Hak trusted Su-won more than anyone else, he cannot forgive him more than anyone else". However, there are several moments throughout the series where Hak makes decisions on the fly or is able to fight together with Su-won without needing any discussion, even using his battle strategies.
 * After reluctantly allying with Su-Won's faction and returning to the Crimson Dragon Castle, joining the Sky Tribe army as a foot soldier, and learning that Su-won has been secretly terminally ill, Hak becomes worried for his friend and ventures to Port Awa to find a medicine that can cure him, even temporarily. After bringing Su-won medicine that successfully delays the disease and protecting him from Emperor Cha-geol of South Kai, Kye-sook promotes Hak to Sky Tribe vanguard captain. Later, Su-won summons Hak and thanks him for bringing medicine, but admits that it will not save him. He then reveals his intention to make Yona the next ruler of Kouka after his death. This enrages Hak, who accuses Su-won of using Yona as a pawn in his schemes, and afterwards, Hak is left feeling like his childhood days of walking side by side with Su-won have ended. In combat, Hak uses a guandao (a glaive-like bladed pole weapon) as his main weapon, which he was revealed to have bought from Awa a few years ago while traveling with Mun-deok, though he is also highly proficient with bows, swords, spears, and hand-to-hand combat.
 * After reluctantly allying with Su-Won's faction and returning to the Crimson Dragon Castle, joining the Sky Tribe army as a foot soldier, and learning that Su-won has been secretly terminally ill, Hak becomes worried for his friend and ventures to Port Awa to find a medicine that can cure him, even temporarily. After bringing Su-won medicine that successfully delays the disease and protecting him from Emperor Cha-geol of South Kai, Kye-sook promotes Hak to Sky Tribe vanguard captain. Later, Su-won summons Hak and thanks him for bringing medicine, but admits that it will not save him. He then reveals his intention to make Yona the next ruler of Kouka after his death. This enrages Hak, who accuses Su-won of using Yona as a pawn in his schemes, and afterwards, Hak is left feeling like his childhood days of walking side by side with Su-won have ended. In combat, Hak uses a guandao (a glaive-like bladed pole weapon) as his main weapon, which he was revealed to have bought from Awa a few years ago while traveling with Mun-deok, though he is also highly proficient with bows, swords, spears, and hand-to-hand combat.


 * Suwon (スウォン)
 * Su-won is the childhood friend of Yona and Hak, as well as the son of King Il's brother, Yu-hon and Lady Yon-hi, and currently stands as Kouka's 11th King of the Sky Tribe. As a child, his mother had described him as a child with boundless curiosity, three times as talkative and energetic as normal people. However, upon allying with Su-won's faction and returning to the castle, Yona noted a stark change - as an adult, Su-won had become reserved. Growing up, he loved Yona like a younger sister and Hak as a brother. He had also loved and idolized his father, Yu-hon. In the wake of Yona's mother Kashi's death, Su-won comforted Yona and promised to be by her side in her mother's place, largely contributing to her unrequited love for him. He was also Hak's best friend and confidant for many years, and the two of them learned spearmanship and archery under Mun-deok, as well as greatly admired each other as children. Early on it is revealed that Su-won had wanted Hak as his own bodyguard, but understood that Yona would probably need Hak in the future where he betrayed them.
 * When around people, Su-won maintains a facade of being a clumsy and carefree young man, hiding his true intelligence and shrewdness. After King Il killed his father, Su-won exhumed his father's corpse and confirmed his death; later telling his mother that he would watch and wait to see how Il ruled, and if he caused Kouka to suffer under his neglect, Su-won would kill him and usurp the throne. After ten years passed, Su-won rushed to conspire with the Fire Tribe to kill him with the help of many people. Although he frequently expresses his love for humanity and people, and does not wish to sacrifice individuals, he simultaneously believes that no single person is more important than the stability of the nation, and vows to dispose anyone who gets in its way.
 * With King Il dead, Yona missing and presumed dead, and Hak presumed to have killed them both and on the run as a fugitive, Su-won is crowned king and vows to recreate Kouka into a country that never relies on gods, aligning with his father's beliefs. Throughout the series, in addition to leading his armies into battle to strategically expand Kouka's territory, he traverses around the Fire, Earth and Water Tribes while incognito in order to solve their internal conflicts and unite the tribes, often running into Yona and Hak along the way. Despite the underhanded method he chose to gain the throne, he has actually been a good influence on Kouka; hence, Yona decides not to seek revenge. Even though he hated King Il, Su-won shows visible care for Yona and Hak: he hides the fact that Yona is still alive from his followers after he discovers this, and pointedly avoids arresting or attacking Hak when given the opportunity. However, this ultimately becomes a problem once Yona and the dragon warriors have become famous in Kouka, and his faction is ultimately forced to ally with her group to avoid civil war. The alliance is shaky but with time both sides learn to rely on one another as war with the Kai Empire approaches. During this time, he is revealed by Zeno to be secretly afflicted by the Crimson Illness, a terminal illness inherited from his mother, Yon-hi, due to being a descendant of Hiryuu. This illness, along with his father's hatred of religion, had an overwhelming influence in forming his arguably atheist outlook and hatred towards the Crimson Dragon King, despite Yona being his very reincarnation. His ultimate objective is to subdue the Kai Empire, increase Kouka's territory, and make it into a powerful nation that will never be attacked before the illness eventually kills him, at which point he will finally begrudgingly cede the throne to Yona—a choice that currently has Hak, as well as Yu-hon's followers, furious with him.
 * With King Il dead, Yona missing and presumed dead, and Hak presumed to have killed them both and on the run as a fugitive, Su-won is crowned king and vows to recreate Kouka into a country that never relies on gods, aligning with his father's beliefs. Throughout the series, in addition to leading his armies into battle to strategically expand Kouka's territory, he traverses around the Fire, Earth and Water Tribes while incognito in order to solve their internal conflicts and unite the tribes, often running into Yona and Hak along the way. Despite the underhanded method he chose to gain the throne, he has actually been a good influence on Kouka; hence, Yona decides not to seek revenge. Even though he hated King Il, Su-won shows visible care for Yona and Hak: he hides the fact that Yona is still alive from his followers after he discovers this, and pointedly avoids arresting or attacking Hak when given the opportunity. However, this ultimately becomes a problem once Yona and the dragon warriors have become famous in Kouka, and his faction is ultimately forced to ally with her group to avoid civil war. The alliance is shaky but with time both sides learn to rely on one another as war with the Kai Empire approaches. During this time, he is revealed by Zeno to be secretly afflicted by the Crimson Illness, a terminal illness inherited from his mother, Yon-hi, due to being a descendant of Hiryuu. This illness, along with his father's hatred of religion, had an overwhelming influence in forming his arguably atheist outlook and hatred towards the Crimson Dragon King, despite Yona being his very reincarnation. His ultimate objective is to subdue the Kai Empire, increase Kouka's territory, and make it into a powerful nation that will never be attacked before the illness eventually kills him, at which point he will finally begrudgingly cede the throne to Yona—a choice that currently has Hak, as well as Yu-hon's followers, furious with him.


