The Registered Man

The moment Kang Tae-o saw the cold words etched onto the wall, a twisted smirk played on his lips. The smirk was short-lived, however, as a new line of text scrolled down beneath it, glowing with a sterile, mechanical light.

The Reproductive Management Bureau. The very name was filthy. It didn't sound like an ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠organization meant to save lives; it sounded like something dreamed up by white-gloved bureaucrats who spent their days flipping through livestock ledgers. They pretended to revere him as humanity's last seed, but this was a blatant declaration that they intended to treat him as nothing more than a breeding stud.

"This era sure has a cold way of taking a shit," Tae-o growled.

Eve stepped up beside him. Her sleeves were torn, and a viscous blue coolant dripped slowly down her pale wrists. Her black uniform, soaked from the earlier blast of freezing air, clung to her body like a second skin. The wet fabric did absolutely nothing to hide her curves. With every breath she took, her voluptuous breasts swelled as if ready to burst from the fabric, and the sheer tension of her tactical suit left the distinct, tantalizing silhouette of her groin on full display, instantly catching Tae-o's eye.

She kept her expression perfectly neutral. Yet, the moment she noticed Tae-o's gaze lingering on her damp chest and the curve of her waist, her fingertips stiffened ever so slightly.

"Please... do not look," Eve said, her voice carrying a breathless, damp quality.

"That's rich coming from the one who pulled me out of a glass jar to gawk at me first." Tae-o roughly grabbed her damp shoulder. The wet texture of her tactical uniform felt surprisingly hot against his palm.

"The current circumstances are... different."

"Yeah. Right now, you're soaked, and I'm bleeding. Honestly, it makes me wonder just how dripping wet you are under that tidy little uniform of yours."

A blue light flickered violently deep within Eve's eyes. Tae-o let out a low chuckle and lightly ran his tongue up her earlobe.

"Don't worry. We'll call it even for the show."

"That joke is... highly inappropriate."

"Your face says you want to be devoured right here and now, though."

Eve didn't reply. Her silence only made the cold air of the Registration Room feel hotter, stickier. The circular room was stark white. Rings of light were embedded in the floor, and recording drones hovered near the ceiling. In the center stood a transparent scanning ring. It felt like a hospital. Or a courtroom. Or perhaps a slaughterhouse designed to force artificial insemination tubes into a cow's womb. All three were places where a person could be pinned down and violated at will.

Tae-o looked up at the ceiling. "A piece of hardware to be refurbished, huh?" He tapped his chest with a bloody hand. "There's a human being standing right here. Stop looking for an object. If you want to see my 'object' so badly, why don't you crawl down here and lick it yourself?"

The smirk vanished from Tae-o's face.

"'Male,'" Eve murmured softly. "That is the term used for registration."

"More like a label slapped on a genetic freezer. I bet they're already taking numbers to see who gets to take my seed first."

He took a step forward. A ring of light rose from the floor. Ankles. Knees. Waist. Chest. His body was sliced into digital measurements. As the ring of light passed over his groin, Tae-o felt the deeply invasive, unpleasant sensation of his manhood being scanned in excruciating detail.

Tae-o kicked the scanner pillar. Crash! The ring of light shattered. A shrill alarm filled the room.

Eve immediately spoke up. "Overruled."

"Forced restraint prior to full recovery will increase physical damage. Furthermore, psychological distress will degrade sperm quality."

Tae-o glanced at her. "Fancy packaging, huh?"

"What do ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you mean by that?"

"I mean, is your plea to keep me unbound just to prevent 'product damage'? Or is it because you want to tie me up and enjoy me all to yourself later?"

A drop of blue fluid dripped from the edge of Eve's wet sleeve. "It is... not that."

"Then what is it? Because your eyes look like they're begging to be pinned beneath me, crying out for it."

Eve couldn't answer. She was a warden, a shield. Yet, the trembling look in her eyes right now was unmistakably that of a woman.

Tae-o listened to the end, his bloody fingers curling into a fist. "Fine," he muttered, his voice dropping an octave. "So the state wants to catalog me and lock me in a warehouse? And then they'll send in women one by one to milk my seed?"

