Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

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First Kiss 1

Just because the bees had poured into the old tree didn’t mean the work was done.

One shouldn’t relax just because it looked calm.

This was only the real beginning.

So, what was I to do now?

Those little pests had gorged on Intermediate Venomous Insects, allowing them to fly this far over several days. Normally, bees have poor fuel efficiency and can perish within a day if they don’t consume honey.

It was clear that even if they were just Intermediate Venomous Insects, they’d be hungry and exhausted.

As I looked at the guards stationed at the entrance, it was also obvious they had hollow bellies.

The rapid expansion and contraction of their stomachs told me they were definitely fatigued.

Food brings friendship and kindness, after all.

What would happen if I fed them when they were this hungry?

Their guard against me would surely diminish, and they would recognize me as their master.

No, even if I wasn’t recognized as a master, that slight reduction in wariness would suffice.

‘This is all part of Spicy Fabre’s plan, isn’t it? They come flying madly, hungry, and now I provide a resting spot and food.’

I immediately ran to my father-in-law to explain what I needed.

“Father-in-law, there’s something urgently needed. Can you get it?”

“Something needed?”

“Yes! I need to feed the exhausted bees. I was thinking of honey… oh, what do they call it? That sweet substance made by squeezing the juice from such large grass…”

Uncertain about the term for sugar here, my father-in-law, who had been listening, asked.

“Are you talking about Baekdang (white sugar) or Sadang (sand sugar)?”

‘Baekdang Sadang? Baekdang must be white sugar, but what is Sadang?’

“What are Baekdang and Sadang?”

“Baekdang means something as white as snow, while Sadang refers to something red like sand.”

“Oh, so Baekdang and Sadang. I need Baekdang.”

Baekdang is white sugar, while Sadang is probably brown sugar.

People think brown sugar is good for bees because it contains minerals, but I’d say that’s absolutely false.

Molasses or brown sugar contain dextrin, a non-decomposed carbohydrate that can lead to diarrhea in bees.

And for bees with poor fuel efficiency, diarrhea is a death sentence.

If a bee starts to have diarrhea, it can die from exhaustion, so feeding must be with white sugar.

Honey would be even better, but honey is rare and expensive.

“Open the Tang Clan’s warehouse and bring out all the Baekdang!”

“Yes, Clan Head!”

The soldiers all headed to the warehouse, prepping the necessary buckets and water as they awaited the sugar.

As I took a moment, I remembered my older sister.

“Ah! What about Hua Eun Little One?”

When I inquired about my sister’s whereabouts, my father-in-law looked shocked.

“Have you only just thought of her? I told you to take her to your mother-in-law to rest. Why was she so exhausted? Or did she sprint here trailing those bees using Lightness Skill?”

I slightly nodded my head, feeling sheepish.

“Yes, she only slept for about two hours last night… and spent the remaining time running…”

“Oh my…”

A casual remark as if I was an extraordinary fool.

Just then, my grandfather suddenly asked, as if he had remembered something.

“By the way, where did Blood Poison Deputy Commander, Sub Commander, and the soldiers go? They were definitely with you, weren’t they? Don’t tell me they all fell victim to the Golden Hair Bee King!?”

The tone of his voice rose with each word.

It seemed he was feeling concerned that all the soldiers had met their end to the Golden Hair Bee King.

‘Oh no…’

At least I had thought of my sister, but the others had completely slipped my mind, so I scratched my head apologetically and replied.

“Um, I think they might be collapsed on the road… I wonder if we should go pick them up…”

“Ugh…”

“Ha ha.”

The absurd laughter of Mandok God and my father-in-law.

Soon, my father-in-law commanded the soldiers to gather the stragglers.

“Poison Mist Team, head to Mokri right away and search for the fallen members of the Poison Blood Team!”

“Yes! Clan Head! Poison Mist Team Deputy Commander Ban Yi-so will obey your orders! Let’s go!”

“““Yes! Deputy Commander!”””

A group of soldiers dashed down the mountain trail, and soon after, buckets of water and bags filled with sugar arrived.

I explained the method for preparing the feeding solution to the soldiers who brought back the sugar and water.

“Mix sixteen guan (a unit of weight) of Baekdang in two do (another unit of measure) of water to create the feeding solution.”

