A cold wind swept past, carrying the scent of male pheromones.
The jumble of different smells was not pleasant.
Wen Ran, who had grown up pampered and privileged, was naturally unaccustomed to such smells.
She wanted to say she would rather wait elsewhere but was afraid of making Ize angry.
Ize saw the young woman’s troubled expression and smiled.
He released his pheromones, enveloping her and blocking out the scents of the other males.
The pleasant scent of cedar washed over Wen Ran’s senses, and she was deeply moved.
Ize produced an invitation and was quickly led by the auction house staff to a VIP room on the second floor.
It was called a VIP room, but it was only a slight improvement over the filthy hall below.
The walls were yellowed, and the room had a musty smell.
Wen Ran gazed at the sofa, so grimy its original color was indiscernible, and her lovely, willow-leaf brows furrowed in a pitiful wave.
Ize pursed his lips, took a thin blanket from his Storage Ring, and tossed it over.
Wen Ran’s face immediately lit up.
She took out a tissue and used it to spread the blanket open.
“Brother, please sit.”
The auction began five minutes later, and items were brought up one after another.
Pheromones, suppressants, jewelry, weapons—there was a bit of everything, though it was all low-grade.
The Butterfly Storage Ring that Wen Ran had her heart set on was still nowhere to be seen.
Wen Ran grew impatient, but Ize, next to her, remained as still as a mountain.
She tilted her head to look at him, her gaze lingering on his handsome features.
‘I wonder which lucky woman will end up with such a handsome man.’
‘In my past life, it seemed that even up to the day I died, I never heard anything about him getting married or having someone he liked.’
With that thought, the last trace of guilt she felt about her ‘wicked’ idea vanished.
‘He’s an unclaimed “item,” so what’s wrong with me taking a shot?’
“Do I look good?”
“Very.”
The man chuckled, and Wen Ran snapped back to her senses.
She wrung her hands, about to explain, when a commotion erupted in the auction hall below.
She turned back to the holographic projection and saw a vial of milky-white pheromones resting inside a secure case on the auction stage.
She also noticed that her “brother” had sat up and pressed the bidding device a few times.
“A bid of five hundred thousand Star Coins from VIP Room One.”
Wen Ran was shocked.
Pheromones were rare, but you could still buy them for a hundred thousand Star Coins or so.
Besides, the major families had a steady supply of pheromones for their clan members and had no need to make additional purchases.
In her daze, the price for the milky-white pheromones had already soared to two million Star Coins.
Wen Ran felt a pang of heartache.
‘Two million for a single vial?
Then what did all the blood drawn from me over the years count for???’
‘Selfless dedication???
Finding joy in helping others???’
“Brother, that’s too expensive.
Let’s just drop it.”
“A bid of three million Star Coins from VIP Room One.”
“Brother!” Wen Ran shot up from her seat in shock.
‘Has Ize gone mad?’
“A bid of five million Star Coins from VIP Room One.”
“Going once, going twice, three times…
Sold!
Congratulations to our guest in VIP Room One for winning the item.”
A moment later, a staff member walked in carrying a silver secure case.
Ize took out a gray digital card and paid the five million Star Coins.
Transactions via the Smart Brain were all tied to real-name verification.
Those who needed to conduct shady business without leaving a name used gray digital cards, which left no trace.
Wen Ran sat on the sofa, pouting, as angry as a puffed-up pufferfish.
Two more items went by before the Butterfly Storage Ring finally made its belated appearance.
On the holographic projection, an ice-blue butterfly rested on a black velvet jewelry box.
The butterfly was stunningly lifelike, its wings as thin as a cicada’s.
The starting bid was one million Star Coins.
‘One million…
that’s two months of my allowance!’
But then, remembering Ize’s extravagance just now, she bit her lip and slammed the bidding device.
“A bid of two million Star Coins from VIP Room One.”
“Three million from VIP Room Two.”
“Five million from VIP Room One.”
Five million.
