Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

The moment she said “Junior Sister,” my mind went completely blank.

I quickly snapped back to my senses and repeated,

“Junior Sister?”

‘Sister Seol was moved to act... because of my Junior Sister? But why?’

I couldn’t understand why she was suddenly being brought up here.

Maybe Sister Seol read the confusion and disbelief on my face, because she let out a soft sigh and continued.

“So-ryong, you haven’t noticed, but that woman’s already half in love with you. No—she’s completely in, but maybe she hasn’t realized it herself yet.”

Suddenly claiming that my Junior Sister had already half-fallen for me—or no, completely fallen for me.

That statement was so out of nowhere, I instinctively denied it.

“Come on, no way. She’s my Junior Sister.”

She was just my Junior Sister, someone I treated kindly because I inherited our father’s martial arts and felt responsible, and I only acted socially toward her thinking I might meet our teacher or others they left behind one day.

Not to mention, I didn’t see even the slightest trace of romantic feelings from her.

At least, from my perspective.

And martial siblings always treated each other like real family.

It was no different from my bond with Sister Seol.

Sure, within martial sects it wasn’t unusual for senior and junior martial siblings to get married—even if adopted—but in my case, there was an age gap of several hundred years.

She probably saw me as a baby, or at most a cute junior.

And I saw her as a cute spiritual creature, sure, but more importantly, as an elder worthy of respect.

There was no way that kind of relationship could turn romantic.

That was when Sister Seol looked at me with a resentful expression and shouted,

“You idiot!? A guy running around fixing an illness she’s had for hundreds of years—how could she not fall in love? If you manage to heal her, she’ll swear to repay you by serving you forever in the body you fixed, and even if you can’t heal her, she’ll feel so grateful she’ll say she wants to stay by your side! Like Ji-ryeon did!

Didn’t you go through it with Ji-ryeon already? Don’t you get it? Women are like that! If a man appears who’s that devoted to them, they fall for him! That’s just how it is!

And according to Myoran, men and women here aren’t bound by the same ties as in the Lower Realm. ‘Junior Sister’ doesn’t mean anything! It’s not like she’s your mom... ah... though maybe even that wouldn’t matter here.”

“Hueeck.”

A shocking set of facts.

From Sister Seol’s outburst, I learned a few things.

First, that Myoran really had been egging her on a bit.

And second, that maybe—just maybe—what Sister Seol was saying had some truth to it.

My mind was spiraling.

What if she was right, and my Junior Sister did ask to stay by my side once I healed her?

That was a problem for later—but what about the very real issue of Sister Seol standing right in front of me?

And worse—this might only be the beginning.

Cheong-yu Sojeo, Yo-hwa, even Ranghu were all still waiting.

If one person cracked the dam, a tidal wave of women could crash down on me at once.

Right now, things were in a stabilized state just short of explosion, but if someone broke the dam holding it all back, it’d be a tsunami.

‘No, no way. There’s no way my Junior Sister’s like that. Sister Seol’s just mistaken.’

I desperately tried to believe it—tried to think, She’s not like that. She’s not that kind of person—or beast.

Then Sister Seol looked at me and made a request.

“I’m not asking you to accept me right now. I’d feel too guilty toward Hwa-eun and the others, and I honestly don’t know how to bring it up properly. But just promise me one thing.”

I didn’t like the sound of that, but it felt like we were getting past this crisis—at least for now.

She seemed like she was about to lay down some condition, but hadn’t said it yet.

Still, for this moment, it felt like we could move forward.

In a careful voice, I asked,

“What is it?”

Sister Seol clasped her hands and said in an earnest tone,

“That woman—your Junior Sister—she’s in the same position as me, right? Not related by blood, just someone from your sect. Same with me—I’m your adopted sister. So if you’re going to accept her, then please... accept me too.”

“...Huh?”

“If you accept her but not me... I think I’d be too sad.”

Hearing her say that made a weird thought pop into my head.

