WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Incarnation of the Malevolent Star ◈
Chapter 58: Part 1 - Whispers of the Dark Brother (58)
──────
Hey guys, quick announcement before the chapter! We're hosting an original webnovel contest with a $1000 prize pool, a chance to publish your novel on WeTried, and lifetime free reading access for the top two winners!
There's also a participation prize of 500 coins for everyone participating.
If you've got a story sitting in a folder somewhere, or have been wanting to try writing one, we'd love to read it. You only need your first 10 chapters, and you have until 1st January 2027 to submit. New writers are welcome too!
Full details, rules, and how to enter here! https://wetriedtls.com/announcements/webnovel-contest
Feel free to send this to anyone you know who writes. Enjoy the chapter!
If you have any questions, please join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
──────
#58.
A little over an hour after first climbing into the saddle, Onik received permission from the instructor in charge and headed for the outdoor practice arena.
By then, Onik was already a proper rider.
He had absorbed the instructor's lessons and cautions like a sponge soaking up water.
No matter how thoroughly beginners were taught, instinct ensured they would make mistakes.
Frightened by the height, speed, and swaying motion, they kept looking down. They often pulled too hard on the reins, stressing the horse.
At the same time, they frequently shoved their feet deep into the stirrups, increasing the risk of being dragged if they fell. Or, terrified of falling, they squeezed the horse's body too tightly with their legs.
Onik made none of those mistakes, none of the survival-instinct responses that could only be overcome through experience.
It was as if he had no fear at all.
For the instructor, who had never encountered a case like this, it felt like being conned in broad daylight.
Studied beforehand? He had studied beforehand? Could anyone do this through advance study? Were these internet broadcasters lying to draw attention? The instructor still could not let go of those doubts...
‘Right. This is one hundred percent a scam!’
At last, the instructor settled on one conclusion.
Since neither the reality before them nor common sense could be denied, there was only one possible answer.
‘He must have learned from someone he knows or had a private coach. At the very least, he must have trained for a year or two. Why would I trust internet broadcasters of all people?’
Having reached that conclusion, the instructor felt at ease.
No wonder the boy could not look people in the eye.
The rest of his act was incredibly convincing, but he was still a child. He must have felt guilty about lying.
‘What a nerve. I worried for nothing!’
Still, work was work.
As the instructor led the boy and Legal Hunter's group along, they spoke to Legal Hunter in an uneasy tone.
“There are people using the practice arena already.
“I'll ask for their understanding, but even considering their rest cycles, you may have to wait for quite a while.”
The outdoor practice arena was mainly used by serious hobbyists and athletes.
Aside from occasional outdoor events, ordinary visitors usually had their riding experiences indoors.
Riding hobbyists and athletes based at a particular facility generally knew one another by sight.
The deeper they got into the sport, the more they kept seeing the same faces. It was a small world.
Many of them belonged to the upper class, so there was no harm in building connections.
For anyone hoping to compete, making connections was not optional. It was essential.
No matter how talented someone was, if they did not have the right connections, they would not even be given a chance to compete.
They could easily lose even the chance to learn.
Of course, someone with enough money or power could ignore the politics of this small world. A certain magical girl who had cast a nationwide area-of-effect taunt spell was a fine example.
In any case, Onik stood out sharply among these people.
He was surrounded by riders in neat, expensive riding clothes.
Most were riding horses they owned or had rented separately.
How could a country boy in a visitor's protective vest and a shabby black helmet made of the same material not stand out among them?
Whispers spread among the people already using the arena.
“...What's with that kid?”
“Why did he come here dressed like that? Doesn't he have any shame?”
“He looks fucking cheap.”
A few of the younger riders whispered among themselves and giggled.
It was clearly mockery, but Onik paid it no mind.
‘They’re weaker than me anyway!’
They were ordinary older boys and girls who would go straight to the afterlife in one blow if the frightening boy got angry and hit them.
The frightening boy always had to keep himself under control.
Besides, shame was something felt by people who were lacking and inferior to others.
So Onik felt no shame, either.
He had a great-grandfather and grandfather he could be proud of. He was an exemplary student who did well in school, and he had a special talent that others did not possess, even if it was ominous and dark.
It had not been long since Onik decided to think of himself as a miraculous boy.
The only thing he envied about them was their normality.
If their parents had come along, he might have envied that too... Fortunately, none of them seemed to have parents with them.
