The elevator doors slid open with a muted chime.
Shin stepped out first, flanked by Doctor Yuna, who was now dressed properly even though her face was still flushed. His two other assistants, Rei and Misaki, walked a step behind her. They held their heads up high as they prepared to meet the Director. The scent of sex still clung to them faintly.
The top floor of the medical tower was polished, quiet, and cold. Compared to the warm chaos of the lab, this place felt like a courtroom. Waiting for them was a single door with frosted glass, gold lettering.
National Affairs Director Sayuri Tanaka – UW Japanese Regional Division
Yuna hesitated. "She's already waiting. Be respectful, Shin. She's... different."
"So I've heard," Shin replied, already smirking.
He pushed the door open without knocking.
The office was professional, modern, minimalist. Floor-to-ceiling windows let in soft daylight. Glass walls. A polished obsidian desk. A towering indoor plant in the corner. Behind the desk stood Director Sayuri Tanaka. She wasn't what Shin expected.
Young. Maybe late 20s. Straight black hair like Yuna's, long and sleek, tied into a low bun. Pale, flawless skin. Crimson lips. Steel-gray eyes that locked onto him like weapons. Her uniform was tight-fitting, immaculate: a high-collared UW coat tailored to show off her curves, especially her full hips and chest.
Flanking her were four women in all-black tactical bodysuits, her personal bodyguards. All attractive, all armed, all staring at Shin like they weren't sure whether to shoot him or possibly devour him.
"Code Number 6," Sayuri said, her voice cool and elegant. "Please, sit."
Shin didn't sit right away. He took his time walking into the room, his gaze sweeping across the guards, then Sayuri. He smiled, slow and confident. He sat down like he had all the time in the world.
"You're younger than I expected."
"And you're more arrogant than I expected," she replied without missing a beat.
Sayuri gestured, and the guards left the room, except one. A short-haired blonde with a scar over one eyebrow. She took position by the door to make sure nobody else came inside the room.
"This is a secure space," Sayuri began, sitting across from him. Her crossed legs revealed sleek stockings beneath the slit of her skirt. "We can speak freely here."
Shin leaned forward. "Good. Then let's start off with all the major world events since I was asleep."
Sayuri tapped a control panel on the desk. A holographic map flickered into the air above them. Earth, marked with red zones, faded blue continents, and blacked-out territories appeared on the screen.
"Five years ago, the MK Virus emerged and decimated the male population. It spreads through skin contact and the wind. Only women survived it without symptoms. Males died within 24 to 48 hours, tragically."
"I figured it was bad," Shin said, crossing his arms. "But that sounds like genocide."
"It was. An unintentional one," Sayuri replied coldly. "And no cure has been found."
She rotated the hologram with a flick of her fingers.
"Out of eight billion people, less than ten thousand males survived globally. Most are infants or old men. Only a few hundred were frozen in cryo-stasis. Out of those, only a few special ones awakened and managed to survive in this world out in the open air."
"Like me."
"Exactly. Code Numbers. That is what the UW refers to you men. You are one of the most valuable assets to humanity right now. Currently, Japan has six of them, including you. Two more are still in cold sleep. Those being Code Numbers Seven and Eight."
Shin sat back, his mind processing.
Sayuri's eyes didn't waver.
"You are not just rare, Shin. You're essential. Humanity can't reproduce naturally without immune males. And because sperm banking wasn't preserved fast enough during the collapse, living, fertile men are now the single most precious biological resource on Earth."
Shin smiled.
"Does this mean you all have to rely on me and the other numbers for survival?"
Sayuri's lips twitched slightly. Not quite a smile. "That's the brutal truth."
"So what now?" he asked. "You put me in a glass cage and assign more assistants to ride me?"
"No," Sayuri replied, standing. Her heels clicked as she walked to the window. "You'll be transferred to Hano Medical University, near this facility. It's a repurposed elite college, now functioning as a reproductive and educational hub for UW candidates. It serves as the future home of Code Number 6, which is you."
She turned to face him, arms crossed under her chest.
"There, you'll live under surveillance. Participate in the controlled harem program. Choose partners from an assigned list. Breed. Educate yourself more on the biology. Maintain physical and mental conditioning. You will be expected to meet quota."
"So I'm a walking cock on a calendar."
"You're more than that," Sayuri said, eyes narrowing. "You're a symbol. If people start believing men like you can't be controlled—"
"Then what?" Shin interrupted. "You put me down?"
The tension thickened.
Sayuri stepped closer to him now, slowly, until only a foot of space remained between them.
"I heard your little declaration over the intercom," she murmured. "'I choose who, when, and how.' Very bold."
Her voice was cool. But her eyes were... curious. Challenged. She was playing it calm, but Shin could read her body language like a second language: the faint hitch in her breath, the way her thighs tensed beneath her skirt, the subtle clench of her jaw.
She liked the challenge.
Shin rose to his feet slowly, towering over her now. "Did it turn you on?"
Her lips parted, just slightly. Then she stepped back with practiced grace, regaining her control like a queen reclaiming her throne. She knew how to control herself. It's probably the reason she has the position of Director over the Japanese Branch.
"You'll report to your transport in two hours," she said sharply. "Your handlers will assist."
"Handlers?" he repeated.
"Dr. Saotome and her assistants will be stationed at the university with you. Their role is to ensure you comply with UW standards."
Shin turned to the window, hands in his pockets.
"I'm not playing savior, Director. I'm not Reito. I won't waste time pretending to be something I'm not. I will not be searching for the cure or lending a helping hand to the UW. I will, though, however, enjoy myself to meet your so-called quota."
"Good," Sayuri replied. "Because I don't need another savior."
"What do you need?"
Sayuri's expression remained unreadable, but her voice softened just slightly.
"I need results."
Shin looked over his shoulder, smirking. "You'll get them. Just be careful."
"Careful?" she echoed.
"You might end up wanting results... personally."
Sayuri's eye twitched. Just a little.