 * An Riri (アン・リリー)
 * Lili is the only daughter of Water Tribe General An Joon-gi and Yona's best friend. She is a confident, spunky girl around Yona's age, with big ambitions to help solve the overwhelming drug trafficking issues plaguing the Water Tribe thanks to the Kai Empire. However, her efforts were impaired by her father with whom she shares a distant, strained relationship due to differing ideals, her only helpers being her female bodyguards, Ayura and Tetora. She initially thought that Yona and her group were suspicious and involved in the drug trade, but after shadowing Yona's group for hours and being saved by them from a violent drug addict, she realizes that they share a common goal and befriends them. With the combined efforts of herself, Yona's group, and an incognito Su-won, they are successfully able to arrest the reigning drug lord in the Water Tribe, although the group dissolves once Hak learns of Su-won's involvement and nearly kills him, to Lili's horror. Lili and Yona's groups team up once again afterwards, and after speaking to Yona about her plans to strengthen the Water Tribe, Lili correctly determined Yona's identity as the lost princess of Kouka, and promised to stand by her side. Later, after being "exiled" by her father, she attempted to quell the Water Tribe's drug and slave trade in the neighboring nation of Sei, resulting in Lili and Yona being kidnapped by the enemy and sold as slaves in retribution for their drug-ban efforts. They eventually break out from the slave camp, but Lili is caught once again and sent to be hanged after stabbing a soldier and protecting Yona from a similar fate. She attempted to escape again, and was rescued in the knick of time by Lili's personal guards and Yona's group, aided by from Su-won's and Joon-gi's forces—most notably, a joint effort between Hak and Su-won. Her fearlessness facing the gallows and her anti-drug trade efforts resulted in Lili gaining strong respect from the people of the Water Tribe, and allowed Su-won to acquire Sei as a vassal nation.
 * From that point onward, Lili becomes a common ally between Yona and Su-won. She boasts a close friendship and loyalty to Yona, but also a blooming camaraderie with Soo-won for his role in her rescue. Acknowledging that her alignment with both factions and neutrality could be seen as hypocritical, she opts to temporarily reside in the Sky Tribe capital, Kuuto, to delve into the royal politics that pique her intrigue and gather further intelligence about the situation (as well as report back to Yona). While Su-won seems unfazed by her decision, his subordinate Kye-sook takes issue with it and unsuccessfully seeks to remove her. She is one of the few characters outside of Yona's companions who, not knowing her before her father's death, is privy to Yona's true identity as the princess of Kouka. She vows to protect Yona from Su-won's faction and has publicly announced her friendship and loyalty to Yona to thousands of Sky Tribe and Water Tribe troops, but she is also considered a valid marriage option for Soo-won by her father and some of the other generals of Kouka, though much to her distaste, as she has a crush on the much admired General Geun-tae. As the war with the Kai Empire arrives, Lili fights to protect Kuuto as the Crimson Dragon Castle is burned to the ground by Emperor Cha-geol.


 * (ユン)
 * He is an orphan boy who was taken in by the priest, Ik-soo, as an apprentice when he was a child. Because of his cute face and expertise at cooking and making medicine, he is often mistaken for a girl, or teased for this skill set. He found Yona and Hak when they fell from the cliff after being attacked by Tae-Jun's ambush. He initially disliked Yona for being an ignorant princess, but later apologized after witnessing Yona's bravery and willingness to educate herself. His initial hatred for nobles stemmed from the fact that Ik-soo was banished from the kingdom by Su-won's father, and from his own impoverished childhood. He always dreamed of going on a journey so that he could learn more about medicine and the world, but never did so before due to the fact that he did not want to leave Ik-soo. After some convincing, Yun decided to leave and start traveling with Yona and Hak. Once the Four Dragons are assembled, he becomes something of a medic and caretaker for the group and harbours a close, sibling-like relationship with Yona. He is the only true non-combatant in the group, though he is capable of making explosives. Once he returns to the Crimson Dragon Castle as a result of the alliance between Yona and Su-won's factions, he befriends Min-su, Su-won's medic, and when he learns about Su-won's illness, he decides to travel with Hak to the Earth Tribe to help find a temporary cure for him and Mei-nyan.
 * He is an orphan boy who was taken in by the priest, Ik-soo, as an apprentice when he was a child. Because of his cute face and expertise at cooking and making medicine, he is often mistaken for a girl, or teased for this skill set. He found Yona and Hak when they fell from the cliff after being attacked by Tae-Jun's ambush. He initially disliked Yona for being an ignorant princess, but later apologized after witnessing Yona's bravery and willingness to educate herself. His initial hatred for nobles stemmed from the fact that Ik-soo was banished from the kingdom by Su-won's father, and from his own impoverished childhood. He always dreamed of going on a journey so that he could learn more about medicine and the world, but never did so before due to the fact that he did not want to leave Ik-soo. After some convincing, Yun decided to leave and start traveling with Yona and Hak. Once the Four Dragons are assembled, he becomes something of a medic and caretaker for the group and harbours a close, sibling-like relationship with Yona. He is the only true non-combatant in the group, though he is capable of making explosives. Once he returns to the Crimson Dragon Castle as a result of the alliance between Yona and Su-won's factions, he befriends Min-su, Su-won's medic, and when he learns about Su-won's illness, he decides to travel with Hak to the Earth Tribe to help find a temporary cure for him and Mei-nyan.

