Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

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Chapter 6: The Whisper of Venomous Insects

“Companion Venomous Insects?”

The atmosphere shifted favorably.

My casual remark sent ripples through the Southern Barbarian Beast Palace.

The Beast Palace Lord and the Elders were nodding with expressions that mixed admiration and concern.

“Does that mean you see venomous insects as lifelong partners? In our Beast Palace, no one uses the term ‘partner’ for beasts… How can a Central Plains person… ”

“Isn’t that a remarkable mindset? I want our disciples in the main palace to learn from this. These days, some have treated beasts as mere servants, which is quite troubling. How can someone like this end up in the Tang Clan…?”

“To think he’s a son-in-law of the Tang Clan—what a pity. He’d really fit well with us at the Beast Palace.”

“When the Black Wolf mentioned that the Junior Hero was held by a leash, I thought it was bizarre. But if that leash was held by the Lord and meant a partner, does that mean they are each other’s masters? Such profound meaning?”

‘No, dear teacher, that’s a misunderstanding!’

There seemed to be some confusion, but the result turned out to be positive.

As I proved my affinity for animals, the animal enthusiasts recognized me as one of their own.

Reptiles and insects were my specialty, but being classified under the massive category of beasts and animals made it all the more fitting.

‘Hey, is it the Venomous Insect world? Brother. If it’s the Venomous Insect world, that makes total sense since we’re of the same kind!’

I felt like I could almost hear their inner thoughts.

And perhaps because I had proven to be one of them?

The palace lord decisively made a quick resolution.

Understanding that there’s no need to engage in needless fights and cause injuries or death, the command was issued swiftly.

“If a Junior Hero refers to his own raised creatures as partners, then he surely understands the weight of caring for venomous insects. If our advice comes from such a heart, it means it’s truly for our benefit.

Didn’t they say the Ants would move at dawn? Even if you say you can surely wipe them out, it’s best to avoid unnecessary damage if possible.

Buildings can be rebuilt, but people and beasts cannot return.”

“Gather everyone in the palace before the Beast Palace Lord! Prepare for evacuation!”

At the lord’s words, even the Elders, who had previously voiced differing opinions, nodded in agreement.

Even the most belligerent lady sent me a message.

[Junior Hero, I’m sorry. I didn’t know you were such a sincere person. I apologize for my slip of the tongue.]

She spoke with a hint of respect in her eyes.

Then came the resounding replies from the Elders.

“We will obey the command. Palace Lord!”

“Yes! Palace Lord!”

As soon as the Palace Lord’s command was issued, the large entrance to the Beast Palace swung open wide, and one Elder dashed out with a ram’s horn in hand.

A booming blast from the horn began to resonate throughout the entrance.

– Buuuuuuum.

The deep, echoing sound vibrated through the Beast Palace as it flowed out.

The darkened area outside became illuminated as all the people and beasts inside rushed towards the entrance of the palace, holding lanterns tightly.

From leopards to eagles, owls, bears, wolves, monkeys, wild boars, and deer.

Quite a variety of beasts crowded with the humans.

As both people and beasts raced towards the entrance, the Beast Palace Lord stepped forward, voicing his thoughts with strength behind his words.

“All members of the Beast Palace and all beasts prepare for evacuation! This is merely a temporary retreat until the Ants withdraw, so gather your rations and simple clothing and reconvene here in one hour!”

A succinct and to-the-point message.

In response to the lord’s proclamation, the gathered individuals shouted in unison.

“”Understood, Palace Lord!””

Without delay, they began to disperse rapidly to prepare for evacuation.

Thus, the preparations commenced, and as the Palace Lord turned to return to the Inner Palace, questions poured in.

“How did you raise the Centipedes, Lizards, and the Lord? I thought that beasts couldn’t understand human speech?”

“I’ve tried raising Lizards in the main palace several times, but all ended in failure. Amazing!”

Clearly, all of them were sincere animal lovers, intrigued by the new kind of creatures they saw.

However, before I could respond, the Palace Lord stepped up to calm the ruckus.

