He, The Scumbag, Has Turned Over A New Leaf. - Chapter 5

Ivan returned home with a complicated mind, only to find that Lotte had taken Arui, who had not been out for a long time, out for some fun.

As he took off his shoes in the entryway and looked up, he saw Tovis, who had already changed his clothes and was sitting on the sofa, seemingly waiting for him.

The Zerg male was dressed in magnificent and expensive black attire. His black hair, which contrasted sharply with Arui’s golden locks, cascaded softly behind him. His originally sharp features softened the moment he saw Ivan, and he stood up respectfully with a smile.

Ivan watched this sequence of changes calmly, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his own mouth.

“Arui and Lotte have gone out,” Tovis said.

“Hmm,” Ivan replied noncommittally. He walked to the table, poured a glass of water for Tovis, and then poured one for himself.

“Thank you, Master,” Tovis said as he took the glass. After hesitating, he asked, “I am very grateful that you brought Arui back, but I was wondering if he could be enrolled in school here on Harley Star.”

When the incident occurred, Tovis had been unable to contact Arui, which was why he had begged Ivan for help. Now, although the situation with the military department remained unresolved, Tovis felt he could rest easy regarding Arui’s safety given his connection to Ivan. Thus, the idea of having Arui return to his studies had taken root.

So that is why he is being so well-behaved and well-dressed, Ivan thought. He was waiting for this. Ivan recalled that in the original story, the reason Tovis infuriated his master on their wedding night was precisely because of his younger brother.

“Of course he can.”

Ivan agreed without hesitation. Although Arui had previously attended school on the Capital Star, sneaking a transfer student into an elite school on Harley Star was not a difficult task for the Pushiu family. Moreover, Arui was a precious male Zerg.

“But tell me, has the matter with the military department been resolved? Why were you dismissed? You are not in any more danger, are you?”

Ivan asked a series of questions in one breath, staring at Tovis intently, trying to detect any flicker of emotion on his face.

Tovis’s expression remained unchanged as he replied, “I am not sure either. However, I have already been discharged and have moved far away from the Capital Star. I assume the other party’s objective has been met, and there should not be any further danger.”

“Ah, that is good to hear.” Finding nothing more to uncover, Ivan set down his water glass. “Get some rest. We will leave at six.”

“Understood.”

At 6:00 PM sharp, Arui had been returned by Lotte and was currently being bathed by him in the first-floor bathroom after a day of playing.

Ivan appeared downstairs on time, and Tovis was already prepared. They boarded the auction house’s private car, which had been waiting at the entrance, and headed for the auction venue.

In the well-insulated backseat, the two sat in silence. There was enough room between Ivan and Tovis for a third person to sit.

Ivan turned his head to look out the window, searching for a topic to break the awkward silence. Before he could organize his thoughts, the interstellar express had already arrived at the auction site.

The machine’s voice chimed inside the car. The door opened, and Ivan and Tovis stepped out together.

Night falls quickly on Harley Star. By 6:30 PM, the night sky was already filled with stars, but even more brilliant than the stars was the massive consumption venue standing before Ivan.

The building had a unique, arc-shaped design and was grey in its entirety, yet under the glow of the night lights, it appeared incredibly eye-catching.

Guided by mechanical attendants, Ivan and Tovis slowly walked into the auction house.

The sides of the passageway were inlaid with colorful gemstones. They stepped onto a transparent escalator and arrived at the room specified on their invitation.

The mechanical attendants left once they reached the door. The room was cozy, equipped with sofas, fruit, and a large screen for real-time viewing of the auction stage.

Ivan sat on the sofa and sighed comfortably, then pulled Tovis, who was standing to the side, toward him. “Sit down.”

Tovis followed the force of Ivan’s pull, but he sat at a distance, still huddled cautiously in the corner.

Seeing Tovis like this, Ivan worried. At this rate, when will we ever be able to open up to each other, resolve the issue with Tovis’s mental power, and save his life?

Just as he was fretting, a message from Ace arrived.

[The Handsomest Male]: Big White! I have arrived. Where are you? I want to see Tovis make a fool of himself right now!

Seeing the message, Ivan clicked delete and ignored it.

After learning of Ace’s schemes, Ivan had taken no action because, in his view, if Ace wanted to humiliate Tovis, he would have to meet him face-to-face first. It was easiest to just ignore him.

Though he could have avoided this entirely by not bringing Tovis, Ivan had already thought of a way to use this to gain favor with Tovis.

By bringing Tovis to the auction, where Tovis was strapped for cash, Ivan could bid on the heirloom for him. Even if it did not lead to Tovis offering himself in gratitude immediately, it would at least reduce his level of disgust. Ivan believed that as long as Tovis realized his good intentions, Tovis would not drag him down into death when his mental power collapsed.

Ivan thought about this with satisfaction, unaware that the moment the message had popped up, Tovis had seen it clearly.

An S-class female Zerg was not famous for nothing. Even though they were not sitting close, Tovis had seen the message on Ivan’s light-brain clearly, not to mention the enlarged font used for Special Attention contacts.

Tovis lowered his eyes, a chill passing through them.

The two of them sat, each with their own secret intentions, as the auction began.

“Respected male lords, welcome to the annual Harley Star Auction Gala!” The host was a robust female Zerg with an inverted triangle physique, wearing a tight black short-sleeved shirt; she looked quite provocative.