Dragon Warriors

 * (キジャ)
 * The descendant and inheritor of the White Dragon's claw. Kija spent most of his life isolated in his hidden village whose people venerated him. He is naive and gullible, with a crippling fear of bugs. Out of all four dragons, he was the most immediately loyal to Yona, having been raised on the tale of Hiryuu and possessing a strong sense of duty. As all the previous White Dragons were raised the same way and bore the same eagerness to serve, Kija is the unknowing vessel of the departed spirits of several generations of White Dragons. His father—the previous White Dragon—was so upset that a new dragon had been born, he slashed Kija across the back shortly after his birth. As such, he was kept away from Kija until the moment he died and Kija still bears the scars across his back well into adulthood. Initially shown bickering with Hak due to feeling that he is an outsider and taking offense to his sarcastic personality, they develop a friendship over their mutual desire to protect Yona. He also struggles with a crush on Yona, but instead actively chooses not to interfere with her growing affections toward Hak. Kija wields his dragon claw in combat, which grows massive in size and is said to be able to cut through anything. When not in combat, he wraps his claw in a bandage to avoid attracting attention. Along with Zeno, Jae-ha, and Shin-ah, he has the secondary ability to manifest a shield to protect Yona in dire situations.
 * The descendant and inheritor of the White Dragon's claw. Kija spent most of his life isolated in his hidden village whose people venerated him. He is naive and gullible, with a crippling fear of bugs. Out of all four dragons, he was the most immediately loyal to Yona, having been raised on the tale of Hiryuu and possessing a strong sense of duty. As all the previous White Dragons were raised the same way and bore the same eagerness to serve, Kija is the unknowing vessel of the departed spirits of several generations of White Dragons. His father—the previous White Dragon—was so upset that a new dragon had been born, he slashed Kija across the back shortly after his birth. As such, he was kept away from Kija until the moment he died and Kija still bears the scars across his back well into adulthood. Initially shown bickering with Hak due to feeling that he is an outsider and taking offense to his sarcastic personality, they develop a friendship over their mutual desire to protect Yona. He also struggles with a crush on Yona, but instead actively chooses not to interfere with her growing affections toward Hak. Kija wields his dragon claw in combat, which grows massive in size and is said to be able to cut through anything. When not in combat, he wraps his claw in a bandage to avoid attracting attention. Along with Zeno, Jae-ha, and Shin-ah, he has the secondary ability to manifest a shield to protect Yona in dire situations.


 * (シンア)
 * The descendant and inheritor of the Blue Dragon's eyes. In contrast to Kija's people, Shin-ah's village feared the inheritors of the Blue Dragon's powers, believing them to be cursed. This fear was so extreme that when Shin-ah was born, his mother killed herself. Because the villagers believe that those who look the dragon in the eyes will turn into stone, Shin-ah was isolated and grew socially awkward. He was raised to age 4 by the previous Blue Dragon, Ao, who taught him swordsmanship and gave him his duty to protect the village. Soon after Ao's death, Shin-ah used the power of his eyes to protect his village from approaching bandits, killing all of them. This forced the entire clan to flee their old village and move into their hidden mountain dwelling, within which Yona, Yoon, Hak and Kija later meet him several years in the future. While initially afraid to join Yona, he saves her from a malicious villager and eventually chooses to leave the village with her group. While growing up, Shin-ah was referred to only as the Blue Dragon and did not have a name, and thus Yona named him "Shin-ah", meaning "moonlight" in the language of Kouka. Shin-ah is able to see great distances, manifest horrifying hallucinations and induce heart attacks to those he uses his eyes on. After using his dragon ability, however, Shin-ah's body becomes paralyzed for a short time.
 * To avoid making eye contact, Shin-ah covers his face with a mask, though he later takes to wearing a blindfold to avoid the attention his mask attracts. Eventually, he grows comfortable enough with the rest of the group that he only covers his eyes in public. Shin-ah is usually accompanied by his pet squirrel, Ao, named after the previous Blue Dragon. He is extremely loyal to Yona, due to her being one of the first people to be kind towards him since the death of his predecessor. He is also particularly close to Zeno, and the two are often seen playing or spending time together. He mainly wields a sword in battle, choosing not to use his powers for anything other than as a last resort. Along with Zeno, Jae-ha and Kija, he has a secondary ability to manifest a shield to protect Yona in dire situations.
 * To avoid making eye contact, Shin-ah covers his face with a mask, though he later takes to wearing a blindfold to avoid the attention his mask attracts. Eventually, he grows comfortable enough with the rest of the group that he only covers his eyes in public. Shin-ah is usually accompanied by his pet squirrel, Ao, named after the previous Blue Dragon. He is extremely loyal to Yona, due to her being one of the first people to be kind towards him since the death of his predecessor. He is also particularly close to Zeno, and the two are often seen playing or spending time together. He mainly wields a sword in battle, choosing not to use his powers for anything other than as a last resort. Along with Zeno, Jae-ha and Kija, he has a secondary ability to manifest a shield to protect Yona in dire situations.


