Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

Bzzzz. Bzzzz. Weeeeeeeng.

As I crawled out of the old tree with Ranghu, the worker bees of the Golden-Furred Wasp King, who had been waiting both inside and outside the hive, began to buzz their wings as if revving up an engine.

It was likely that these bees were the ones preparing to follow us for the swarm migration.

A swarm division occurs when the original queen leaves the hive, and since I was taking Ranghu out of the old tree, that must have signaled the beginning of the migration.

”About half of them, huh?”

It looked like about half of the hive was preparing to take flight.

As soon as I stepped out of the entrance of the training hall, the buzzing bees finally launched into the air all at once.

Weeeeng. Weeeeng.

The bees that had been waiting outside the tree and those pouring out from the entrance swarmed into the sky, momentarily darkening the space around me.

Soon, the airborne bees filled the air above me, swirling in a circular motion with me at the center.

The sky became busy with their movement, and the hum of their wings completely filled my ears.

Bzzzz. Weeeeng.

”I need to move quickly.”

Confirming that all the bees following us had taken off, I rushed toward the exit of the training hall.

Swarm migrations needed to be completed as quickly as possible.

Worker bees leave their original hive with a certain amount of honey stored in their bodies, but if too much time passes while searching for a new home, they digest all of it.

Until they find a new nest, build a hive with wax, and gather fresh nectar, they have to survive on the honey they carried from their old home. The faster they settled, the better.

But before I even got halfway across the training hall, the bees suddenly started clinging to my body one by one.

The swirling swarm around me began diving straight toward me.

Bzzzz! Bzzz!

”H-Hey, hold on a second—!”

Of course, they weren’t attacking me.

When swarming, bees have a tendency to land wherever the queen settles. «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» Since Ranghu was on my shoulder, they were all gathering on me.

One by one, they latched onto me until I was entirely covered in bees.

I could barely wiggle my hand free from the massive cluster of buzzing insects.

At first, I was slightly panicked by the sheer number of them surrounding me, but then an amusing thought hit me.

This scene...

This was something I had dreamed of in my past life.

”Gyaaaaah! Is this... a bee beard!?”

In my previous life, bee beards had been a staple in any video featuring bees.

The idea was simple: you trap a queen bee inside a small container and hang it around your neck. Since worker bees instinctively gather around the queen, they cover your body, creating the illusion of a beard made of bees.

I had always wanted to experience it at least once.

A beard made of bees, an entire swarm clinging to my body—what man wouldn’t want to try that at least once?

But this...

This wasn’t just a bee beard. This was a bee tomb.

A massive tomb of bees.

And yet, even as they pressed against me, I couldn’t help but feel strangely content.

Not just a bee beard, but an entire bee tomb... If I had to die, this would be the perfect way to go.

”Today, I check off another item from my bucket list. I could die happy now...”

I would have loved to stay like this a little longer, but the warmth generated by the sheer number of bees was making me sweat, and more importantly, we needed to find a home.

Once I got closer to Ranghu and Nanghu, I could experience the bee tomb again whenever I wanted.

I wasn’t sure how that bonding process would go, but for now, finding a new home took priority.

”Ranghu! Tell them to fly off! We need to find a new nest first!”

Struggling amidst the buzzing mass, I managed to shout toward where Ranghu was likely positioned.

Gradually, the weight on me began to lessen.

As the bees peeled away, I finally regained movement and saw Ranghu hovering in place nearby.

It seemed like she had taken to the air to shake off the workers clinging to her. Her massive body fluttered its tiny wings with an almost pitiful intensity.

”Yeah, that works too.”

It must’ve been tough on her, but she had slimmed down after the swarm migration.

Barely making it past the training hall, I finally reached the gathered warriors outside. They stood frozen, clearly hesitant to approach due to the sheer number of bees.

”S-So-ryong-nim! Are you alright!?”

The one who stepped forward from the crowd of warriors was Gu Pae, the commander of the Venom Blood Squad.