‘Is today a supermarket sale or something?’

I mean, it’s not like there was some one-plus-one discount going on.

And what kind of “items” were we even talking about here...?

If you accept the Junior Sister, you get Sister Seol free?

Why did it feel like they came as a set?

I guess I sort of got where she was coming from.

The Junior Sister was a martial sister. Sister Seol was an adoptive sister.

Not exactly the same, but emotionally the same distance apart.

Not real siblings, but not strangers either.

So if I took one in and not the other, of course that’d hurt her feelings.

At first, I was going to firmly say no to this one-plus-one deal.

This was serious business.

What would I even say to Hwa-eun, Gun Hye-rin, Ji-ryeon, and Zihwa?

‘Wait. Actually... this might be the only way out of this mess.’

Thinking it over, Sister Seol’s suggestion might be the only viable route through this whole situation.

More precisely, it was the only way to bury it all for now.

Sister Seol had confessed her feelings.

But my Junior Sister... might still just be a misunderstanding on Sister Seol’s part.

So if that was just a misunderstanding, then by keeping things as they were, like some kind of emotional Schrödinger’s cat, I could indefinitely delay the entire issue.

I mean, I was grateful for Sister Seol’s affection, of course—but this wasn’t something that ended with just her.

With a very serious look, I said,

“Okay, Sister Seol. I can definitely promise you that. Really. You make a fair point.”

“R-really!?”

“Of course. If we’re going by order, you were first, right? If I accepted only my Junior Sister and not you, of course that’d be unfair and upsetting.”

When I added that, to calm her down, mentioning she was first in order, Sister Seol’s eyes filled with emotion.

“Ugh.”

Sister Seol looked like she was about to hug me in gratitude—but her arms just swiped through the air, and I wiped my forehead instead.

Even though it was just my mind in here and not my physical body, I still felt like sweat was beading on my brow.

I quietly let out a sigh of relief.

***

After parting ways with Sister Seol, I headed toward where Hwa-eun was.

It was time to check on her condition.

My head was a mess, but I had to prioritize.

“Hmm? Where is everybody?”

I arrived at the village where my wives and children lived, but oddly enough, no one was around.

Then, as I stirred the air, Yo-hwa descended on a thread from overhead.

—Kssit. 『Brother!』

Looked like everyone else had gone on some outing, and Yo-hwa had stayed behind to guard the village alone.

She came up and nudged her head forward, like she wanted to be petted.

“Hey, Yo-hwa.”

I reflexively stroked her head, and she glanced toward the entrance of Dokmul-hyang and asked,

—Kssissit. 『Something seemed to be going on outside. Is everything taken care of now?』

She was probably talking about Ji-ryeon’s situation—seemed like she knew Zihwa had left to deal with it.

“Yeah. No problems. It’s all resolved. Anyway, where’s everyone else?”

—Ksssssss. 『Ah, they all went to the lake. To play with Geumdo.』

“Oh, I see.”

—Kssit. 『But what brings you here?』

“Oh, I came to check on Hwa-eun.”

—Kssi. 『Ah, you came to see Sister Hwa-eun. She’s in the shrine. With Sister Hye-rin.』

“Yeah, I know. Shall we go? Were you resting? Then I’ll head out.”

I already knew where Hwa-eun was.

I told Yo-hwa to keep resting and turned toward the shrine—but she followed alongside and said,

—Kssss. 『I’ll go too.』

“Want to?”

—Kssi. 『Yes, Brother.』

Together with Yo-hwa, I passed through the village and reached the shrine.

Entered through the doorway marked with the five venom sigils, walked down the hall, and arrived at the stone chamber.

As I reached the front of the chamber, thinking it had been a while since I’d been here, Gun Hye-rin—sitting cross-legged at the entrance—opened her eyes.

“Master.”

She must’ve been meditating or something.

“You’re working hard, Hye-rin. How’s Hwa-eun?”