 * (ジェハ)
 * The descendant and inheritor of the Green Dragon's right leg. Jae-ha was kept prisoner in his village until he eventually escaped and joined a pirate crew in Port Awa. Sensing their presence when they arrive in Awa, Jae-ha tries to avoid Yona and the White and Blue Dragons because he did not want to be constrained by his duty, and he initially declines Yona's invitation to join her. However, he is intrigued by Yona's spirit and determination, and despite his concerns that his dragon blood is influencing his feelings, he leaves the pirate crew and joins Yona on her journey. Jae-Ha is laid-back and flamboyant, and a womanizer, but is also wise and experienced. He is aware of Hak's feelings for Yona and likes to tease him about it, much to Hak's frequent annoyance. Despite his earlier reservations about joining them, Jae-ha eventually becomes a surrogate older brother to the group, and develops a close friendship with Hak—who almost always refers to him as "Droopy Eyes". He harbors some romantic affection toward Yona himself, but chooses not to pursue it due to feeling that it is due to the dragons' blood, as well as respecting Yona and Hak's feelings for one another. Jae-Ha has infinite strength in his dragon leg, which allows him to kick hard enough to shatter armour and jump far enough that he appears to fly. He can enlarge his leg as Kija does his hand, however, prefers not to do so since he dislikes the look of it. Jae-Ha mainly utilizes his powerful leg for close combat and throws daggers as long-range weapons. Along with Zeno, Shin-ah, and Kija, he has a secondary ability to manifest a shield to protect Yona in dire situations.
 * The descendant and inheritor of the Green Dragon's right leg. Jae-ha was kept prisoner in his village until he eventually escaped and joined a pirate crew in Port Awa. Sensing their presence when they arrive in Awa, Jae-ha tries to avoid Yona and the White and Blue Dragons because he did not want to be constrained by his duty, and he initially declines Yona's invitation to join her. However, he is intrigued by Yona's spirit and determination, and despite his concerns that his dragon blood is influencing his feelings, he leaves the pirate crew and joins Yona on her journey. Jae-Ha is laid-back and flamboyant, and a womanizer, but is also wise and experienced. He is aware of Hak's feelings for Yona and likes to tease him about it, much to Hak's frequent annoyance. Despite his earlier reservations about joining them, Jae-ha eventually becomes a surrogate older brother to the group, and develops a close friendship with Hak—who almost always refers to him as "Droopy Eyes". He harbors some romantic affection toward Yona himself, but chooses not to pursue it due to feeling that it is due to the dragons' blood, as well as respecting Yona and Hak's feelings for one another. Jae-Ha has infinite strength in his dragon leg, which allows him to kick hard enough to shatter armour and jump far enough that he appears to fly. He can enlarge his leg as Kija does his hand, however, prefers not to do so since he dislikes the look of it. Jae-Ha mainly utilizes his powerful leg for close combat and throws daggers as long-range weapons. Along with Zeno, Shin-ah, and Kija, he has a secondary ability to manifest a shield to protect Yona in dire situations.


 * (ゼノ)
 * The Yellow Dragon warrior. In contrast to the other dragon warriors, Yona did not have to go searching for him as he wandered into their camp, and his blood did not react upon seeing Yona. He explains later that he had been following Yona ever since she fled the castle, and also visited the other dragon warriors countless times. He also is revealed to have watched Su-won's mother, the royal family, and known all along about the illness affecting the descendants of the Crimson Dragon King.
 * Zeno is outwardly cheerful and upbeat—behaviours adopted from his late wife, Kaya. Seemingly carefree, Zeno is actually the most observant, secretive, and depressed of the group, and often treats everyone in the group as cute children. This is due to the reveal that he is in fact the original Yellow Dragon Warrior who served the Crimson Dragon King, making him approximately 2000 years old due to his powers of immortality; his body regenerates, even if he is beheaded or burned alive, and dragon scales cover his body, making him strong as all the other dragons. However, he considers his power a curse, and does not know why he has it, a question he once asked King Hiryuu, who did not respond and died a few days later. As such, Zeno has actively sought a way to die throughout his long life span.
 * After King Hiryuu's death, Zeno had lived in the Crimson Dragon Castle for some time and functioned as Kouka's first priest, but was forced to leave and live as a wanderer when the public started to notice that he did not age. Zeno usually wields a shield in combat to protect Yun and Yona from projectile attacks, and reserves his power for a last resort, as it does entail him having to be gravely wounded to take effect. Along with Shin-ah, Jae-ha and Kija, he has a secondary ability to manifest as an actual dragon to protect Yona in dire situations. In a later arc, after discovering a way to end the dragon cycle and finally die, Zeno betrays Yona and her friends, explaining that killing the dragon warriors and himself is the only way, and leaves. Yona and Hak are currently trying to find and stop him.
 * After King Hiryuu's death, Zeno had lived in the Crimson Dragon Castle for some time and functioned as Kouka's first priest, but was forced to leave and live as a wanderer when the public started to notice that he did not age. Zeno usually wields a shield in combat to protect Yun and Yona from projectile attacks, and reserves his power for a last resort, as it does entail him having to be gravely wounded to take effect. Along with Shin-ah, Jae-ha and Kija, he has a secondary ability to manifest as an actual dragon to protect Yona in dire situations. In a later arc, after discovering a way to end the dragon cycle and finally die, Zeno betrays Yona and her friends, explaining that killing the dragon warriors and himself is the only way, and leaves. Yona and Hak are currently trying to find and stop him.

Sky Tribe

 * Iru (イル)
 * The 10th king of the Sky Tribe, father of Yona, and uncle of Su-won. He is killed by Su-won in the first chapter. His wife, Kashi, was murdered by an assassin hired by Yu-hon, and he chose to not remarry and raise only his daughter in the Crimson Dragon Castle. He also sought to hire Hak as Yona's bodyguard and was on good terms with him. After learning that Yona was in love with Su-won, he forbids her from marrying him, but the true circumstances and intentions behind this rejection are not yet fully known. It is revealed in Yon-hi's diary that King Il had known that Su-won was going to kill him the entire time as Kashi had prophesied it, and passively chose to not prevent this future, treating Su-won very harshly growing up. It was revealed that he had banned Su-won from entering the mausoleum beneath the castle, and just before being murdered, Il had told Su-won that he would never be able to become the Crimson Dragon King and one day die at the hands of Yona, who Il alleged was the true ruler of Kouka. It is also revealed that despite disliking war and conflict, he had in fact killed Su-won's father in an act of revenge after learning that Yu-hon had killed Kashi. Finally, it is revealed that he and Kashi had convinced his father, Ju-nam, to make him the next king as he knew his daughter would be the reincarnation of the Crimson Dragon King and would one day unite the dragon warriors, a future he was elated by and saw ultimately necessary.
 * King Il was known throughout Kouka to have kind, pacifistic ideals, and devout in his religious belief, yet simultaneously neglected his people, including his wife, which he was shown to greatly regret after her death, and even Yona herself. Wanting to keep the peace, he ceded territory and weakened national power, and became known as cowardly and obedient to outside tribes and surrounding nations. In addition, he admitted to harbor feelings of jealousy towards his elder brother, notably when he had learned Yu-hon had gotten engaged to a descendant of Hiryuu. Most considered him a terrible king and hated him. King Il is revealed to have been aware of his failings as a leader and deemed himself "a placeholder" for the future where Yona would one day be expelled into Kouka and unite the dragon warriors. Despite feeling saddened and conflicted about the hatred against her father, Yona decides to protect Kouka in his stead.