As this went on, an older rider resting to one side tilted his head.
Then, with a slow clop-clop, he guided his horse toward Onik. Sunlight glinted off his graying hair.
“Student. You're Onik, aren't you? And the person beside you is Boss Jo.”
Onik's eyes widened.
“You know me?”
“Of course I do. Watching your broadcasts has become one of my greatest pleasures lately. I suppose you could call me a fan.”
“Wow! A fan! Hello! Nice to meet you! I'm Jo Onik!”
“Ha ha. It's nice to meet you too. My name is Kang Mu-seong. It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Boss Jo. I never expected to see you in a place like this.”
“Oh, yes! I'm Jo Cheol-sang. It's a real, real pleasure to meet you too, President Kang! Ha ha!”
Kang Mu-seong looked like someone with considerable wealth, judging by his elegant clothes, glossy horse tack, and refined manner of speaking.
Legal Hunter's business instincts immediately kicked in, and his posture became far more deferential.
One of the extra benefits he had hoped to gain by bringing his young business partner into an aristocratic sport seemed ready to fall right into his hands.
“...Hmm. Why's this fellow suddenly acting like that?”
Kang soothed his horse, which had grown uneasy for some reason.
The horse had been frightened by the terrifying thing in the shape of a human boy, but it stayed where it was, trusting the rider with whom it had built a long relationship.
It also seemed to recognize that its rider and the frightening thing were on friendly terms.
Seeing one of its own kind carrying the frightening being without harm gave it a little more peace of mind.
Relying on its innate sociability, Kang's horse expected its rider to mediate or protect it if something happened.
Like a high-ranking horse in a herd settling disputes among lower-ranking horses.
Scratching the roots of his horse's mane and its withers, Kang smiled at Legal Hunter.
“It seems you're broadcasting even now?”
“Yes. Our Onik Uncle is riding a horse for the first time today, and we thought it might make fun content. Would filming be all right with you...?”
“I don't mind being filmed, but... First time? You mean this is Onik Uncle's first time riding a horse? Yet he's come out to the outdoor arena? And the instructor allowed that?”
“Ha ha ha! That's how it turned out! Would you believe it, our Onik Uncle had an uncanny talent for riding too?
“The instructor was so doubtful after seeing him ride, honestly.”
“...Huh.”
Kang's smile vanished, replaced by bewilderment.
Among the other riders close enough to hear, even more emotions spread.
Most of them were negative.
Doubt. Disbelief. Contempt.
The younger, more pampered riders in particular traded especially harsh whispers.
“First time? Are these bastards insane?”
“Just look at how he's sitting. No way this is his first time.”
“They said they're internet broadcasters.”
“Idiots. If you're going to lie, at least make it believable. Anyone who knows even a little about this will laugh at them...”
They called them whispers, but they were saying it loudly enough for everyone to hear while pretending to talk among themselves.
It was loud enough to reach not only the frightening boy, but Legal Hunter as well.
The frightening boy ignored them, but Legal Hunter's eyebrow twitched.
‘Who is it? Who's looking down on my uncle?’
Before his eyes could turn fierce, Kang made a somewhat understanding expression.
“Well. Onik is Onik. If the videos I've watched were not staged, I suppose I can understand it.”
Those words from someone who clearly subscribed to Onik and Legal Hunter's channel restored Legal Hunter's broad smile.
“Keh... That's what I'd expect from one of our subscribers! I swear on my parents' honor, there was no staging at all! If anything, this kid comes across as less impressive on screen than he is in real life! President Kang, you'll understand when you see what my uncle does today!”
“I look forward to it. I've sometimes envied the other subscribers invited by Onik and President Jo. I never thought I would get a chance to watch in person like this.”
The conversation between the two men confused everyone listening for an entirely different reason.
That included the instructor in charge, who had concluded that every bit of what Onik did was a scam.
‘No... He's saying that?’
Kang Mu-seong was a longtime figure at this riding center.
He was not a professional athlete, but he was a seasoned hobbyist. He owned a horse, had enough wealth to run a business and be considered a local notable, and had strong connections both within and beyond the association.
How could the listeners not be confused?
Someone who knew far more than the basics of riding was saying something as strange as, “Onik is Onik,” while looking half-convinced.
The student riders who had been insulting Onik clamped their mouths shut.
While the instructor asked the riders using the arena first for their understanding and worked out the rotation order, Kang lined his horse up beside Onik's and chatted with him warmly.
