Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 63

Chapter 63

“Eun is alive!?”
“He is. Please, see for yourself.”
Namgung Seol, who had drawn her sword in sorrow believing her younger brother Namgung Eun was dead, went still at the confirmation of his survival. She hurried to his side.
She felt for Namgung Eun’s pulse, then demanded urgently, “What’s wrong with him? Why is he completely immobilized?”
“It appears the spider’s venom has paralyzed him.”
“Venom!? Then it’s critical, isn’t it? Is there no antidote?”
Namgung Seol’s alarmed expression deepened at my composed reply. Her eyes flashed with panic at the word ‘venom.’
For most, the very idea of poison triggers instant dread. Her response was natural. Seeing her so visibly distressed, my sister rested a hand on Namgung Seol’s shoulder and clarified.
“It is only paralysis, Lady Namgung. It should pass in a day or two. That is likely how the other missing villagers were able to return after a similar time.”
“Is that true?”
“It is. Had it been a lethal toxin, he would not have survived this long. You have my word; I am of the Tang Clan. A deadly poison would have prevented movement and induced far graver symptoms by now.”
Somewhat comforted by my sister’s authority on poisons, Namgung Seol’s rigid posture began to ease. She carefully repositioned her brother where he lay before turning a frosty stare toward the spider.
Her eyes locked onto the creature, splayed on the ground in a facsimile of her own form. The tip of her sword, held in a reverse grip, quivered as her fury over the humiliation she had endured at its hands threatened to overflow.
‘I should stop her before she acts rashly.’
Though I had staked my claim on the spider, her shame and anger were still palpable. I moved to intercede, intending to reaffirm my ownership.
“Lady Namgung, I know what you must be feel—”
My sister’s voice resonated in my mind, halting me.
[So-ryong, allow me. Will you trust me with this?]
I fell silent and gave a slight nod. My sister met my eyes for a moment, then turned to Namgung Seol, placing a steadying hand on her shoulder.
“I know you are furious and wish to destroy it. But if you kill it now, Lady Namgung, you may lose any chance to clear your name for good.”
“Lose the chance? What do you mean?” Namgung Seol asked, taken aback.
“This spider can mimic human forms. But once dead, there is no promise that mimicry will remain. If it reverts to its natural state, how will you ever prove your innocence? You must bring this creature before your family. Only then can the misunderstanding be entirely undone. The villagers who have peddled these groundless rumors will finally know the truth.”
“Grr…” Namgung Seol shuddered with frustration, but she could not dispute my sister’s sound reasoning. Gradually, she lowered her sword.
‘What flawless logic. She’s incredible—so perceptive!’
Hearing my sister’s argument, I saw how persuasive it was. She was correct; the spider’s mimicked form might not last past death. While it was possible, the risk was too significant. Destroying it could erase Namgung Seol’s sole opportunity to vindicate herself to both her clan and the villagers.
My sister pressed on, her tone resolute as she addressed the point I had intended to make.
“And do not forget, this creature was subdued by So-ryong. So-ryong located the elixir for your brother and saved him. So-ryong captured this spider and created the chance to prove your innocence. You would not raise your sword now and disregard all of that, would you?”
Her words hit their mark. My sister had deftly maneuvered Namgung Seol into recognizing her debt, compelling her to stand down. I was deeply impressed.
‘Do I have a thing for intelligent, older women? Is that my type?’
Namgung Seol was silent for a moment, then gave a reluctant, conflicted nod. “Very well. I am already too deeply in your debt to refuse. I will abide by So-ryong’s decision. But what will you do with it?”
She was clearly asking for our plans regarding the spider. I had only one response.
“So-ryong intends to take it to the Tang Clan.”
“You’re taking that to the Tang Clan!?” Namgung Seol exclaimed, her shock evident. I nodded firmly in confirmation.
“Yes. It’s cute.”
“C-cute!?” she stammered, her face flushing. She glanced at me, then quickly looked away, flustered. She turned to my sister for an explanation. My sister, however, took hold of Namgung Seol’s shoulders, making her meet her gaze. Shaking her head, my sister clarified with an expression that seemed to say, *Don’t get the wrong idea.*
“So-ryong does not mean it is cute for mimicking you. He finds the spider itself endearing. Its crimson color, its soft fur, its peculiar abilities—he appreciates those traits.”
“Haah…” My sister released a weary sigh as she finished, as if the explanation itself was tiresome. Namgung Seol, evidently embarrassed by her misunderstanding, gave my sister’s shoulder an apologetic pat.
‘What? Why? What’s going on?’ I thought, completely perplexed.
***
Morning arrived, and warriors summoned from the Namgung Clan came to escort the spider and Namgung Eun back to their estate.
As the spider was loaded onto a cart and brought into the Namgung Clan’s grounds, the sight provoked an immediate outcry.
Clan members and guards who saw the spider still wearing Namgung Seol’s likeness were aghast.
“T-the spider has stolen the lady’s face!”
“This thing is clearly a demon!”
“So it was this monster that dared to imitate our lady!”
Even the patriarch of the Namgung Clan, upon seeing it, exploded in anger.
“How dare this filth take my daughter’s visage and dishonor her!”
Like father, like daughter—he, too, drew his sword, roaring with righteous fury.
My sister shot me a look before stepping forward to address the patriarch directly.
“Master Namgung, this spider is the property of So-ryong…”
Repeating the explanation she had given Namgung Seol the day before, my sister reasoned with him calmly. After a moment, the patriarch’s expression softened. He sheathed his sword and nodded.
“If all you say is true, then he has saved both my daughter’s life and her honor. The Namgung Clan will not forget this kindness. We will respect So-ryong’s wishes.”