“She’s progressing well. Want to see for yourself?”

“Yes.”

As I followed Gun Hye-rin inside, something on her head caught my eye.

She was wearing a large, elegant lily tucked into her hair.

I recognized that flower immediately.

“You were keeping Sandan with you?”

“She kept trying to go near Hwa-eun, so I held onto her.”

That lily on Hye-rin’s head was Sandan—the flower mantis spirit beast.

—Pii!

“She’s worried about Hwa-eun, huh? It’s okay.”

As I reassured her, Sandan leapt down from Hye-rin’s head and landed on my shoulder.

With Sandan riding along, I entered the chamber with Gun Hye-rin.

In the center of the chamber, Hwa-eun’s cocoon floated, glowing softly.

I closed my eyes and focused, trying to feel her aura more precisely.

And I could sense her physical body.

Where once only her brain, dantian, and heart remained—her full body had now been completely restored.

‘Whew. That’s a relief.’

Just as I was thinking that—

—Sshraak.

A sudden tearing sound rang through the chamber.

I looked toward the source of the noise.

Hwa-eun’s cocoon was splitting open from top to bottom.

Seemed like her metamorphosis was beginning.

Gun Hye-rin shouted in surprise.

“Master! She’s coming out!”

“I see it!”

Tension filling the air, we watched as the top of the cocoon split wide open—and Hwa-eun’s hunched back emerged first.

—Shraaak!

Soaked in fluid, her body emerged.

Starting from her back, she slid out of the cocoon—then her head, arms, and legs followed as she began to unfurl in midair.

First her hunched back straightened.

Then her limbs settled into place.

Her bent neck lifted, and her soaked hair began to dry, strands floating gracefully.

Her arms and legs were long and elegant—and the parts I personally found important for child-rearing looked fully intact.

Her hair gleamed with luster.

Overall, she still looked human.

Just a human form? I thought.

But then, it happened.

Something suddenly popped up from her head.

—Chwak.

‘Gyaaaaah!’

I screamed inwardly.

Because what shot out of her head... was an antenna.

‘Unreal charm.’

It was more enchanting than any other feature.

My wife had grown antennae from her head—I stared at them, stunned.

They were nearly thirty centimeters long.

Two pairs.

And the moment both sets of antennae fully extended, something red started to grow from Hwa-eun’s lower back.

‘What kind of spirit beast is this based on?’

Judging from the antennae, it had to be insect-type—but a red tail?

As I tilted my head, trying to guess what kind of beast she was...

That red tail-like thing started to stretch.

It slowly lengthened until it reached her ankles.

But that wasn’t all.

It began to unfold.

At first I thought it was a tail—but it didn’t feel like one anymore.

The thing that had been coiled up unfurled widely—wrapping around Hwa-eun’s lower body like a skirt, and her chest like a top.

‘What is this...?’

As it slowly wrapped around her, it took the shape of a top and skirt—but strikingly, it was a deep, vivid red.

Once it had fully spread, the outline was clear, and I could see exactly what it was.

What had grown from Hwa-eun’s body and now wrapped her waist like a full, elegant skirt...

Was a single, blooming rose.

Just like Sandan’s lower half—Hwa-eun’s lower body had transformed into a fully bloomed rose.

A heady, sweet scent wafted into the air.

I wasn’t supposed to be able to smell it—but somehow, it overwhelmed me.

‘N-no way...’

I looked at Sandan.

The only registered beast Hwa-eun had was Sandan.

Which meant—Hwa-eun had taken on traits of the flower mantis because of Sandan’s influence.

“Hm...”

The thought made me happy—but at the same time, I realized I’d need to be careful during twin cultivation from now on.

Because female mantises eat the male after mating.

Starting with the head.

‘I’ll be fine, right? Still... better make sure it’s only from behind, just in case.’

I’d definitely have to be careful with positions going forward.

That’s how male mantises survive, after all.