“Did you know that watching your broadcasts warms the hearts of people like me by reminding us of the old days?”
“The old days?”
“Yes. They remind me of when I was young, when times were hard but everyone in the neighborhood was close and kind to one another. They also often make me think of my parents back home...
“You are so respectful to your grandfather and the elderly people in your village, and you take care of their health and meals. It is such a lovely thing to see.”
“Thank you for the compliment!”
“I think I should be the one thanking you. You've made me reflect on myself a great deal. I think I ought to be a better son too...
“I felt deeply ashamed of myself for not visiting my parents' home often, using work as an excuse. How can I claim work keeps me busy when I indulge in my hobbies as much as I please?”
Kang's words reflected a new source of growth the YouTube channel 「Onik Uncle and the Hapless Chief」 had gained as it began to ride the algorithm in earnest.
The high retention rate among middle-aged and elderly viewers, ranging from people in their forties to people in their seventies, was reflected in the recommendation algorithm. It began drawing in even more viewers from those age groups.
The scenery and customs of the remote clan village where Onik lived stirred memories and nostalgia in older viewers.
It also stirred their longing for parents who had passed away or remained in their hometowns.
The sight of the only teenager in an aging village treating the elders with respect and living energetically was enough to make middle-aged and elderly viewers smile with satisfaction.
The boy was good at school too, and his other talents were extraordinary.
He could not have been closer to an ideal grandson.
The absence of his parents stirred sympathy, making that fondness and admiration run even deeper.
That was evident from a particular kind of comment that had been appearing more and more lately.
「If only... my... grandchild... were like... Onik...」
「I'm.so.jealous.of.the.warmth.between.grandfather.and.grandson......」
「Onik, I'm so proud of you for growing up upright and strong even without parents. Keep growing just as you are.」
「What a lovely boy.」
Kang's affectionate gaze toward Onik came from the same place.
#
The language parents used had a tremendous influence on the language their children used.
The more controlling and oppressive their parenting style was, the more this held true.
Among the young riders staring at Onik was a first-year high school student who had inherited an outdated word from his parents.
That old word was “entertainer.”
“Some fucking entertainer... Who the hell does he think he is, crawling in here and pulling a scam?”
The name of the boy rider glaring sharply at Onik was Kim Ju-won.
Ju-won was an aspiring athlete who had seriously studied riding with the goal of placing in show jumping.
His ultimate goal was to enter a prestigious university through a special admissions track for equestrian athletes and make “good friends” along the way.
Ju-won had not set that goal himself.
His parents had.
The boy rider's parents had said in perfect accord.
「Good friends are friends who help you in life. You don't need to associate with anything that won't help you from the start! University is about connections and prestige, in the end!」
「Connections and prestige are one and the same. If you attend a good university, good connections will naturally follow!」
「Who goes to university in this country to study? Kids who say something that stupid will graduate from good universities and still spend their lives as salaried workers under someone else, you know?」
「To make good friends, you need to go where good friends are. Looking at your grades, I don't think you'll get into a science high school or foreign language high school...
「Fine, then start learning horseback riding early. Riding is an aristocratic sport, so go make friends with aristocrats.」
「Come on, you can manage that much, can't you? Your head is too slow to even dream of getting top grades in every subject, but at least you have decent athletic ability, don't you?」
Bad adults tended to think alike wherever they went.
Just as Legal Hunter had brought Onik to the riding center hoping for good connections, Ju-won's parents had sent their son there for much the same reason.
Ju-won's parents, each of whom barely met the asset threshold for the top one percent, considered themselves middle-class people who just managed to earn a living.
They also thought connections were important for rising above the middle class.
That was what they needed for their investments and business ventures.
And they believed whatever they needed was what their son needed too, because their son lived on the benefits they provided.
Ju-won had worked hard to meet his parents' expectations.
One major effort was trying to be assigned a good horse.
Riding was seven parts horse, three parts skill.
It was a sport where the horse you rode mattered so much that people said it was seven parts horse and three parts skill.
For ordinary riders like Ju-won, who did not own their own horses, fierce competition and battles of influence were necessary to be assigned the best-tempered and most capable horses managed by the stable.
The bond between horse and rider affected results even more than the rider's skill.
So once they had been assigned a horse, riders needed to keep it for themselves. To get their own name onto the confirmed horse-rental list when entering a competition required another level of murky effort.