"Then tell me exactly how it is," Tae-o said, stepping closer to the wall. "You call a living human being a 'genetic asset,' decide who gets to look at him, who gets to touch him, and eventually put a price tag on every single drop of my cum. Isn't that right, my pretty little warden?"

Eve couldn't answer. Even the ceiling fell silent for a moment. That brief silence was all the confirmation he needed. A panel beside the door slid open, revealing a handprint scanner.

Tae-o snorted. "Confirming intent, not consent. You force me into this and just expect me to sign on the dotted line."

"Steal first, write the receipt later. Typical bastards." He raised his bloody hand and slammed it onto the scanner.

Eve reacted a second too late. "Kang Tae-o."

"What? You told me to sign. If you want my seed, you're going to have to tolerate a little filth." He ground his palm against the scanner. The drying blood on his hand smeared deep into the crevices of the panel, mixed with shards of shattered glass and tiny metal fragments embedded in his skin from stepping over the drone wreckage. The panel flashed a frantic blue.

Tae-o didn't pull his hand away. Instead, he pressed down harder. "Record it," he sneered, his lips curling upward. "Let them know this wasn't given willingly, and it's far from a clean sample. If you want to covet my body, you'll have to choke down the smell of my blood and my bloodlust along with it."

Good. The first scratch on their perfect system. The paperwork was stained with blood. Just then, Eve took a step forward, her soft breasts pressing gently against Tae-o's arm. "Requesting priority local quarantine for field recovery," she announced. A new window popped up on the wall.

Tae-o read the text. Eve wasn't trying to set him free; it was still a form of confinement. It was just changing the name of his cell from a prison to a "protection ward." Yet, the phrase Close Care conjured up a strangely erotic image in his mind.

"Determined by Central, huh?" Tae-o laughed. "So Central has already decided who gets into my bed before the owner of the body even knows about it?"

"Does splitting it into three words make the theft sound any prettier? In the end, you're all just bitches salivating over the hot seed inside my body." He slammed his bloody palm against the wall. Blood smeared over the glowing blue letters. The screen had no way to wipe it clean.

"Yeah, write it down," Tae-o bared his teeth. "Tell them they tried to tag a wild beast and got dragged into the mud. And tell them that beast is going to snap all of your leashes very soon."

Eve spoke softly. "Central will view this behavior as a hostile act."

"Then they're finally seeing things clearly." He lowered his bloody hand. "I am an enemy. I'm not some sterile sample you bitches can just handle however you please."

Eve didn't respond. Her silence wasn't agreement, nor was it a denial. She couldn't bring herself to call him an enemy. Instead, her gaze wandered hungrily between his damp thighs and his rock-hard abs, her possessive desires laid bare.

A medical arm slid open from the wall. Attached to the end was a slender extraction module. It didn't look like a needle; it was smaller, designed to slide deep into the most sensitive parts of his body. Tae-o grabbed it. "What the hell is this now? Trying to scoop out my balls?"

Eve's face stiffened. "Advanced extraction prior to local stabilization is outside my authorization. Central is violating protocol."

"So Central is trying to sneak a hand in. They must be desperate for my seed." He twisted the joint of the medical arm. *Screeech.* The metal shrieked under his grip.

"No. If you want to touch my body, you ask for my permission first." He ripped the entire module out. Small, transparent vials slid out from inside.

At the last line, Tae-o's face went completely cold. "A catalog price?" A low, dark chuckle escaped him. "Do these bastards think humans are canned goods? Or do they just see me as a cum-milking machine?"

He hurled the vials onto the floor. *Smash!* The transparent glass shattered, and red blood splattered over the fragments. Tae-o deliberately ground his foot into the mess. Glass, blood, coolant, and drone oil—the filthiest elements imaginable mixed together on the pristine floor of the Registration Room.

"Re-extraction?" He threw the broken module straight at the ceiling camera. *Crack!* One of the lenses shattered. "Use that word again, and I'll rip your tongue out. I don't know where a machine's tongue is, but I can certainly make you cry out beneath me."

A thin compartment slid open from beneath the floor, revealing rows of metal patches no larger than a fingernail. The lack of any writing on them made them even more repulsive. It meant they would write his name only after they were attached. It was no different from branding a slave.