‘Incredible, as expected of my sister!’
There was a saying from my previous life: A man’s path is smooth if he heeds three women—his navigator, his mother, and his wife.
Just as it seemed the matter was settled, the patriarch added one final condition.
“However, this, I cannot permit.”
He pointed at the cart carrying the spider. Specifically, his finger was aimed at the spider’s pedipalps, which still bore Namgung Seol’s face.
It wasn’t a question of ownership; the issue was the violation of his daughter’s likeness.
***
The Namgung patriarch’s worry was justified. If this spider, still wearing his daughter’s face, were taken to the Tang Clan and somehow got loose or caused an incident, it could once again embroil his daughter in disgraceful gossip.
His demand was straightforward: if I wished to take the spider, I must see to it that it adopted a different appearance.
“If it could mimic my daughter’s face, it can surely mimic another. How can I allow it to leave like this, bearing her image? I will not have her subjected to baseless suspicion again.”
I could not dismiss his reasonable request. After all, I would not be comfortable myself if something wearing my daughter’s face was roaming about beyond my oversight.
‘I hadn’t even considered the issue of likeness rights…’
In the Namgung Clan’s training yard, the spider lay insensate within a stout wooden cage. To learn how it could alter its form, it first needed to awaken.
As I stood in the shade, quietly observing the spider, a crowd of villagers arrived to gape at the caged creature.
“So this is the monster that copied the lady!”
“It’s unnerving! No wonder people were mistaken.”
“You see! I told you Lady Namgung would never do such things!”
The onlookers were all locals. Their presence had a simple explanation: since the previous afternoon, word had spread that the culprit behind the abductions had been caught and was held at the Namgung Clan.
The more people who witnessed the spider, the quicker the rumors about Namgung Seol would dissipate. That was the intention, at least.
As the villagers stared in amazement, a disturbance erupted.
“Such a wicked beast!”
A man, overcome by emotion, snatched up a stone and made to hurl it at the spider.
Gu Pae, the deputy commander of the Tang Clan’s Venom Blood Squad, moved swiftly to block him.
“What do you think you’re doing? This spider belongs to the Tang Clan. Would you dare damage our property?”
“M-my apologies, sir. I didn’t intend…”
This was the third instance. For some reason, the villagers were fond of throwing rocks at my spider. Luckily, the Tang Clan’s Venom Blood Squad was posted nearby for its protection. Otherwise, the poor creature might have been harmed.
“Deputy Gu Pae, I believe most of those who wished to see it have come. We should stop allowing visitors before the spider is injured.”
“Shall we close the area now?”
“Yes, I will inform the Namgung patriarch. Let’s ensure no one else can approach.”
After securing the patriarch’s agreement to seal off the training grounds, I was returning when I noticed a minor disturbance near the entrance.
“Cough, cough! Please, just one brief look, if you would?”
“Elder, I am sorry, but our orders are to admit no one else.”
“Only a moment, I beg you. Cough, cough!”
“Sir, I have told you already, it is forbidden.”
Approaching, I saw an elderly man in a heated discussion with Gu Pae.
“What is the matter, Deputy Gu?”
“Ah, So-ryong. This elder insists on seeing the spider, but I have informed him it is not permitted.”
The old man’s frail build and sickly pallor suggested he had journeyed a great distance. I turned to Gu Pae. “Let him look. He has clearly come a long way in poor health.”
“Are you certain?”
“Yes. Allow him through.”
With my approval, Gu Pae stepped aside, and the old man shuffled slowly forward. He halted before the cage and stared intently at the spider for a long time before turning back to Gu Pae. “Cough, cough! What will become of it now? Will you kill it, as they say?”
Though we had told the villagers it would be killed, there was no need to lie to this old man. I stepped in to answer.
“Of course not. It is a rare being. I plan to take it to Sichuan and raise it there.”
The old man’s expression shifted to one of mild astonishment. “Cough! But it is such a peculiar creature. How could you possibly…”
“It is only a spider,” I stated calmly. “It is not evil by nature. Its diet is unusual, but that is not its fault. What it consumes and how it lives is dictated by nature, not by the creature itself.”
The old man’s eyes widened slightly as he studied me.
“You are the first person I have heard speak of it in that way. Cough…”
He moved closer, crouching before the cage. Gu Pae stepped forward to intervene, but I raised a hand to stop him. There was something familiar about the old man—something I could perceive.
A kindred spirit.
A faint, distinctive scent, recognizable only to those with a profound appreciation for such creatures, emanated from him.
‘He is undoubtedly one of us.’
As if confirming my suspicion, the old man reached out and gently stroked the spider’s head—not the mimicked head of Namgung Seol, but its true head, nestled between its legs.
“Cough! Its name is Yo-hwa. I raised it for twenty years after finding it as a tiny spider in the mountains, during a time when I had lost everything to plague. I learned that if I provided it with yang energy, it would take on the appearance of the person I found most beautiful.”
The old man had unknowingly given me the very information I required. As he caressed the spider’s head, he looked up at me.
“But now, my strength fails me, and I can no longer sustain it with yang energy. That is how this trouble with Lady Namgung began. Please, young master, take good care of Yo-hwa.”
It turned out the spider was not a wild beast, but a tamed one, raised in captivity. Domesticated creatures are typically hardier and more accustomed to human contact than their wild kin.
“I will care for it well,” I said, giving a solemn nod.
What I had believed was a capture had become an adoption. Having received the spider from its original keeper, I was resolved to look after it properly.
Yet one question lingered.
‘How, exactly, does one provide it with yang energy?’