“Understood! Wei So-ryong! Everyone heard that, right!?”

“““Yes!”””

Adding water to the bucket and pouring in Baekdang, we created the solution.

In my previous life, this solution was given during the rainy season when bees couldn’t gather nectar, or in fall, to help them survive the winter.

What the bees made from the solution was called feeding honey.

It’s also referred to as fake honey, yet to be honest, it isn’t really fake honey.

The only difference in composition was minute, making it nearly indistinguishable.

Real honey comes from the sugars in flower nectar being mixed with enzymes in the bee’s stomach before being regurgitated, so if the bee consumes sugar and mixes it with enzymes in the same way, the composition is almost the same.

The only difference is that pure honey doesn’t contain maltose or sucrose, while feeding honey has about five percent of those components detected, with pure honey having much higher levels of free amino acids, vitamins, and minerals.

Even though maltose and sucrose aren’t preserved in the bee’s stomach long, if stored for a long time, the sugar component would disappear almost completely.

“Wei So-ryong, we’re almost ready. What should we do next?”

As I waited for them to finish, soldiers questioned what to do with the feeding solution infused with sugar.

“For now, let’s move it all to the training yard.”

When we arrived at the training yard, which could only be used by the clan members, I peeked inside from the doorway.

Given how sensitive these little guys were, I didn’t want to take any chances.

Checking the old tree within, it was indeed clear that they looked tired and listless.

‘Let’s see, they still appear worn out.’

As soon as I confirmed their condition, I filled one bucket halfway with the feeding solution and hugged it to my chest.

Upon stepping into the training yard, I heard a familiar sound.

– Woong…

It seemed they were only on guard towards the inside due to the wall and fence—though they were sluggish, I could hear the sounds of them almost rushing out of their hives, yet none dared to come forth from the entrance.

“Are you okay?”

Hearing the worried voice of Mandok God from behind me, I reassured him not to worry.

These little guys appeared too exhausted to move.

Under normal circumstances, they would’ve already swarmed out by now.

“I’ll go in since they seem too weak to move.”

“Then, keep an eye on me from behind. If anything happens, I’ll hurry in, so don’t worry and do your thing.”

“Yes, Grandfather.”

If there’s danger, surely he could void it with a spell.

Cautiously, I approached the old tree but found three of them still at the entrance, poking their heads out without moving.

They were acting like sentries.

I decided to speak to them in the softest tone I could muster.

“Okay, okay, eat up now.”

Then I placed the feeding solution at the entrance of the old tree.

Immediately, I noticed the rapidly moving antennae of the Golden Hair Bees.

Although they seemed wary, there’s always one with an insatiable appetite.

One couldn’t help themselves and began to crawl out, only to be pulled back inside by the others clutching its hind legs.

I smiled again and spoke gently.

“It’s okay, I’m giving it to you. Try it. Yum… oh, it’s sweet.”

Having said that, I took a taste for them, but reflecting on it, this was my first time trying anything sweet since my previous life.

Back in Hainan Island, I didn’t know what edible fruits were and couldn’t touch the wild ones, so the feeding solution tasted incredibly sweet to me.

Even in the Tang Clan, I hadn’t encountered sweets before; the emotions from my first chocolate pie at the army training camp rushed back.

No, it felt more like the excitement when I had black bean noodles on my first leave.

‘Why is everything so different? It’s like chocolate has descended from the heavens.’

As sweet flavors filled my mouth, I felt a spark ignite in my eyes.

It was euphoric, to say the least.

The original purpose tied to feeding the bees had dissipated from my mind, and just as I enjoyed the sweet feeding solution with two fingers, it happened.

– Slurp.

A long tentacle was abruptly inhaled into my mouth.

Turning in shock, I saw a Golden Hair Bee had swiftly approached and snuck its tongue into the bucket.

Surprised, I surveyed the others, and to my disbelief, three more Golden Hair Bees had drawn near.

It seemed they were more focused on the feeding solution than on me because I sensed their interest was lingering on what was inside the bucket.

They appeared to be terribly starving so I pushed the bucket closer toward them, saying,

“Here, yeah. Go ahead. Haha… ha…”

To my astonishment, they hesitated for a moment before all three worker bees dove headfirst into the bucket, gleefully guzzling the sugar water.

