Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

A bolt from the blue.

No, a club in the middle of the night.

I had been enjoying a rare moment of sleep in a proper bed instead of the ground.

I had dozed off earlier while sitting, but a Tang Clan warrior had kindly moved me to a room.

To be honest, I had woken up during the process but decided to feign sleep.

I was too tired to care.

But could it be that Cheolsan was envious of my peaceful slumber?

I woke up abruptly after receiving a slap across the cheek, delivered by none other than Cheolsan himself.

And what greeted my bleary eyes upon waking was a bug that resembled a stink bug—the infamous Jeopmunchung (Kissing Bug).

Its name, meaning "kissing bug," might sound amusingly risqué, conjuring lewd and suggestive thoughts. But in my past life, this bug was no joke—it was indeed called the Kissing Bug.

‘Why… why are these things here?’

While kissing bugs exist in many varieties around the world, the one attempting to bite me had an unmistakable pattern of alternating orange and black stripes on its abdomen.

This one was among the most dangerous and one to be extremely wary of.

Annoyance over being slapped faded quickly.

If Cheolsan had saved me from being bitten by this bug, the slap was nothing short of a blessing.

This creature, after all, ranked among the top 10 most venomous insects in the world in my past life.

‘Wait! Swollen eyelids, mild fever, localized symptoms, cardiac syndrome, arrhythmia! How could I not have realized it sooner?!’

As soon as I identified the kissing bug, the cause of the villagers' mysterious illness became clear.

The kissing bug, a member of the Triatominae family, earned its name from its habit of biting people near their eyes or lips while they slept to feed on their blood.

The bug itself wasn’t inherently dangerous.

Stealthy as a mosquito, it could feed on a person’s blood without them even noticing. In most cases, the bite site didn’t cause significant issues.

This is why it was sometimes called the "vampire bug" or "assassin bug" for its silent and stealthy approach.

The real problem was the pathogen carried by this bug: Trypanosoma cruzi, a parasitic protozoan.

In my past life, it was estimated that around 50% of kissing bugs were infected with this parasite, which caused Chagas disease.

These bugs would excrete while feeding, and the parasite in their feces would infect humans.

Though bites alone could sometimes transmit the infection, it was primarily the bug’s feces that caused the disease.

“Elder, we need baijiu (white liquor) immediately!”

“Baijiu? What? I understand you’re upset, but you’re far too young to—”

Cheolsan looked flustered at my sudden demand for baijiu, assuming I wanted a drink.

But I wasn’t asking for alcohol to drink—I needed it for disinfection.

Baijiu, being distilled, might not be the most effective sanitizer, but it was better than nothing.

In the modern world, crushing a kissing bug was strictly warned against because it could release parasites. The recommended method was to trap it in a container and freeze it to kill the parasite safely.

“It’s not for drinking, Elder. This bug carries toxins, and we need baijiu to clean it off!”

“What? This bug is poisonous?”

“Yes! Please hurry and fetch some baijiu!”

“Hmm… While I’ll be fine, you’re at risk. Gu Pae! Go quickly and fetch baijiu from the village chief!”

“Yes, Clan Head!”

One of the Tang warriors sprinted out, returning shortly with the village chief and a bottle of baijiu in hand.

“Here it is, Young Hero!”

“Thank you!”

I quickly soaked a cloth with the baijiu and wiped down my still-stinging cheek, as well as Cheolsan’s hand, which had touched the bug.

Then, using a twig, I carefully picked up the kissing bug and placed it in a container.

“This is the first time I’ve seen such an insect. Is it truly that dangerous? You seem fine, after all.”

Cheolsan and the other warriors watched with curious expressions, and even the village chief blinked in confusion.

It was, after all, quite the spectacle to rush out for liquor in the middle of the night over a bug.

“Yes, but I believe this bug may be the cause of the villagers’ illness.”

“What?! The girl’s illness is caused by this bug?”

“Young Hero, is that true?!”

“Are you saying… our Meijin is suffering because of this bug?!”

Their disbelief was written all over their faces as they stared at me.

The next step was to confirm the connection between the bug and the disease, so I turned to the village chief.

“Chief, have the village dogs been experiencing similar symptoms? Difficulty breathing, lethargy, or even death?”

“How did you know?!”

His response confirmed it: the dogs were also affected. This was undoubtedly Chagas disease.

‘But why is this happening here? These bugs and diseases should only appear in South America!’

In my past life, Chagas disease originated in South America and spread to North America.

Though kissing bugs existed worldwide in various forms, only those from the Americas carried Trypanosoma cruzi.

Back then, with frequent international travel, such diseases occasionally appeared in unexpected places, but in this era, such global movement was unheard of.

“Then… can’t you save her? Can’t you save our Meijin?!”

To be honest, while Chagas disease was dangerous, its early stages could be treated easily with antiparasitic medication.

The problem was that I didn’t know how to make such medication.

I knew about benznidazole and its effects, but I had no idea how to synthesize it.

Faced with the village chief’s desperate question, I could only reply with a regretful expression.

“Well, that is…”

Noticing my hesitation, Cheolsan asked with concern.

“What’s troubling you, Young Hero? If this bug is the cause, why do you look so troubled?”