Since the Golden-Furred Wasp King fell under their jurisdiction, he had likely come to investigate the unusual situation.

”Yes, I’m fine. But the bees need a new home. Is there another hollow tree nearby?”

”Are they abandoning their old hive?”

”No, a new queen was born, so the swarm split into two.”

”Oh! So now there are two colonies of Golden-Furred Wasp Kings?”

”That’s right.”

”Ooooh! Then I will summon the clan’s warriors immediately to help find a new hive!”

—Fweeeeeee!

The piercing whistle of the Tang Clan’s emergency signal soared through the air, summoning reinforcements.

Soon, people began to gather in response to the alarm.

”What’s happening? Why are the Golden-Furred Wasp Kings acting like this!?”

Grandfather Mandok Shingun arrived at a brisk pace, his voice full of concern.

After I explained the situation, his expression brightened with excitement.

”Ohhh, so the swarm has split into two?”

”Yes, Grandfather.”

”Then of course, we must find them a new home. Everyone, move quickly!”

”Yes, Supreme Clan Leader!”

With resounding cries, the Tang Clan warriors scattered across the mountains, searching for a suitable home for the new colony of Golden-Furred Wasp Kings.

***

At the front of the old tree, Gu Pae, the commander of the Venom Blood Squad, approached and asked,

”How about this spot?”

It was a small valley within the Tang Clan’s mountain estate.

Technically, not just Tang Mountain, but the entire surrounding mountain range belonged to the clan. While this location was a bit far from the main buildings, it wasn’t a bad spot overall.

I turned to look at Ranghu. Perched on my shoulder, she quickly shook her head.

Bzzzz!

That was a hard no.

”Seems like it’s too small. I agree, it’s definitely too cramped.”

The location wasn’t bad, but the tree itself was far too small compared to their previous hive.

With such a limited space, they wouldn’t be able to expand their colony properly, so it made sense that Ranghu immediately rejected it.

Seeing this, Gu Pae’s voice took on an apologetic tone.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

”We don’t have any more old trees... What should we do?”

There was a good reason for his concern.

We had already checked all three of the large, hollow trees in Tang Mountain.

And none of them were suitable as a new hive.

Honestly, it wasn’t surprising—finding a centuries-old tree with a naturally hollowed-out interior was a rare occurrence in the first place.

Bzzz. Bzzzz.

As we were discussing, another bee clung to my body.

Seeing that, I made a quick decision and spoke while flying back toward the clan estate.

”Let’s head back. Searching in the mountains seems impossible.”

”Understood, So-ryong-nim! Everyone, move out!”

”Yes, Commander!”

Because the swarm had happened unexpectedly, we hadn’t had time to prepare a suitable new home.

We had sent warriors to scour every inch of Tang Mountain, but there was no proper location to be found.

As Ranghu, exhausted, settled onto my body, I flew back toward the clan grounds, thinking of an alternative.

If we can’t find an old tree, what about... rock honeycombs?

Wild bees typically build their hives in two places:

Inside trees (wood honeycombs).Inside rock crevices (stone honeycombs).If the Golden-Furred Wasp King possessed the traits of both honeybees and bumblebees, then they should be capable of making a hive in a rocky crevice instead of a tree. Since we couldn’t find a hollow tree, a rock crevice seemed like the next best option.

But... Tang Mountain isn’t a rocky mountain.

That was the problem.

Even if it was a rocky terrain, finding a large enough crevice for an entire colony wouldn’t be easy.

The only remaining option was a cave.

But Tang Mountain had only one cave.

And that was Pavilion of Ten Thousand Poisons.

The only sizable cave on the entire mountain, large enough for the swarm to nest comfortably.

It was the perfect location.

But there was one massive problem—it was completely off-limits.

If it were up to me, I’d give them permission immediately, but Mandokjeon was one of the most critical locations in the entire Tang Clan.

No way could I ask them to vacate it just to raise bees.

”If I suggest Mandokjeon, everyone’s going to have a heart attack... How did they manage beekeeping in my past life again?”