‘Yes!’

With their guard down, the bees eagerly drank from the solution.

Instantly, I rushed out, refilling the buckets of feeding solution in each hand as I hurriedly delivered it to them.

I worried if others might be wary, which was why I toiled through the task myself, but with the bees multiplying in number, I couldn’t pause.

Three became ten, ten became thirty, thirty became a hundred, and ultimately, a stunning sight unfolded outside as all the bees emerged to drink the feeding solution.

“Alright, eat well and make plenty of honey!”

‘Should I consider selling honey as a side job?’

If I could manage the bee rearing well, selling honey didn’t sound like a bad idea either.

*

The bees, who had consumed the feeding solution, quickly regained their energy.

From the following day, scenes of them collecting honey from the various poisonous blooms of Tang Clan Mountain were reported.

Perhaps since they fundamentally resembled relatively docile honeybees, they didn’t attack people even when they encountered them while foraging for nectar.

As long as there was no direct threat, that is.

Thus, it became commonplace in Tang Clan for Golden Hair Bees to buzz around the area.

“Did you say you encountered Emei Sect members along the way?”

Aside from the Golden Hair Bees, three days later, my older sister, having regained consciousness, did not remember meeting the Emei Sect people in between.

The hellish race against death seemed too harsh of a memory for her.

“Yes, there was a monk named Yeonsu? She seemed to know Hua Eun Little One…”

“Monk Yeonsu?”

“Yes, when Little One asked for water, she handed over a flask. Don’t you remember?”

“…”

My sister opened her eyes wide, as if she couldn’t believe it.

While I was in the midst of extracting her memories, voices calling my name echoed from outside.

“Wei So-ryong, you need to come outside! The Golden Hair Bees are acting strange!”

“Strange, you say?”

With my sister waking up, I hurried to return the Ogong to her embrace and stepped outside her quarters.

I had to see what was so odd.

Upon stepping outside, I spotted the warriors pointing towards the sky.

Looking up, I could see a surprisingly large number of Golden Hair Bees swirling through the air.

It was as if they were searching for something.

“What is it?”

Determined to find the cause behind their peculiar behavior, I braced myself and headed towards the training yard where the Golden Hair Bees were gathered.

Just then, a buzzing sound resonated unexpectedly from behind me.

– Whooo…

Turning to confirm the sound that had drawn nearer, before I knew it, one Golden Hair Bee flew to a halt right in front of me.

And more buzzing sounds began to add to it.

– Buooom.

– Boom.

‘What’s going on?’

In the blink of an eye, I found myself surrounded by a dozen Golden Hair Bees.

Flustered, I raised my hands in surrender.

“Hey, guys? It’s okay. It’s me. I’m not a bad guy.”

However, they seemed to be actively looking for me, and one by one, they latched onto me, launching into the air.

I felt my body slowly lift as I was carried away.

“Uh, uh-oh!”

“W-Wai So-ryong! T-Tell the Clan Head! Inform the Clan Head!”

As I rose almost instantaneously, the warriors stared in astonishment, and I saw the path ahead lead to the entrance of the Clan Head’s hall where I was tossed down right before the entrance.

The bees nudged me forward with their heads, indicating for me to go inside.

“Okay, okay. I’m going in!”

Being nudged by the bees, I stepped into the old tree and was greeted by a small amount of honeycomb they’d already constructed.

From among them, a slightly larger bee approached and hovered in front of me.

– Bzzz. Bzzz…

Hovering closely over me, it examined my face.

As it scanned left and right, it seemed as if that was some kind of signal, prompting the other bees to cling to my arms and legs as if to bind me.

Even one made its way to the back of my head.

In the end, I was utterly immobile as the queen bee crawled onto my chest and steadily began to ascend towards my face.

“Ev-everyone, calm down, what is happening here…”

Slowly climbing closer to my face, the queen bee’s mouth began to inch toward mine.

“Uh? Uh! Uh!”

Her compound eyes filled my vision, reflecting my alarmed self, and in an instant, her mouth sealed mine.

Like a wave, her tongue slipped into my mouth as something sweet poured down my throat.

It was my first kiss.