Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

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Episode 165: Fabre in the Four Heavenly Houses

“Long, where are you suddenly off to!? And why are you carrying Hwa-yang! You could get poisoned again! Hua Eun! Hua Eun! Look after So-ryong!”

The scolding from Sister Seol pierced through my back like the jab of a memorized lesson.

She wasn’t even a member of the Tang Clan…

Moreover, she even called out to Hwa-yang, who was playing with Bin, Seol-i, and others inside the cabin.

It’s said that nothing is more pathetic than snitching, and it seemed she was trying to do just that to Hwa Eun.

‘Sister Seol, I believed in you… Why…’

I felt a slight sense of betrayal, but I guess it was justified.

If I touch Hwa-yang, I’ll get poisoned. Now sprinting towards the burning mountains, it seemed like Seol’s nagging was destined to follow me forever.

However, even if I got poisoned and collapsed from spewing flames, and had to hear Hwa Eun’s scolding later, how could a man like spicy Fabre endure that?

This was a golden opportunity to figure out exactly what kind of tadpole Hwa-yang was. I had to seize it at all costs.

Right now, Hwa-yang was like a scratch-off lottery ticket waiting to be scratched.

I needed to scratch it quickly since such a golden chance might not come again.

Hwa-yang’s food wasn’t a cheap snack like Chao or Bin; it was fire itself.

No doubt that generating this scale of flames would cost quite a bit.

‘So even if it’s not fire, I still can’t just ignore it.’

Sister Seol seemed worried about my well-being, but I hadn’t recklessly touched Hwa-yang.

I was a Pambr user; would I touch it carelessly?

I had my reasons for trying this out.

With Seol-i, Bin, and Dong-i around, though I might struggle a bit, I was confident I’d find an antidote.

Having already gone through it once, I thought maybe I’d built up some resistance.

Thus, ignoring the piercing cries and that scolding gaze, I quickly activated my Lightness Skill and crossed the waterway Bin had opened, heading down the mountain.

One of the four spots where the fire started was right up ahead, and the entire mountain was ablaze like a giant bonfire.

The fierce heat made it hard to get close, so I figured I’d have to nibble away at the edges to feed Hwa-yang.

‘I’ll have to peel it back cautiously like an apple skin.’

Formulating my plan, I reached the base of the mountain where the fire was raging, and my brother, the Black Dragon, looked at me with shock as I arrived.

“So-ryong! Why did you come closer to such danger? Huh? And what’s that? Is there another poisonous creature?”

With the flames reaching high, everyone else had already shown their faces, but Hwa-yang, who had stayed in the cabin’s water barrel, was new to him.

“Yes, it’s my other venom. I’m going to feed this guy.”

“Feed?”

When he blinked at the mention of food, I felt a struggle from my grasp.

Unable to hold back in front of a massive meal, Hwa-yang was squirming and trying to leap forward.

“Alright! Alright! Let’s go!”

I calmed Hwa-yang down, turning its mouth toward me before pushing it forward.

As I slowly approached the flames, the massive blaze from the tree swirled and rushed into Hwa-yang’s mouth.

Suddenly, I heard my brother’s astonished shout behind me.

“So-ryong! That flame is too fierce… Huh! Are you feeding… fire?”

The enormous blaze engulfing the tree disappeared in an instant into Hwa-yang, leaving my brother in disbelief.

I, too, was somewhat surprised at the sight, but how astonished must my brother be right now?

What surprised me was how different Hwa-yang looked while consuming the fire now that its front and back legs had grown.

When it had no legs it had sucked the flames up thinly, almost like a straw, but now, like a giant vacuum cleaner, it was gulping down the flames instantly.

‘Wow… Crazy.’

As I dazedly stared at this spectacle, Hwa-yang turned to look at me.

With a swish of its tail, it slapped my cheek.

Slap. Slap.

“Ugh! O-okay, I got it! I understand.”

Realizing it was urging me to hurry up and provide more food, I snapped back to attention.

Despite getting smacked, I felt quite happy about this.

The tail was incredibly soft and felt like it was hugging my cheeks; who else in this world besides me had gotten slapped by the tail of a giant tadpole?

‘It hurt, but I’m happy…’

I grinned and quickly held Hwa-yang forward, moving sideways.

What unfolded before me was a fantastic scene.