 * (カシ)
 * The former queen of Kouka, Il's late wife, and Yona's mother who died when she was six years old. According to King Il, she was murdered by assassins. This is later revealed to be the work of King Il's brother, Yu-Hon, who had hired them to kill her.
 * When she was young, she had been close to Iguni, who later became the wife of the Fire Tribe General Kan Soo-jin. More than a decade prior, she had been affiliated with the priests of Kouka as a priestess-in-training with abilities to see the future, but when she and the priests sensed that Yu-hon's wife, Yon-hi, came from the bloodline of King Hiryuu, Yu-hon sought to eradicate the priests and protect his wife. Kashi's face was burned while she sought to escape from the temple that Yu-hon burned, and Il had attempted to save her. At that moment, she had foreseen a future where a red light fell between them, symbolizing that they would be the parents to Yona. As a result, she disguised herself to avoid being persecuted by Yu-hon, told Il to marry her so that Yona would be born, and convinced King Ju-nam to make Il the next king instead of Yu-hon. After learning this, while on a carriage to visit Yon-hi, Yu-hon sought to eradicate Kashi and Yona by sending assassins to attack the carriage. It is revealed that Kashi knew all along that she would end up dying at the hands of Yu-hon, and sought to protect Yona from facing a similar fate by not taking Yona along.


 * Yuhon (ユホン)
 * First son in line for the throne, Crown Prince of the Sky Tribe, once general as well. Yon-hi's husband, Soo-won's father, Il's older brother, and Yona's uncle. Despite having the rights to the throne, he was not chosen by the previous king to be his successor. However, he did not have an interest in the throne, so did not worry about it, and promised to support Il. However, he later retracts this promise after discovering Il had married Kashi, a woman affiliated with the priests, and that she had convinced his father to make Il the next king and not him.
 * He is known to be a brave, courageous warrior who was loved his people but lost his life in an accident, but according to Su-won, King Il had actually stabbed him to death, which is later revealed to be true. Yu-hon's death is one of Su-won's main motives for assassinating Il. Yu-hon is known for disliking religion and banning the priests once they figured out that Yon-hi was a descendant of the Crimson Dragon King. Priests once had more power than the royal family, and Yu-hon did not like that. He is also known for using violent and gruesome methods in battle; 17 years ago, he beheaded the heads of war prisoners in Xing. He has a clear distinction between friend and foe and is known to show no mercy to his enemies. He had told Su-won to do the same when Su-won was a child, and his ideals largely contributed to making Su-won the king he is.


 * Yonhi (ヨンヒ)
 * Yu-hon's wife and Su-won's mother. She was a frail woman and usually had a medical officer in charge of her. Even when Su-won caught a cold, she was unable to visit him. It is revealed in her diary that she was secretly from a clan of descendants of King Hiryuu, and that after marrying Yu-hon, the expulsion of the priests from the capital happened because they discovered her identity. After learning what Yu-hon did to the priests, she is shown to have felt fear towards her husband, and extreme guilt and hopelessness, even self-hatred towards her blood. In addition, it is revealed that she had inherited the Crimson illness, a terminal illness found in her bloodline. Su-won is revealed to have inherited the same illness. She attempts to protect Kashi and make amends with Il with little avail. When she learns that Il has killed her husband because Yu-hon killed Kashi, Yon-hi is in despair, as she is dying from the Crimson illness. This despair strengthens as she watches Su-won, who was nine at the time, discuss possibly killing Il and betraying Yona, and she found herself frightened by her son. She attempted to reach out to Il one more time before her death, giving him her diary which explained the secrets she held, and asked him to stop the cycle of hatred and reconcile their children. Il responds in a letter he never sends explaining that he cannot after she has passed away.


 * Han Judo (ハン・ジュド)
 * The 34 year old general of the Sky Tribe. He has a scar on his cheek and a strict, uncompromising personality. Having a short temper, he is often prone to yelling and preaching. As the Sky Tribe is the ruling power, he is the second most powerful person in the country after the king. However, he himself is not a member of the royal family nor a relative of Yona or Su-Won.
 * After Su-won's ascension, he served as his aide, highly praising his attitude of prioritizing his country over personal ties and expecting him to adhere to it. However, he is often shown frustrated with Su-won's antics, often having been a sort of babysitter him and Yona growing up. He also does not get along well with Geun-tae, who often teases him one-sidedly, often for still being a bachelor. Still, as Geun-tae is four years older than Joo-doh, Joo-doh still uses polite language with him. In the past, Geun-tae was stronger than Joo-doh, but now they are on equal standing.
 * He is wary of Hak, especially after Hak almost successfully kills Su-won in the Water Tribe, and harshly condemned Su-won for not counterattacking him before fulfilling his goals, making Su-won half-heartedly promise to kill Hak henceforth on sight. It is later revealed that Joo-doh did not agree with many of King Il's policies and saw his decision to appoint Hak Yona's bodyguard, instead of him, who was more experienced and older, as a slight to his combat skills. This was a huge reason why Joo-doh ended up leaning towards Su-won's faction and playing a part in his coup. Despite this, he genuinely did not wish Yona any harm and was relieved that Yona was alive.


 * Keishuku (ケイシュク)
 * Su-won's 25 year old cutthroat advisor and strategist. He first appears when Su-won carries out his coup. He describes himself as someone of no prominent social standing who was crippled in battle, and saved by Yu-hon. Kye-sook began serving Yu-hon and dreaming of his rise to kingship, but that was thwarted by King Il. Thus, he began to dream of Su-won becoming the king that Yu-hon should have been. For years, he extracted information from Min-su who unknowingly gave him intelligence about King Il, and used it to help Su-won carry out his coup. When Yona stumbles across the crime, Kye-sook tells Su-won to kill her. He tries to do the same thing months later when Yona attempts to stop Su-won's Sky Tribe army from marching into Xing, but Yona tells him off for misusing the position he stole by killing her father. After this confrontation, learning that Su-won had known that Yona was alive the entire time, and watching Yona convince Su-won to walk away from Xing, Kye-sook sees Yona and Hak as political threats and wonders how to eliminate them. However, he quickly realizes that killing them and the dragon warriors would cause a civil war and instead seeks an alliance between her and Su-won's faction. While he is shown to resent Yona due to being the child of the king he despised, initially viewing her as a useless Princess, he was later impressed after witnessing her diplomatic skills during a meeting of Kai diplomats and started to warm up to her as a leader. When he learns that Su-won is terminally ill, he understands that the invasion of the Kai Empire must happen before he dies, and asks Yona to lead the troops in the event that Su-won is incapicitated, even thinking of making her the next ruler. He is shown to sometimes go against Su-won's wishes for Su-won's sake, or the nation's sake, which Yona calls Su-won out for allowing.


