Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 173

Chapter 173
Parthenogenesis, which is also called asexual reproduction or agamogenesis, is the biological process where an embryo grows and matures without being fertilized by sperm.

This means the female’s genetic material divides on its own to form a fertilized egg. As a result, the queen of the Golden-Furred Wasp King, all the worker bees, and any new queen were genetically identical.

In essence, the society of the Golden-Furred Wasp King was a huge clone colony—a whole population of monozygotic twins with the exact same genes. Their connections to one another were multifaceted: they were mother and daughter, sisters, and, in a way, even the same individual.

A community made up of hundreds of identical female wasps felt almost unbelievable.

I was momentarily stunned by the sight of the two identical queens, but I soon regained my composure and asked them:

“You can have offspring without any males?”

Bzzzz.
Bzzzz.

Simultaneously, the two hovering wasps dipped their heads in a perfectly timed nod.

I hadn’t paid close attention before, but upon inspecting the hive more carefully, I saw that every worker bee was a smaller copy of the queen. They were a bit smaller and their abdomens were less developed since they didn’t produce eggs.

‘A completely male-free society… How interesting.’

Although this reproductive method was unusual, parthenogenesis itself isn’t exceedingly rare.

Many animals in nature reproduce this way. For example, termites—a species I’ve handled before—are famous for it. Parthenogenesis also occurs in fish such as crucian carp, some types of lizards, scorpions, certain cartilaginous fish, and even ants.

But I had never encountered a species that had no males whatsoever.

A society with only one genetic blueprint is highly susceptible to diseases or epidemics. That’s why even species capable of parthenogenesis usually only use it in emergencies when they need to boost their numbers quickly. Normally, they reproduce sexually.

From an evolutionary perspective, genetic diversity through multiple lineages allows for better species adaptation over time.

‘Why choose parthenogenesis?’

I couldn’t grasp why the Golden-Furred Wasp King would adopt such a genetically risky strategy. However, given that even the lower-ranked members of this species could comprehend human language, they were obviously not just ordinary insects.

In this world, whenever I came across something that defied biological or genetic logic, there was one go-to explanation that never failed:

‘Because they’re spirit beasts, that’s why.’

Right. If something doesn’t add up, just label it a “spirit beast” and everything becomes clear.

Having put that question to rest, I moved on to the next matter and addressed the Golden-Furred Wasp Queens:

“Okay, now that I’ve welcomed the new queen, I’ll locate a new home for you. You aren’t thinking of relocating elsewhere, are you? And which one of you is the original queen?”

When I asked this, the two queens trembled as if amused, then began swirling around one another in mid-air, moving in and out so rapidly it reminded me of a shell game.

After a short, frenzied dance, they halted abruptly and looked at me with anticipation.

It seemed they wanted me to identify which one was the first queen.

“You want me to tell you apart?”

Bzzzz!
Bzzzz!

I asked to be sure, and as expected, they both nodded in agreement.

Telling apart identical human twins is hard enough. Now I was supposed to distinguish between two identical wasp queens?

This was supposed to be a serious moment for the swarm to split, and instead I was playing a silly game.

Then again, it did sound amusing.

‘It’s been some time since I faced a challenge worthy of spicy Fabre. Okay, I’m in.’

“Alright. Let me think…”

I accepted their challenge without delay because, although they looked the same, I knew that insects often have tiny physical variations due to age or diet.

Small details like their body shade or the feel of their tiny hairs can be slightly different.

Take rhinoceros beetles, for instance: when they first hatch, their shells are shiny and bright, but they dull over time and their fine hairs wear away.

The same should hold for wasps—a newly emerged queen ought to have softer, fuller fuzz.

With that in mind, I studied the two wasps as closely as possible. But no matter how hard I looked, they were perfect duplicates.

‘Really? They’re completely identical?’

As I stood there puzzled, the two queens buzzed their wings more impatiently, as if telling me to hurry up.

Bzzz!
Bzzz!

I began to suspect I might have to take a random guess.

Well, there was no punishment for a wrong answer, so I gathered my courage, pointed at one, and announced:

“It’s you!”

Bzzzz!?
Bzzzz!?

Both queens jolted in surprise.

That reaction told me everything.

‘Excellent.’

As I thought, my spicy Fabre intuition was as sharp as ever.

I might have been bad at guessing answers on tests, but when it came to animals—like sexing pets at a store—I was never wrong.

In Korea, where imported pets are often young or not fully grown, determining their sex is famously tricky. Yet, whenever I bought two at random, I almost invariably got a true pair.

Those who misjudged could end up with real problems.

Just like that time in my previous life, when I proudly launched my new content series, “Can They Have Babies?”

“Welcome, everybody, to spicy Fabre’s new show: ‘Can They Have Babies?’!”

“Huh? What’s this about, you wonder?”

“Well, I visit subscribers who are having trouble breeding their cherished venomous pets, figure out the issue, and help them bring some cute little ones into the world!”

“Our very first case comes from a subscriber request, and I’m at their home right now!”

“And the stars of today’s episode are… land tortoises!”

I’d selected this case carefully for the premiere. Plus, the subscriber was incredibly beautiful.

It had all the ingredients for a hit.

Even before I started tackling the actual problem, the live chat was flooded with comments about her appearance.