Every time I moved my feet or changed positions, nearby embers and great flames were sucked into Hwa-yang’s mouth.

Like a vacuum cleaner, flames from the surroundings were being devoured by Hwa-yang, but for some reason, it seemed unsatisfied, looking at me reproachfully as if urging me to hurry.

“I’m hurrying, but this isn’t easy, Hwa-yang.”

Though Hwa-yang insisted we speed up, this was no simple task.

Even with the mountains ablaze, flames morphed into tiny ones scattered around, so to feed Hwa-yang by nibbling at the borders, I had to go find each one individually.

While Hwa-yang swallowed flames in one gulp, the scattered ones were not so cooperative.

Though the flames at the front absorbed heat along with them, I barely felt more than a sauna here; the flames nearby were much more intense.

If I accidentally stepped a little too far inward, I’d feel like I’d fallen into a forge.

Therefore, as I cautiously scoped out my surroundings, I couldn’t help but take my time, and it seemed that Hwa-yang was getting impatient.

“I think we need to change our approach a bit.”

It looked like I had to think up another strategy.

If I continued like this, I wouldn’t be able to satisfy Hwa-yang.

And besides, the flames wouldn’t last forever, so I had to feed it quickly.

Once the trees were burnt down, the wildfire would die out too.

‘Is there any other way?’

As I paused and contemplated the blazing mountain, staring blankly at the intense center of the flame, I heard my brother’s voice from behind.

“Long! Don’t come over here!”

“Hua Eun! Come back, it’s dangerous!”

Hua Eun and Sister Seol had arrived behind me, calling out in alarm.

That’s when I noticed Sister Seol’s outfit.

No, it was actually the leopard skin draped over her shoulder and head that caught my eye.

Typically, she dressed in a mini skirt and short sleeves, but due to the flames, she must have put on the leather.

The merging image of her fur coat with the flaming heart struck my mind.

‘Should I take a risk? After all, it’s high risk, high return, right?’

I dashed towards her and asked to borrow the leather, but Hwa Eun and Sister Seol grabbed me from both sides, dragging me back.

“Sister Seol! Can you lend me that?”

“Don’t even think about saying something else!”

“So-ryong, we need to talk for a moment.”

As they dragged me back, I explained that this might be my only chance.

“P-please calm down and listen to me. If we don’t do anything now, Hwa-yang might not reach maturity.”

“Huh? What do you mean by that?”

“Why is that?”

“Um, because…”

While being dragged, I desperately explained the situation, and after a moment in deep thought, they nodded.

“I get what you mean, but isn’t it too dangerous?”

“That’s right. So-ryong, it’s too risky!”

But it seemed they couldn’t shake off their worried feelings.

Seeing how fierce the flames were, they must have been concerned about my safety.

But surely, I wouldn’t back down?

This man, Fabre, knows no surrender.

“I will do everything to ensure safety. I won’t get hurt. Please! Please! Please, Hua Eun! Sister Seol!”

“Ah, no, just talk without hugging, So-ryong. No, don’t put your hands around my waist. N-no, ugh…”

“At this rate, you can’t deny me… No, what about on your shoulder…”

Initially resolute against me, when I made a desperate plea like a husband before buying a game console, they eventually nodded.

While I rubbed Sister Seol’s shoulder and gripped Hua Eun’s waist, it seemed they didn’t mind.

Finally, Sister Seol handed me the leather she had draped over her.

“But what are you going to use this for?”

At her question, I took the leather and rushed toward the nearby waterway.

Then I soaked the fur in water before flipping it over my body.

And my next move was to place Hwa-yang on my head and leap into the flames.

“This is what I’m planning to do.”

“So-ryong!”

“So-ryong! If you come back, I won’t let you off!”

It seemed they would never allow this decision, so I charged ahead; indeed, I heard their furious shouts from behind.

But there was no turning back.

Even if they hit me later, a man had to act now.

To allow Hwa-yang to devour as much fire as possible, I needed to approach the blazing heart, and this was the only way to do so.

The events that followed would be handled by the other me from another universe.

‘Other me from a parallel universe, please help!’

Whirr!

Blazing flames above me were being sucked into Hwa-yang’s mouth, and I set my direction towards the valley flowing down the mountain.

Even though I wore a water-soaked coat, I would surely burn to death on the way.