Wen Ran’s heart was bleeding; that was her absolute limit.
She stole a glance at Ize, only to see him focused on official business on his Smart Brain, seemingly oblivious to what she was doing.
She prayed silently, hoping no one else would continue to bid.
“Going once…
going twice…”
The light for the room next door lit up.
“A bid of ten million Star Coins from VIP Room Four.”
Wen Ran’s eyes reddened with anger and jealousy.
Sniffling, she lowered the bidding device.
BEEP-BEEP-BEEP~
The bidding device rang out.
“A bid of twenty million Star Coins from VIP Room One.”
Her eyes flew wide in shock as she stared at the man beside her in disbelief.
‘Wasn’t he supposed to be busy with work?’
“Didn’t you want it?”
Wen Ran nodded, then shook her head.
‘I want it!
But I don’t have the money!’
Seeing her hesitate, a chill came over Ize’s expression.
“Remember this: if there’s something you want, you must obtain it at any cost!”
This was his life’s creed—with only one exception.
In the quiet, dilapidated VIP room, Wen Ran looked at the unusually serious Ize, and her heart trembled.
“Then will you support me, Brother?” Wen Ran asked tentatively.
“I will.”
“Even if it means…” ‘Even if it means going against Mom and Dad?’
She wanted to ask but felt the very idea was ridiculous.
‘My supposed parents are his biological parents.
What exactly am I expecting?’
Ize’s refined features grew cold.
“Hm?”
Wen Ran shook her head.
“N-nothing.”
In the end, the Butterfly Storage Ring was purchased by Ize for twenty million Star Coins.
In the underground passage, Wen Ran looked down at the Storage Ring on her index finger, her eyes crinkling as she smiled like a little fox that had just stolen a chicken.
In the dim, yellow-lit space, the ice-blue butterfly emitted a soft, shimmering glow, looking utterly beautiful.
She was in such a good mood that she didn’t notice the man in front of her had stopped walking.
She bumped right into his broad back.
His muscles were hard.
Her nose stung from the impact, and a corner of her mask slipped down, revealing her porcelain-white skin.
She pouted.
“Brother?”
A cold wind, thick with the potent scent of male pheromones, swept past.
Only then did she realize that several strangers had appeared before them.
The men wore no masks, and the scars on their faces and bodies made it clear they were not good people.
Terrified, Wen Ran grabbed Ize’s arm, and in the next instant, she was pulled into a warm embrace.
The scent of cedar attempted to overwhelm the pheromones released by the other males.
But it was too late.
Wen Ran’s body had been specially modified, and such a high concentration of male pheromones directly triggered her addiction.
Her breathing grew ragged, and her body went so limp she could barely stand.
The arm around her waist tightened.
Her rose-juice pheromones began to leak out uncontrollably, causing the men opposite them, who had originally intended to rob them, to grow flustered and aroused.
Their eyes turned bloodshot as they tried to approach, only to be forced to a halt by Ize’s glacial stare.
He swept Wen Ran up into his arms and strode swiftly and steadily toward the exit.
“Boss, are we just going to let them go?”
The scar-faced leader narrowed his eyes and lit a cigarette.
“He’s S Level.”
The man who had spoken choked.
‘We really picked the wrong target.’
‘Good thing that little female had a reaction, otherwise we might not have made it out of there alive.’
“Still, that female’s pheromones smelled damn good,” the man said, smacking his lips.
Ize carried Wen Ran, whose body temperature was steadily rising, aboard the Starship.
By now, Wen Ran’s cheeks were flushed, her heart rate was skyrocketing, and her pupils were beginning to lose focus.
“Get me a calming agent!” Ize ordered sharply.
“Junior General, there are no females on the Starship, so…
we don’t have any calming agents on board,” the adjutant beside him said awkwardly.
Ize frowned.
“It’s awful…
I feel so awful,” Wen Ran whimpered, her voice thick with tears.
Her hands gripped the lapels of Ize’s suit, her eyes pleading.
“Give…
give it to me.”