And yet...
‘That bastard gets Yeon-ri right away? Does that make any sense?’
Yeon-ri was not a horse just anyone could easily get to ride.
The horse was known as the best choice at this riding center for developing new riders. At one time, Ju-won had desperately wanted Yeon-ri as his assigned horse too.
His skills had improved enough that he no longer needed that.
Still, the sense of deprivation he had felt back then remained in the form of a victim complex.
He was still under stress over horse assignments even now. It was just that he was aiming for another good horse instead of Yeon-ri.
The shabby, bright-eyed entertainer boy stirred up that resentment.
That was not all.
“Wow... What's that?”
Ju-won turned to look at the young riders who were busy watching the entertainer.
Only moments ago, they had been the “good friend” candidates who joined in insulting the entertainer.
Now even they were engrossed in the feats the little entertainer brat was showing off.
“Did you see that? He hits every single thing they toss out at random?”
Every time the entertainer raised his bow, cries of amazement burst out from not only the young riders but the adults too.
Even Ju-won had to admit the entertainer's skill was unusual.
At first, he had set drink cans on the posts of the arena fence, moved at a walk, and performed close-range mounted archery. Now he was moving freely between a trot and canter, showing off medium-range mounted archery.
「Clang! Crack!」
The crisp sounds of arrows piercing metal cans one after another.
Every shot struck home.
A moment ago, he had turned his back to the target and shown a new feat, lying flat on the horse's back as he shot behind himself.
The bandit-like adult who had been helping set up the targets and camera the whole time, Legal Hunter, clenched his fist in excitement along with his wife.
“Back-Turning Rear Shot! So it can really be done!”
It was such an incredible sight that Guan Yu, Romance of the Three Kingdoms' greatest expert at being struck by arrows, would have had every hair on his body stand on end.
Ju-won, though, could not bring himself to be impressed.
Back-Turning Rear Shot? What the hell is that, you nerd?
‘And he says today is his first time riding a horse? What bullshit.’
The country boy who had been parachuted in kept letting go of the reins as he rode, but even the instructor who had initially objected had now become another spectator.
To Ju-won, the sight of that boy becoming more and more one with his horse was simply hateful.
His performance as a genius whose skills improved by the minute struck Ju-won as both impressive and pathetic.
‘Hah. I guess not just anyone can be an entertainer.’
To Ju-won, this riding center was a social stage for Western-style gentlemen and ladies, the children of the upper class, and newcomers who admired them.
Under the surface, sinister slander and competition were everyday matters, but was that not how a social stage worked in the first place?
The whole situation was absurd: a Joseon cavalryman had suddenly burst into that aristocratic social stage and was showing off his martial talent.
“Here, everyone, have a drink while you watch. Give me the cans when you're done.”
The old entertainer paired with the young entertainer handed drinks around to the instructors and riders.
He was winning people over while acquiring new targets in real time.
“You take one too, student. Here.”
“...Thank you.”
Ju-won accepted the drink and offered thanks he did not mean.
‘He must have heard me insulting him earlier. That old geezer can really stomach anything, serving me anyway.’
‘Is there any way I can screw him over?’
As Ju-won silently mulled it over, he thought he might have found a way.
The entertainer brat was happily displaying his tricks, but he was not monopolizing the wide practice arena alone.
The remaining space was being used by the other riders in turns.
Ju-won's turn to enter the arena would come soon.
A plan quickly took shape in Ju-won's mind as he glared at Onik.
The bond between horse and rider was truly important in riding.
Even skilled athletes on the international stage sometimes burst into tears because they could not handle the whims of their own horses. That was equestrianism.
‘I don't know where or how long you've studied riding, but... today must be your first time meeting Yeon-ri.
‘Yeon-ri is gentle and is only being accommodating toward you. Do you think that means it's all your own skill...?’
Ju-won knew Yeon-ri better.
It was not only Yeon-ri. After all the effort Ju-won had poured into building connections and fighting over assigned-horse allocations, he knew the relationships, temperaments, and varied histories of nearly every horse the facility managed in detail.
‘Go on, take a proper fall and buy everyone the customary fall treat!’
Letting go of the reins repeatedly while riding a horse for the first time was confidence so excessive it bordered on arrogance.
Unless he was Mongolian, he should not be doing that.
Ju-won silently plotted against him.
....
.......
Footnotes:
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