As I was lost in thought, I left the valley behind and reached a ridgeline with an open view of the surroundings.

The Golden-Furred Wasp Kings buzzed loudly above me, still searching for a suitable nest.

I scanned the landscape, looking for a place that could serve as their new home.

”It needs to be high, large, and made of wood...”

And then, suddenly, my eyes locked onto the perfect spot.

”Tall, wooden, and spacious...”

It met all the criteria I had in mind.

”Found it!”

The warriors trailing behind me turned to look at me in surprise, and Gu Pae stepped forward with excitement.

”So-ryong-nim, did you find a place!?”

”Yes. I should have noticed earlier—I’ve been an idiot.”

”Huh? You mean the perfect spot was nearby?”

”Yeah, extremely close. Let’s go!”

”W-Wait, So-ryong-nim!”

Ignoring Gu Pae’s questions, I bolted toward the Tang Clan estate.

It was better to claim the spot first before asking for permission—if I asked, there was a chance they might refuse.

‘If I ask them first and they say no, it’ll be a disaster.’

With Ranghu on my shoulder, I sprinted along the ridgeline, quickly reaching the Tang Clan grounds.

I vaulted over the estate’s outer wall and landed gracefully inside.

Right at that moment, I ran into Tang Hwa-eun, Seol, and the siblings Gungbong and Eunbong, who were strolling nearby.

”Whoa, you scared me.”

”So-ryong.”

The two women quickly regained their composure and asked where I was going.

”So-ryong! Did you find a home for the Golden-Furred Wasp Kings yet?”

”Ryong, where are you off to? Oh, wait—you haven’t found a place yet, have you? The queen’s still on your shoulder.”

”Actually, I did find one. I was just about to settle them in.”

”Huh? You found a place? Where?”

”So-ryong, can we come watch?”

Both Hwa-eun and Seol perked up with curiosity.

I hesitated for a moment, then casually glanced at my target before answering.

”It’s over there. Sure, you can come along.”

Bzzzz. Bzzzz.

The sound of the bees swarming closely behind me filled the air.

Without waiting for a response, I launched into the air with qigong movement and dashed toward my destination.

”So-ryong, wait for us!”

”Ryong, slow down!”

The voices of Seol-nui and Hwa-eun followed from behind, but I was already weaving between the buildings of the estate, finally stopping in front of my chosen site.

Right in front of the large pond inside the Tang Clan’s estate.

”We’re here.”

Bzzzz.

Ranghu tilted her head in confusion, clearly wondering where the hive was supposed to be.

She seemed to be asking, “Where’s the tree?”

I calmly walked up to the structure and tapped on it with my knuckles.

Knock, knock.

”This place is made entirely of wood, it’s tall, and it’s huge. Can’t this work?”

Bzzz?

Ranghu lifted her head and stared at the structure I was tapping.

And at that moment—

Hwa-eun and Seol finally caught up.

Hwa-eun glanced around the area before her eyes landed on the building I was touching.

Then her face went pale.

”S-So-ryong, no way. It’s not that, is it?”

She really hoped it wasn’t what she was thinking.

Unfortunately, it was exactly what she was thinking.

A five-story wooden pavilion standing tall by the pond.

Completely made of wood, hollow on the inside, elevated, and spacious.

Wasn’t it just a giant, empty tree waiting to be used?

”T-That’s the five-story pavilion, Dokhwa-ru, where we entertain guests...”

”Oh, really? Ahaha...”

Right at that moment—

Bzzzzzz.

Ranghu took off from my shoulder, soared to the top of the five-story pavilion, and zipped through one of the open windows.

Immediately, the entire swarm of Golden-Furred Wasp Kings followed suit, vanishing inside.

I could feel Hwa-eun’s disbelieving stare burning into me.

‘Well... If they need another pavilion, they can just build one, right?’

At least I hadn’t touched Pavilion of Ten Thousand Poisons.

And with that, the swarm migration was officially complete.