 * Minsu
 * A servant of King Il. He often interacted with Hak and Yona when they lived in the castle, and also knew Su-won since they were children. When Su-won rebelled, he was thought to have been shot by an arrow and killed as a decoy to allow Yona and Hak to escape, but reunites with Yona and Hak at an informant's bar the Sky Tribe capital, Kuuto. He reveals that before being assigned to the castle, he and his mother, who was a medical officer, had lived in Su-won's mansion with Su-won's mother, Yon-hi. He did not help Su-won usurp the throne, but became a spy for Su-won against his will after Kye-sook extracted information about the castle's affairs from him under the pretense of casual conversation. After Yona returns to the castle, he acts to help her secretly. He is also Su-won's medical officer as Su-won is revealed to have been terminally ill.


 * (オギ)
 * Head of the Sky Tribe capital's information brokers. He was an ally of Su-won's, who had known him since he was nine years old. He had helped Su-won and Hak search for Yona throughout the city when she had been kidnapped by the Kai Empire as a child. Later on, he becomes an ally of Yona, and feels saddened by the current situation between Yona, Hak and Su-won, recalling when the three had been close. After learning of Ogi's interactions with Yona, Su-won cuts all ties with Ogi. Ogi is saddened by this. Lili starts to visit Ogi afterwards, promising to update him on castle affairs and how Su-won is doing.

Wind Tribe

 * Son Mundoku (ソン・ムンドク)
 * He is the former General and leader of the Wind Tribe. He is the adoptive grandfather of Hak. Before his retirement, he was known as a general whose strength was compared to General Yu-Hon's. Despite his strict behavior and appearance, Mundok cares deeply for the Wind Tribe and the royal family, to whom he is quite loyal. He has a kind heart and adopted two orphans as his grandchildren: Hak and Tae-Yeon.
 * He is the former General and leader of the Wind Tribe. He is the adoptive grandfather of Hak. Before his retirement, he was known as a general whose strength was compared to General Yu-Hon's. Despite his strict behavior and appearance, Mundok cares deeply for the Wind Tribe and the royal family, to whom he is quite loyal. He has a kind heart and adopted two orphans as his grandchildren: Hak and Tae-Yeon.


 * Teu (テウ)
 * 17 years old. Successor to the Wind Tribe after Hak leaves. Second to Hak in spearmanship, often trained by Mun-deok every day. He is also the youngest tribal leader among the Five Tribes. He does not like Su-won very much due to his betrayal of Hak and Yona.


 * (アヤメ)
 * A sixteen-year-old girl around Yona's age and one of Hak's childhood friends. She is often seen treating the injured and is studying medicine, and Hak once teased Yona, telling her to try and be more like her. She was supposedly Hak's fiancée only by name as Mun-deok had arranged their marriage when they were children, but she was in actuality having another lover and also knew about Hak's love for Yona. Hak had told Ayame before Su-won's betrayal that he had merely wished for Yona to find happiness even if it was not with him. After Yona sees her with the Wind Tribe troops after Xing, she feels jealous and guilty over it, feeling that she has taken Hak away from his fiancée, but Hak explained that he and Ayame were merely friends.

Water Tribe

 * An Jungi (アン・ジュンギ)
 * General of the Water Tribe and father of Lili. Almost always shown with closed eyes. He has a calm, careful personality and remains silent when his tribe is in crisis due to the drug-trafficking problem, which Lili is initially at odds with him for. He hires Ayura and Tetora as Lili's bodyguards after seeing them fight at a martial arts tournament held three years at the Crimson Dragon Castle three years ago. He is also often shown trying to recommend Lili as a potential bride for Su-won, to which both Lili and Su-won decline every time. He is known as a master archer who can hit targets even with his eyes closed, according to Hak. When Kye-sook attempts to say that it was good that he did not help the people suffering from the drug trafficking in his tribe, Jun-gi glares at him and openly disagrees with him, a rare moment. It is due to Lili's influence that he eventually opens up to the idea of taking action, and allows Lili to explore and do what she can to help the Water Tribe.


 * (アユラ)
 * She is one of Lili's two bodyguards and guardians. A cool, black-haired beauty. A two-sworded swordswoman with skills that are no less than those of the men. She has given her body and soul to the Water Tribe, but when she discovered Yona and her friends' true identities, she and Tetra decided to keep it secret, and sent them off wishing them a safe journey. During the Sei kidnapping incident, she infiltrated the tribe as a slave with the Four Dragons to help find and rescue Lili.


 * (テトラ)
 * Lili's other bodyguard and guardian. She has a bright personality, but hides hand-to-hand combat behind her seemingly harmless demeanor. However, she was stabbed and seriously injured in an accident involving the Water Tribe drug-trafficking, and asked Yona to take care of Lili. Later when Lili is kidnapped by Sei, she learns that Su-won has decided to team up with the generals to save her, and it is revealed that Tetora had seen Su-won visiting Joon-gi at a dinner party three years prior. She later helps Ayura infiltrate the Sei fort and rescue Lili. She considers herself a guardian figure to Lili and cares for her very much, and often unsuccessfully tries to set her up with Su-won.