“It’s urgent now, so everyone help with the evacuation. We will discuss matters with the Junior Hero later.”

“Ahem… Understood, Palace Lord.”

“Understood.”

Immediately, the Elders hurried outside the palace with slightly disappointed expressions to assist with the evacuation.

*

Knowing that we had informed the Southern Barbarian Beast Palace of the approaching threat, the palace promised to express their gratitude with a gift.

However, since preparations were chaotic, they decided to send an envoy to the Tang Clan later on.

“Normally, it’s fitting to treat you lavishly and grant a great reward. However, under the current circumstances, I’ll send someone to the Tang Clan later to personally convey my thanks. I really do apologize.”

“It’s just doing what one ought to do…”

“Oh, are we to make the Southern Barbarian Beast Palace seem lesser than mere beasts who repay kindness!?”

‘I was just tactfully declining, you know.’

“Then, we will accept it graciously.”

“Then, that’s settled.”

In any case, it seemed right to graciously accept what they offered.

Feigning an understanding, I headed towards the Beast Palace entrance.

It was time for us to gradually make our exit.

“Well then, we will take our leave now.”

“We’ll see you to the entrance.”

Though the Southern Barbarian Beast Palace was in a frenzy preparing for evacuation, the Palace Lord and a few Elders insisted on escorting us to the entrance.

We walked along with them towards the Beast Palace entrance we had just come through.

“Ah, so this is the Blue-Spotted Centipede?”

“Yes, the Lizards don’t have a specific name in the Central Plains, so we call them Ice Lizards. They emit cold air, you know?”

“They emit cold? They must be Spirit Beasts!? How I envy that! It sounds very appealing since it resembles my name.”

As we headed towards the entrance, the lady who had been the most aggressive earlier was tagging along, asking all sorts of questions.

I later realized that she was an Elder and the Palace Lord’s daughter, named Seolja (Snow Leopard).

Her name meant ‘snow leopard’ in our language, though her dark complexion made ‘Black Leopard’ suit her better.

The difference in surname stems from their custom of using animal nicknames instead of real names.

Truly, these were people deeply connected to animals.

I thought I understood, as I had personally bestowed the nickname Spicy Fabre in my past life.

“Yes, and the Lord is the Human-faced Spider. She appears as Hua Eun because that’s the form deemed most beautiful by one who absorbs Yang Energy.”

“Oh my! Then, Hua Eun the Daughter must be very fortunate!”

“Yes, well…”

My older sister blushed at Seolja’s envious gaze.

I understood why she would feel embarrassed.

Every time the Yo-hwa absorbed Yang from me, it indirectly conveyed that I found my sister to be the most beautiful, which meant I was essentially confessing every day.

As we chatted with Seolja and neared the entrance of the Beast Palace—

Just as I was about to say goodbye, a chilling roar, reminiscent of a beast from a zoo in my past life, echoed.

– Pwooo! Pwooo!

“J-Junior Hero, if it’s about birthing young, please consider… Is that… an Elephant!?”

When they say ‘Elephant,’ they refer to elephants in the Central Plains.

‘Is Brother Elephant here?’

I had heard before that Asian elephants once roamed the Central Plains, and even in the Southern Barbarian region, wild elephants sometimes appeared in my former life, so it wasn’t entirely surprising. Yet, was it one I knew?

At the elephant’s trumpeting, Seolja was the first to react.

She dashed ahead, leaving us behind.

However, for some reason, she froze a few steps forward.

When she finally got a grip, she looked up at the hill, her face blank, and soon, two massive elephants peeked down from above.

– Thud… Thud… Thud…

The two giant elephants emerged under the moonlight.

The majestic presence of the rulers in the animal kingdom, Brother Elephant.

But upon closer inspection, the elephants looked far from normal.

In the moonlight, their backs and rumps were crawling with swarms of bright red ants.

– Swaaa!

“S-Swarmed!”

Already covered in ants that had bitten into them, the elephants rushed towards us, whining for help but collapsed right near the entrance.