Though I wasn’t sure if Cheolsan would fully understand, I decided to explain.

“If we can address this issue, the villagers need to know why I can’t create a cure. Elder, this bug isn’t poisonous itself.”

“Wait, didn’t you say earlier that it was? We even wiped it off with baijiu!”

Their confusion was understandable, so I nodded and elaborated.

“Yes, but the real issue isn’t the bug—it’s the tiny creatures inside it. These parasites enter the human body through its feces, typically after the bug bites near the mouth or eyes. Once inside, they reproduce and settle in the heart.”

“Parasites? Invisible ones?”

“They’re similar to roundworms (Hui).”

“Ah, roundworms!”

Roundworms were something familiar to Cheolsan, so he nodded in understanding.

“Yes, like roundworms, but these parasites invade the heart, disrupting its function and eventually causing death. But… I don’t know how to make the medicine to cure it.”

Hearing my explanation, the village chief burst into tears, his wails echoing in the night.

“Then… then we can’t save Meijin? Is that true, Elder?! Oh, Meijin!”

But amidst the chief’s despair, Cheolsan’s voice rang out, brimming with confidence.

“Gu Pae, did you see that? This is the true value of our Young Hero. Didn’t I tell you so?”

“Indeed, I was foolish to doubt your insight, Clan Head. I’ll gladly accept my punishment later.”

After their cryptic exchange, Cheolsan clapped me on the shoulder and declared with pride:

“Young Hero, why are you worrying? We are the Tang Clan of Sichuan!”

“Huh?”

“Because we are the Tang Clan of Sichuan.”

‘So what?! Seriously, why does he keep going on about the Tang Clan? What’s the point of bragging about some remote family in Sichuan?!’

Here I was, pointing out that I couldn’t save anyone, and yet Cheolsan kept flexing his clan’s prestige. At that moment, I was ready to give him the worst possible score for personality in my mental interview.

But then Cheolsan asked with a sly smile, “Young Hero, do you know about gu (蠱)?”

‘Gu? Like in those cursed card games? No, probably not…’@@novelbin@@

The sudden mention of gu threw me off. I blinked, feigning ignorance, and waited for him to explain further.

“Gu is something the wicked people of the martial world cultivate. Sometimes called mugu (巫蠱) or godok (蠱毒), it refers to venomous creatures, often insects, that are used in sorcery. They vary in size and, when consumed by a person, can parasitize their body, causing periodic agony—or even allowing the user to control them.”

“Control a person? That’s incredible!”

A parasite capable of controlling people? This was definitely a different world from the one I knew. Though I couldn’t deny the similarities to the kissing bug—it made the odd presence of these creatures here somewhat plausible.

“Indeed, incredible,” Cheolsan replied, his face turning somber. “But countless martial artists have lost their lives to gu. Some, under its influence, have killed their own children, committed suicide, betrayed their families, and become slaves to wicked men.”

“Terrifying…”

“Meijin! My poor Meijin!”

Even as the village chief’s wails filled the room, Cheolsan continued his explanation with the same calm demeanor.

“Thus, martial artists worked tirelessly to develop antidotes to counter gu. Medicines that could force the gu out of the body or dissolve it entirely.”

“That makes sense, given the devastation it caused.”

“Exactly.”

‘It’s basically antiparasitic medicine. It seems that, no matter the era or world, people think along similar lines,’ I thought to myself.

Then, Cheolsan posed another question.

“But if martial artists were to make such medicines, where do you think they’d be developed?”

“I have no idea.”

I wasn’t familiar enough with the martial world to answer, but Cheolsan smiled as he pulled a small box from inside his robes.

“Why, naturally, in the great Tang Clan of Sichuan (Dae Sacheon Tangmun)! If we can dissolve a fist-sized gu inside someone’s body, do you think a tiny, invisible creature poses any challenge?”

“Surely not…”

“That’s correct. The Tang Clan has developed countless medicines to counteract gu. For instance, a single dose of our Mugoyonghwadan (巫蠱熔化團) can dissolve even large parasites like hui (roundworms). While it might not work on every type of gu, for something as small as these invisible pests, a bit of our Mugoyonghwadan will suffice.”

“Mugoyonghwadan!”

It was essentially antiparasitic medicine, but the name carried such weight and grandeur.

Who wouldn’t get chills from a name like “Gu-Dissolving Elixir”?

There’s a certain unspoken thrill that men share over things like this—the same thrill that drives them to play soccer in the rain, laugh like maniacs, or secretly wish they were the strongest. It was that kind of inexplicable coolness.

With a new sense of admiration for the Tang Clan, I followed Cheolsan to the room where the sick girl, Meijin, lay. He carefully broke off a small piece of the elixir and placed it in her mouth.

The pill dissolved instantly, flowing into her throat like liquid.

Moments later, the girl’s chest, which had been heaving irregularly, began to rise and fall steadily. Her eyelids fluttered slightly.

“Meijin!”

“G-Grandfather?”

“You’re alive! My Meijin!”

The village chief’s voice cracked with emotion as he cradled his granddaughter, tears streaming down his face.

The sight made my chest tighten.

And in that moment, a thought crept into my mind: perhaps joining the Tang Clan full-time wouldn’t be such a bad idea after all.

‘That… was kind of cool.’