Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

As I stared at the tied grass, lost in thought, Tang Hwa-eun’s voice reached my ears.

“So-ryong?”

“Ah… yes, Hwa-eun.”

I snapped back to reality and found her face much closer than before.

She was crouched down in front of me, staring into my eyes.

It seemed my deep concentration on how to trip the camel spider had made her curious about what I was thinking.

“Why are you suddenly like this?”

“Oh, I just thought of a good way to catch the thing.”

“As expected! What’s the plan this time? It must be something unique, right? Something….”

Hearing that I had come up with a solution, Tang Hwa-eun became overly excited.

Perhaps still flustered from being caught by Cho earlier, she kept rambling, unable to stop herself.

I glanced at her, then swiftly leaned in and gently kissed her lips.

–Chu.

For a brief moment, shock rippled through her gaze, her pupils widening as if staring into the depths of a midnight sky.

Before she could react further, I quickly turned away and ran toward the camp.

It was just the forehead, but still—it was a kiss!

Even for me, the situation felt incredibly awkward and a little embarrassing.

“All thanks to you, Hwa-eun! Now, I should go see Elder Tang Mu-seong!”

With that, I dashed off toward the tents.

From above, Cho’s voice rang out.

There was a strong sense of curiosity in her tone.

–Sluuurp. Sluurp. “Huh? Mommy, why did Daddy headbutt you all of a sudden? And why is your face all weird?”

She was seriously asking why I headbutted Hwa-eun.

A simple question, yet it felt like the hardest life-or-death exam question ever thrown at me.

Or rather, the biggest crisis of my life.

“…No, um, it’s not like that, Hwa-eun. I mean… how should I put this….”

I had kissed Cho on the forehead several times before, so she must have interpreted this as me simply "headbutting” Hwa-eun.

Since arthropods sometimes nuzzle their young, she probably saw it as an extension of that behavior.

Damn it. That’s what happens when you don’t control yourself in front of kids.

Realizing I was trapped, I quickly thought of an answer.

This explanation should be enough.

“Ah! It’s not a headbutt, Cho. It’s a special way to say someone looks really pretty! It’s kind of like patting someone’s head, but even more affectionate. Mommy’s pretty, isn’t she?”

“So Mommy is just embarrassed because you called her pretty?”

–Sluurp?

Cho made a confused sound, clearly struggling to understand why someone would be embarrassed about being called pretty.