– Thud!

– Pwooo!

The last twist of their trunks reaching out for help toward us.

But instead, they ended up shredded, turning into meatballs.

A real-time display of their bones becoming exposed.

Brother Elephant likely didn’t imagine he would meet such a grotesque end so soon; the Beast Palace people widened their eyes in horror.

“Th-the Elephant!”

“The Elephant’s gone in one go!”

“The Junior Hero’s words were true…”

Yet, it wasn’t the time to be in shock.

“We must hurry! We don’t know what the Ants will do next, so we need to evacuate immediately!”

The ones following the elephants weren’t many, so the entrance hadn’t completely blocked off yet.

We had to hurry before their advance gathered momentum, but upon seeing the Palace Lord pointing to the hill, a grim silence fell over him.

“Seems we’re late…”

– Swaaa!

At the lord’s pointed finger.

The main force of the ants pouring down from the hill had completely blocked off the entrance to the Beast Palace.

*

“This is serious…”

“Does this mean we have to fight…?”

“But the Elephant… he fell all at once…”

As the entrance was thoroughly blocked, even the Elders who had been advocating for a fight wore expressions of alarm.

Witnessing the strongest of beasts, Brother Elephant, being taken down so abruptly, seemed to instill fear into their hearts.

The Southern Barbarian Beast Palace is a place where the martial arts mimic animals or are practiced alongside them.

And now witnessing the animal kingdom’s strongest being effortlessly defeated felt akin to a crushing blow.

My older sister shared a grave expression.

“What should we do, So-ryong? The Venomous Insect Team outside…”

“The Ants’ terror—no, they must have retreated across the river.”

“That makes sense?”

She looked toward the entrance with a puzzled expression.

She was worried about the Venomous Insect Team, but Gu Pae and the other warriors were stationed by the riverside, so if things were perilous, they would have crossed over.

The worry was now purely ours.

“How can we get out of here…”

It was in that moment of contemplation.

– Ksss!

A familiar voice rang out.

Turning my head, I saw Yo-hwa scaling the cliff rapidly, looking our way.

‘Right! Yo-hwa was here! There are ways to survive even when everything seems lost!’

Surely, with Yo-hwa weaving her webs or carrying me, my sister and I could escape.

Just as I began to celebrate that there was a glimmer of hope, I noticed my sister’s distressed expression.

‘What’s wrong?’

With a potential escape route opening up, my sister looked even more flustered than before. Turning my gaze in the opposite direction, I found the Beast Palace Lord and the Elders wearing awkward expressions.

And upon meeting their eyes, they quickly averted their gaze.

Thinking back, this was an incredibly uncomfortable situation.

We might have to leave all of them behind, my sister and I escaping alone.

Even if we were to assist Yo-hwa by threading her webs for her to scale the cliff, how many lives could we save of the people and beasts in the Beast Palace before those ants moved again?

Should we abandon the animals to save ourselves, how many would endorse that idea?

‘Even if we survive, it’s a situation that would haunt us for the rest of our lives. What to do?’

At the end of the long corridor, the ants gnawed away at the bones of the elephants.

As I blankly stared at them, memories of potential solutions from my past life bubbled up.

Then, when the clouds blocked the moonlight, enveloping everything in darkness momentarily, a memory from Fabre’s encyclopedia flicked through my mind.

‘That’s right! There’s a way to save them all!’

I approached the creatures that resembled my kind for the first time in this realm.

“Um, Palace Lord.”

And I received calm responses.

“Junior Hero, do not worry about us and make your escape soon. You have fulfilled your obligations to us.”

“Indeed. Junior Hero, in the world of beasts, it is only natural to eat or be eaten. The Southern Barbarian Beast Palace is part of that world; if we cannot prevail against them, then we will merely be devoured.”

They say no bad person loves animals?

Smiling, I inquired.

“Everyone, there is a way for us all to survive. Would you care to listen?”

It seemed there might be a chance for all of us to escape.

I might have to endure some hardship, but it felt possible.