No matter how much water I soaked into the fur, it would eventually evaporate, so I intended to keep soaking it as I headed toward the heart of the flames.

After briefly letting Hwa-yang consume the flames, I quickly reached the valley and dipped my feet in the water, which felt like a hot spring.

‘Fire is no joke.’

The temperature of the blazing fire warmed the shallow water.

Once again, I soaked the fur in the water and shot upwards, following the river.

Sparks and embers rained down like glittering waterfalls from the burning mountain.

The burning flames made my eyes sting.

I continued climbing up the mountain along the river for quite some time.

“Is this the end? The summit is still so far!”

However, Hwa-yang and I were unable to reach our desired heart of the flames.

Arriving at the end of the valley, we found the start of the river too far from the center of the flames.

“Getting to the heart seems impossible?”

For the time being, while Hwa-yang devoured the flames and turned the area into a safety zone, without a waterway present, I couldn’t move upwards.

Regrettably, it seemed there was nothing more I could do.

I lowered Hwa-yang from my head and looked into its eyes.

“Hwa-yang, we tried our best, but this is our limit. So… Aaaack!?”

Just as I was about to say we should consume a bit more and head back…

I noticed the remaining tail of Hwa-yang.

It wasn’t cut off; it had shortened due to the flames it had consumed on our way up.

The words escaping my mouth changed without me realizing.

“Right, just because a person tries doesn’t mean it ends there; results are what count! So what if I die once or twice?”

Though I had indeed died once, I suddenly found myself boasting confidently.

Squatting beside the bubbling spring, I thought about what to do.

It was at that moment.

Sizzle?

A voice echoed in my head asking where Chao’s dad was.

Looking up at the sky, I saw Chao flying overhead, seeking me.

‘Yes!’

In that instant, enlightenment dawned upon me.

Among all the roaring fires, I took note that the most powerful flames were at the very peak.

To feed as much as possible, I thought about sucking flames from the tip of the fiery peak.

“Hwa-yang, let’s devour as many of the flames around us as we can!”

I had to draw Chao here, so I urged Hwa-yang to consume surrounding flames, hoping to bring Chao down with us.

‘Chao! Dad’s here! Come to me!’

As Chao spotted us, she descended through the flames, and immediately began to scold me.

Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzles!

Her nagging sounded like it was inherited from Hwa Eun.

I calmed Chao down and quickly explained my plan to her.

‘Chao, please calm down and hear me out. Hwa-yang has been starving for ten years, and this may be our only chance. We have to help Hwa-yang…’

Showing Chao the scenes from my mind, her antennas perked up.

She nodded in response, as if to ask if we would really do this.

Sizzle?

The plan I demonstrated in my mind was to cut the fur coat from Sister Seol to make a strap.

Then I would secure myself to the front part of Chao’s body.

And I would leap into the sky, extending Hwa-yang forward as I fell like a comet toward the blazing peak of the mountain.

As Hwa-yang consumed the flames, it would also absorb the heat, and Chao would be safe behind it, allowing us to charge directly to the fiery summit.

Chao sent feelings of disbelief at my outrageous suggestion.

‘Chao, you’re my dearest daughter; of course, you’ll fulfill your dad’s wish, right?’

Sizzle?

With my words, we were soon to plummet together from the sky.

“Alright, let’s go!”

We charged off the summit of the raging mountain with Hwa-yang held out before us like a meteor shower.

The moment Hwa-yang reached the tip of the flames…

The previously burning mountain’s flames whirled like a giant vortex and were sucked into Hwa-yang’s mouth.

Kuwahwa!

Like a massive fiery black hole, or rather, a red hole.

And at that moment when all the flames were swallowed up and vanished…

We plunged into the mountain’s summit, now piled high with ashes.

Thud!

“Is everyone okay!?”

Sizzle!

The fire and heat had all been consumed, and with Chao slowing down at the end, we wouldn’t suffer any damage from the fall or the flames.

Checking in case anyone was hurt, I received a reassuring answer from Chao saying she was fine.

As the ashes that rose up in the shock scattered in the wind, we finally revealed Hwa-yang’s form amidst the ashes.

It was its matured form.

‘Kyaa… Huh!?”

But Hwa-yang looked a bit strange.

It was cute, but perhaps too cute to the point of being suspicious?

‘Could it be… a dud lottery ticket?’

Hwa-yang lacked a bit of dignity.