—————————–
Mighty Toad: I-Is she an angel?
Little Turtle: Noona, I’m a turtle too! Please look after me!
Centipedes Are Love: Angel, be careful of Fabre! That guy is a notorious creep in this community!
Supreme Hornet: That loser Fabre isn’t there to help the turtles mate—he’s there to…
(Supreme Hornet has been banned for 24 hours.)
—————————–

The subscriber’s issue was that despite having two turtles for five years—plenty of time for them to mature—and even seeing them mate, she had never gotten any eggs.

On the day I visited, the two turtles were busily carrying out their mating behavior.

But then, everything went wrong.

“It’s so odd. I’ve had them for five years, and I even made a proper nesting spot, but they still won’t lay eggs. They even mate when they’re in season!”

“I-I see. Well, let’s take a look. Hmm… The enclosure is ideal—even better than something I might set up…”

“See? The temperature and moisture levels are perfect. There’s no reason they shouldn’t be laying eggs!”

“Exactly! It’s so annoying. I really want to see some baby turtles.”

“Something doesn’t add up… I need to examine the turtles directly.”

So I took a close look at the two enthusiastic little performers. And the moment I did, I made a shocking discovery.

“…What!?”

“What’s wrong?”

“Um… Subscriber, please listen and stay calm. Sigh… How should I say this…?”

“Are they ill!? What’s the matter with my babies!?”

“No, they’re not sick, it’s just…”

I had no choice but to tell her the truth.

“They’re both male.”

“WHAT!?”

—————————–
Mighty Toad: Wow…
Little Turtle: No way…!?
Centipedes Are Love: Both turtles are male. This just proves Supreme Hornet was correct.
(Centipedes Are Love has been banned for 24 hours.)
—————————–

In my past life, there was a well-known story about a Galápagos tortoise—the longest-living tortoise in the world—that mated with another male for 26 years before people realized the truth. And here, in the debut of my new series, the same thing had happened.

This isn’t common in nature, but in captivity, an animal might sometimes confuse a human, or even another animal, for a suitable partner. This appeared to be one of those instances.

In the end, the beautiful subscriber from that unfortunate episode was so mortified she pleaded with me to delete the video.

And so, my grand new series “Can They Have Babies?” turned into an unintended comedy. I never had the courage to make another episode.

That was a total catastrophe…

Lost in dreadful nostalgia, I suddenly returned to the present to find the two wasp queens now perched calmly on my shoulders.

“Okay then, let’s head out. The new queen remains here.”

But instead of flying away, the queen shifted closer to my face.

“…?”

I was going to ask what she was doing when I saw something.

Her tongue.

The instant I saw it appear, I felt like I’d been hit by a bolt of lightning.

No, no, no, no, no!

I had almost forgotten—for bees, trophallaxis (sharing food mouth-to-mouth) is the ultimate sign of trust and closeness.

With a new queen born, she was instinctively starting this nutrient-sharing ritual with me.

Even I have my boundaries. This was not going to happen.

“W-Wait!”

I swiftly blocked her with my hand while searching desperately for another solution.

Think, Fabre, think! How do I avoid this!? I need another way to bond! Something else… Anything!

Bzzzz…

The new queen softly nudged my hand down, as if asking what was the matter.

In a panicked burst of insight, I shouted the first idea that popped into my head.

“N-Names!”

Bzzz?
Bzzz?

*”H-Humans don’t share food to become friends! We… we give each other names! Let’s do that instead! How about I give you a name, okay?
I just ate breakfast, so I’m totally full right now! Besides, I can’t keep calling you ‘queen’ all the time, can I?”*

I waited anxiously for their reply.

To my great relief, the two queens nodded in agreement.

I made it…

I had not only avoided trophallaxis, but I also got to give them real names instead of just calling them queen.

Two victories at once.

I sat down to think.

“Give me a moment. I’ll come up with a wonderful name for both of you.”

Technically, they were mother and daughter, but also sisters.

And since they were practically twins, their names needed to represent that.

I’d always named my venomous creatures after their most defining characteristics. So I tried to think of what represented them best.

“Hmm… Maybe something with ‘bee’? No, that’s too plain. I need something that really captures the spirit of the Golden-Furred Wasp King…”

I folded my arms and concentrated, but as a lower-ranked species, they didn’t have many standout traits.

Their most unique feature was their parthenogenetic reproduction.

So I decided their names should honor that.

“They’re both sisters, but also mother and daughter… Oh, that’s it—”

A thought came to me.

The ideal word.

‘Nangnang’.

One word, but it could be split into two distinct sounds: Nang and Rang.

In Chinese, it can mean both young lady and mother.

By adding ‘hu’ for queen, I could name them Nanghu and Ranghu.

The names captured their contradictory existence—young queens who were both daughters and mothers.

“Wow… Fabre, you’re a genius at naming.”

Feeling thoroughly pleased with myself, I addressed the two Golden-Furred Wasp Queens.

“The new queen will be Nanghu. The former queen will be Ranghu. What do you think? The names carry the meanings of both ‘young lady’ and ‘mother’—a perfect fit for you two.”

Bzzzz.
Bzzzz.

Both queens beat their wings in clear approval.

Moving quickly, I ripped a piece of cloth from my sleeve and made two small markers, fastening one to each of their front legs.

Rip.

“The one with the marker on the right leg is Nanghu. The one with the marker on the left is Ranghu. Nanghu stays here, and Ranghu, you’re coming with me. We need to find a new home.”

They would seldom see each other again, but now I could tell them apart in the future.

With that, Nanghu flew into the air, while Ranghu settled on my shoulder.

“Alright, let’s move! Time to grow the hive.”

It was time to establish a second beehive.