Fire Tribe

 * Kan Sujin (カン・スジン)
 * Chief of the Fire Tribe, one of the generals. Cunning and ambitious. Pretended to ally with Su-won and helped him become the king, but wanted to become king himself. In a children's song passed through generations of the Fire Tribe, he believed the Fire Tribe were the righteous descendants and successors to King Hiryuu and had the rights to the throne instead of the Sky Tribe. He later allied with Li Hazara, a powerful man from the Kai Empire in a failed rebellion against Su-won. When encountering Yona's group, Yona told him that he was unfit to be king. He became enraged and attempted to kill her group and Su-won's, but in the end, he was stabbed to death by his own subordinates for abusing them. It was revealed that he was a man who had loved his family, especially his sons Kyoga and Tae-jun, wanting them to become rulers, despite not caring for his people.


 * (カン・キョウガ)
 * The eldest son of Su-jin. He saw Yona as a figurehead princess before the coup, but acknowledged her strength later after seeing her growth, but is loyal to Su-won first. He also looks down on his younger brother Taejun. Although he can be a little arrogant and too strict with others, he is morally upright. When his father rebels, he pleads for the lives of his mother and brother to be spared and tries to take responsibility by offering his head in place of his father, but he is appointed as the new tribal leader and the next Fire Tribe general by Su-won and learns a new way of governing in the Sky Tribe capital. When his tribe is attacked, he is saved by Yona and her companions and learns that Yona and Hak are alive and the existence of the Four Dragons. He feels conflicted. He later leads Fire Tribe troops in the war against the Kai Empire.


 * Kan Taejun (カン・テジュン)
 * The second son of Su-jin. He was determined to make Yona his wife initially only to inherit the throne of Kouka Kingdom, though it is revealed after he mistakenly believes that she is dead that he genuinely liked her. Because of Hak intervening in his brash attempts to court Yona for years, he harbors a vendetta against Hak and actively tries to have him killed after Hak and Yona escaped the castle. During his pursuit, he inadvertently caused both of them to fall from a cliff, leading Tae-jun to believe that he had killed Yona. This left Tae-jun heavily depressed and guilty over the ordeal for months. He is finally reunited with Yona when his brother assigned him to capture bandits said to be driving off Fire Tribe soldiers from collecting taxes — which was really Yona and her group defending the poor from being abused by the military. Due to his extreme happiness that Yona is alive, Tae-jun fully repented his actions and resolved to change the lives of the Fire Tribe's people, earning him respect from his subordinates and Yona herself. He later remains a valuable ally to Yona and her group from that point onward, even agreeing to risk treason at her request.


 * (イグニ)
 * Kan Su-jin's wife and Kyoga and Tae-jun's mother. When she was young, she was close to Yona's mother, Kashi, and even went to celebrate Yona's birthday. Kashi had told her that Yona had four dragon guardians and that her daughter was born with the power of gods. Iguni was originally the daughter of a high-ranking aristocrat and had been engaged to Su-jin before they met. She is a modest, quiet woman who does not usually interfere in military matters of what her sons do, and thinks that men should fight battles while the women wait for them. However, Yona expresses her desire to fight alongside her comrades to Iguni, challenging Iguni's traditional views.

Earth Tribe

 * I Gunte (イ・グンテ)
 * The general of the Earth Tribe and the husband of Yun-ho. His personality is described as a man who only follows strong kings, and was a disciple of Su-won's father, Yu-hon. As a general who fought during Emperor Ju-nam's era (Yona and Soo-won's grandfather), he is a warrior dedicated to the battlefield but was unable to fight under King Il's rule. This made him frustrated, even joking about rebelling against King Il. Thus upon Su-won's coronation, he is initially skeptical of Su-won until Su-won proves himself during a mock battle festival held in the Earth Tribe capital, Chishin. Ever since, he is usually spotted on the battlefield with Su-won's army and General Joo-doh, who he often teases. His tribe admires him, though he insists on them treating him like an ordinary citizen.
 * While in the Kin Province between the Earth Tribe and Kai Empire, Geun-tae is struck in the back by three arrows and forced to retire as a general due to his injuries making him unfit for the battlefield. However, he continues to march with Su-won's army to Kai.
 * While in the Kin Province between the Earth Tribe and Kai Empire, Geun-tae is struck in the back by three arrows and forced to retire as a general due to his injuries making him unfit for the battlefield. However, he continues to march with Su-won's army to Kai.

Kai Empire

 * Ri Hazara (リ・ハザラ)
 * He is a member of one of the powerful families of the Kai Empire (North Kai), which was divided into the North and South. He conspired with Su-jin to invade Kouka and capture its capital. However, their plans were thwarted by Su-won, who had anticipated their moves. Defeated by Yona's group, Hazara managed to escape with injuries, losing an eye, and sought to negotiate with Su-won, mistakingly believing he would be a pacifist like Il. But upon meeting Su-won in person, Su-won gave him a fierce glare and a warning: any future invasion attempts would result in him taking Hazara's head. This left Hazara deeply frightened, and in return, he ceded a crucial piece of land from Kai to Kouka.


 * Chagoru (チャゴル)
 * Emperor of South Kai, a cruel, power-hungry, abusive man with a bald head and a phoenix tattoo. He is revealed to have wanted to have the blood of the North Kai Emperor. He sends Mei-nyan out to kill one of the Kai diplomats sent out to Kouka and blame Yona for the crime, and during the war between Kai and Kouka, later attempts to invade the Crimson Dragon Castle with his Dromos assassins, later burning it to the ground himself. He also sends out Val to find Mei-nyan, who has defected from his side, but later Val betrays him. Later on, when Su-won sends out a search party for Mei-nyan at the South Kai army camp, Yona infiltrates it, pretending to submit to Cha-geol, who decides to kill her publicly. However, Yona reveals to Cha-geol that she had only pretended to submit to him and that his guards were disguised as friends from Xing, turning on him. Yona shoots arrows at his chest, and with the help of Hak, manages to subdue him. Su-won eventually arrives on the scene, and Cha-geol nearly decapitates him, but Hak saves Su-won in the nick of time, dealing a fatal blow to Cha-geol. Cha-geol runs on horseback with the fatally wounded General Ra-an, taking the chalice that had been found in the Crimson Dragon Castle, and while dying from his wounds, realizes that intimidating and torturing those loyal to him brought his death. After his death, Zeno found his body and stole his chalice.