“Without further ado, let us look at the first auction item!”

As the host finished speaking, the white panel in the center of the stage opened, and the first item was revealed.

“This is a vial of pheromone extract from a fallen A-class male lord! The starting bid is one million star coins! Let the bidding begin!”

Although they were in a soundproof room, thanks to his excellent B-class male hearing, Ivan could hear the screaming of the female Zergs outside, which sounded as if they were lifting the roof off.

He looked at the center of the auction stage at the palm-sized white glass bottle filled with a thin layer of transparent liquid. As he listened to the increasingly absurd bids, Ivan clicked his tongue, unable to comprehend it at all.

Ultimately, the bottle of A-class male extract was sold for the sky-high price of 12 million star coins to a female Zerg.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk.” Ivan was deeply moved. He swiped on his light-brain and leaned toward Tovis. “Let us add each other as friends? I will transfer the money from your account to you. Bid on whatever you want.”

Tovis stared at the slender, pampered, and flawless wrist before him. For a moment, he was stunned. When he finally reacted, he said in a panic, “No, Master, what is mine is yours. Please, do not say such things.”

Tovis shook his head to refuse, but Ivan feigned displeasure. “You do not even want to add me as a friend?”

“No, that is not it,” Tovis explained, though he could not clarify properly. In the end, he showed his compliance by immediately adding Ivan’s contact information.

The moment they were connected, Ivan transferred all the star coins back to Tovis that he had taken from Tovis’s account when they registered their marriage.

Tovis looked at the money he had saved over the years appearing back in his system account, his emotions in turmoil. He did not understand what kind of game Ivan was playing.

During this time, the auction continued, and many more precious items were sold.

Ivan’s light-brain pinged incessantly; it was all harassing messages from Ace.

[Ivan! Where are you, kid?] [We agreed to meet at the auction; are you standing me up?] [What is wrong with you? Are you protecting Tovis?] [Forget your friends for beauty! Is Tovis really that good in bed?] [Where on earth are you?]

Glancing at the messages on the light-brain with his peripheral vision, Ivan frowned and simply turned the device off, choosing to focus on appreciating the various treasures in the auction.

Among them were some rare and precious gemstones. Ivan picked out a few to snatch up at a bargain, planning to find something to do with them when he got home.

Tovis sat quietly on the side the whole time, not participating in any of the bidding.

As the auction neared its end, the prices of the items became increasingly exorbitant. Ivan thought of the two million star coins in Tovis’s account and felt the chances of him being able to bid on the heirloom were slim.

But, he thought, if I bid on it for him, it will be the same.

Just then, the host’s voice rose again.

“Next, we have a very rare ore!” The host built up suspense before saying, “This ore is also connected to a famous female military officer!”

Ivan vaguely guessed what it might be. He sat up slightly, his gaze lingering on Tovis, who was sitting quietly to the side.

He heard the host continue, “That is right, this is an ore left behind by the father of one of the four Marshals of our Capital Star, Lord Tovis!”

Following the host’s introduction, a dark green, fist-sized rock appeared on the auction stage.

Ivan noticed Tovis’s expression change significantly and understood. He turned his head and, upon seeing the rock on the big screen, his pupils constricted and he stood up abruptly.

It is jade!

As a jewelry designer, Ivan was naturally extremely familiar with jade.

However, high-quality jade was rare in the modern era. Even though he was not short on money, he had never seen such a large, high-translucency Imperial Green jade before. In his world, it would be priceless.

Ivan’s mood was stirred, but remembering Tovis was still by his side, he restrained his emotions and sat back down.

Tovis frowned, obviously puzzled as to why the stone he had lost half a month ago appeared here. Of course, he also noticed Ivan’s abnormal behavior and could not help but feel suspicious.

“Starting bid, five million star coins.”

As the host’s voice rang out, Tovis clenched his palms. If Ivan is playing games behind my back, I will never let him go.

Ivan, unaware of Tovis’s thoughts and fearing he would miss out on such a precious item, quickly said, “Is this your item? I will buy it for you!”

With that, he immediately joined the bidding.

In that brief moment, the price of the ore had already reached ten million star coins. Ivan did not hesitate and immediately raised the bid: “11 million.”

[13 million!] “14 million!” [15 million.] “16 million.”

The price remained high, and Ivan frowned.

What he did not know was that the female Zergs were bidding because they wanted to use such beautiful stones to please their males, while the males themselves loved shiny things. Because of this, the stone was slowly being driven to an astronomical price.

“20 million!”

Following Ivan’s latest raise, the voices competing against him quieted down.

However, there was still one who would not give up. A voice, clearly modulated, came through.

[21 million.]

Ivan continued to raise the bid: “22 million.”

[23 million!] “24 million.” [25 million!]

The voice was clearly growing anxious. Ivan wore a confident smile. “26 million.”

This time, the voice hesitated for a long time. Just as Ivan was about to succeed in the bid, the voice raised it again.

[27 million!]

Ivan gritted his teeth. “28 million!”

Finally, the voice disappeared.

Ivan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

“Are there any other bids? 28 million going once, 28 million going twice, 28 million for the third time! Congratulations to our Guest Number 6!”

Ivan stood in the room, trembling with excitement, immersed in the joy of obtaining such a precious gemstone, without noticing the complicated and probing gaze Tovis had fixed upon him.