 * Meinyan (メイニャン)
 * The ex-concubine of Cha-geol and Su-won's relative. She was revealed to be one of the eight generals of Kai, and was a general before marrying Cha-geol, but was forced to give up her position and become his concubine, severely abused by him. She is revealed to be sick with the crimson illness, which weakened her, but nevertheless was able to hold her own in a sword fight against General Joo-doh and Hak. She has a tomboyish, outspoken personality, and appeared to be a highly driven individual who had endured much suffering. She tells Su-won that she had defected from Kai all the way to the Crimson Dragon Castle after her father and brother's deaths to Kouka in order to get her hands on the four dragons and the Thunder Beast for herself and the family of King Hiryuu's descendants, believing that the Crimson Dragon King's powers rightfully belonged to them, and that once she heard that a red-haired girl (Yona) had the dragons for herself, despised her for her privilege. However, Su-won, uninterested in the power of the gods and annoyed by her ideals reminiscent of King Il, saw her as a spy for the Kai Empire and attempted to kill her on the spot with the help of Kye-sook and Hyu-li. Yona intervened, shouting at Su-won and negotiating with him to set Mei-nyan free, comparing her situation with his mother Yon-hi's. Su-won finally relented, imprisoning Mei-nyan instead. When the war with the Kai Empire began, she befriended Yun, who wanted to find an antidote for the crimson illness. She was revealed to have been friends (and later lovers) with Val, another general who was hired by Cha-geol to return her to Kai, but after she explained her situation, he defected from Kai as well. However, it is also revealed that she was behind the murders of one of the South Kai diplomats and pinned the blame on Yona. Cha-geol was later revealed to have been at the Crimson Dragon Castle to burn it to the ground, and captured Mei-nyan. Mei-nyan is later saved by Yona's group and Kouka, who is currently trying to find a cure for her.

Xing

 * Kouren (コウレン)
 * First Princess of Xing and eventually its Queen. 27 years old. Skilled at swordsmanship. She meets Yona and Hak by chance in Xing after seeing Yona hunt a bird using her bow and arrow, and praises her aim. She has a strong charisma and leadership and is beloved by her people. 17 years ago, in a war between Kouka and Xing, Yu-hon had mercilessly decapitated prisoners of war and thrown their heads over the gates of Xing despite saying that he would release them. Ever since, Kouren harbored a festering hatred towards Yu-hon and Kouka, believed that Su-won would be the same as him, as he was Yu-hon's son. She holds the dragons hostage and threatens to kill him, challenging Yona to stop Su-won's army marching to Xing. When Yona succeeds, she is shocked.


 * Tao (タオ)
 * Second Princess of Xing. 19 years old, although she looks younger than Yona. She brings Yona's group to her mansion, mistaking them for Su-won's subordinates. Unlike her elder sister Kouren, who seeks to attack Kouka with her armies, Tao considers the difference between Kouka and Xing's military powers and tries to avoid the sacrifices of her people by making Xing into a vassal nation of Kouka.


 * Voldo (ヴォルド)
 * Algira (アルギラ)
 * Gobi (ゴビ)
 * Priest of Xing.

Others

 * Ao/Pukkyu (アオ/プッキュー)
 * A female squirrel who was with Shin-ah in the village of the Blue Dragon. Despite being a squirrel, she is carnivorous and will eat anything, even fish. Shin-ah named her "Ao" after the previous Blue Dragon, but Yun and the author call her "Pukkyuu" because that is the sound she makes when squeaking. When her friends are injured, unwell, or unhappy, she is often showing trying to cheer them up by perching on their shoulder and holding out an acorn.
 * A female squirrel who was with Shin-ah in the village of the Blue Dragon. Despite being a squirrel, she is carnivorous and will eat anything, even fish. Shin-ah named her "Ao" after the previous Blue Dragon, but Yun and the author call her "Pukkyuu" because that is the sound she makes when squeaking. When her friends are injured, unwell, or unhappy, she is often showing trying to cheer them up by perching on their shoulder and holding out an acorn.


 * Ikkusu (イクス)
 * He is a clumsy priest from Kouka and was Yoon's guardian. He spends his days in isolation praying to the gods for guidance and for the happiness of the people. He reveals a prophecy to Yona that marks the start of her search for the Four Dragon Warriors. In Yon-hi's diary it is revealed that he had once lived in the palace and took care of the temple with Yona's mother, Kashi, before being chased out by Yu-hon.
 * He is a clumsy priest from Kouka and was Yoon's guardian. He spends his days in isolation praying to the gods for guidance and for the happiness of the people. He reveals a prophecy to Yona that marks the start of her search for the Four Dragon Warriors. In Yon-hi's diary it is revealed that he had once lived in the palace and took care of the temple with Yona's mother, Kashi, before being chased out by Yu-hon.

Manga
Written and illustrated by Mizuho Kusanagi, Yona of the Dawn started in Hakusensha's manga magazine Hana to Yume on August 5, 2009. In June 2024, Kusanagi announced that the manga had entered its final story arc. Hakusensha has collected its chapters into individual volumes. The first volume was released on January 19, 2010. As of June 20, 2024, 44 volumes have been released.

The series has been licensed for English release in North America by Viz Media, who announced the acquisition at their New York Comic Con panel in October 2015. The first volume was released on August 2, 2016. As of August 1, 2023, 39 volumes have been released.

Anime
A 24-episode anime television series adaptation produced by Pierrot aired between October 7, 2014, and March 24, 2015, on AT-X. Funimation has licensed the anime series for streaming and home video rights in North America. Beginning on March 17, 2015, Funimation streamed their dubbed version of the anime, starting with episode 13 while the first half of the season will be released at a later date. The first opening theme is an instrumental song by Kunihiko Ryo, called "Akatsuki no Yona" (暁のヨナ). The first ending theme is Yoru (夜) by Vistlip. The second opening theme is "Akatsuki no Hana", by Cyntia. The second ending theme is "Akatsuki", by Akiko Shikata. Three original video animations were bundled with the manga's 19th, 21st and 22nd limited edition volumes, respectively. The first OVA was released on September 18, 2015, the second OVA was released on August 19, 2016, and the third OVA was released on December 20, 2016.

Reception
By February 2022, the manga had over 14 million copies in circulation. By June 2024, it had over 15 million copies in circulation. The manga placed first in Rakuten Kobo's second E-book Award in the "Long Seller Comic" category in 2024.