Tae-o picked up one of the patches. It was light—so light it made him feel sick. "Even a dog collar has more effort put into it than this. If you want to slap this on my dick, come down here and do it yourself. Just be ready to lose a finger or two." He crushed the patch between his fingers.

A second patch floated up into the air. Eve reached out and snatched it, crushing it in her palm with a sharp *snap*.

"Forced tagging will cause physical trauma. His skin is highly sensitive," Eve argued.

Tae-o looked up. That was the filthiest part of all. "Acceptable parameters." Slapping a number on someone else's pain. "Hey," his voice dropped to a low growl. "The only one who decides what's 'acceptable' is the guy taking the hit. And the only marks you bitches are allowed to leave on my body are scratch marks."

He kicked the compartment. The patches scattered across the floor, and Tae-o stepped on them. One by one. Deliberately. The thin metal crushed to pieces beneath the soles of his feet.

"Out of stock, huh?" Tae-o let out a dry laugh. "Counting the labels for a human body like warehouse inventory. You're a real classy bunch of perverts."

Three nozzles descended from the ceiling. Eve stepped in front of them. "Sedative administration overruled."

"The risk of injury to the subject takes precedence. Forcibly suppressing his consciousness will trigger severe psychological backlash."

"Record it then," was her brief reply. But Tae-o noticed. Eve's left hand was trembling ever so slightly. Central was applying counter-force to her joints.

Tae-o took a step closer. "Eve."

"Yes."

"Does it hurt? Looks like Central is torturing that pretty little body of yours."

"My systems are designed to minimize pain perception."

"Which means it hurts."

He grabbed her wrist. The blue fluid smeared onto his fingers. He expected it to be cold, but it was lukewarm—the temperature of a living woman. Eve's fingertips stiffened. "Please let go. You will get dirty."

"You're perfectly fine with stealing my blood, but you're stingy with your own? It makes me wonder just how much hotter you are on the inside." Eve looked at him. They were so close. The scent of cold metal, a faint floral aroma, and the raw fragrance of a woman's skin wafted from her wet uniform.

Her gaze swept over his damp chest and his scars before settling on his hand—a hand stained with a mixture of red blood and blue fluid. She raised her hand as if to wipe it clean, but hesitated, then lowered it again. "What's wrong? Will your precious Central punish you if you touch me? Or are you just dying to have me touch you instead?"

Eve's eyes wavered. "Your wounds may reopen."

"You never run out of excuses, do you?" He held out his hand. "Wipe it. Let's see just how tender those hands of yours can be."

Eve's eyes trembled. She pulled out an emergency bandage and wrapped it around Tae-o's hand. Her fingers slid slowly along his palm. Though she applied the perfect amount of pressure to the wound, her thumb lingered on the inside of his wrist for far too long. It wasn't medical treatment; it was a caress.

Tae-o spoke in a low murmur. "I thought this was an exam." Eve's hand froze. "Why are your hands acting like a lover's? Is it because you're already dripping wet down there too?" A crack appeared in her perfect, stoic facade. "I am... merely performing my protective duties." "Cut the crap. Your eyes are screaming that you're desperate to get fucked." Eve couldn't pull her hand away. Tae-o kept a light but firm grip on her wrist.

"External viewing," Tae-o muttered under his breath. "So they're coming to look at me in person now? To see if my cock lives up to the hype?"

Eve spoke. "It appears the 1st Restoration Research Lab is connecting. Researcher Seira is personally taking action."

A section of the floor parted, and a low transport chair rose. It was a device designed to fold a human body neatly for transport.

"Keep your recommendations to yourself," Tae-o sneered, walking over to the chair. Eve made a move to stop him but hesitated. He yanked at the chair's harness, pulling out the elastic metal straps. He wrapped them tightly between the headrest and the floor anchor—a technique used to bind prisoners of war.

"All restraint gear is basically the same. The guy who's been tied up before knows them best. Don't worry, I'll use this exact same method when I tie you to my bed later."

The voice from the ceiling changed, sounding slightly more human.

"A queue?" His bloody hand clenched again. "Are you putting up a real estate listing for a single man? Is there a line of bitches waiting to get their hands on my seed?"

"Which means that's exactly what it is." He shoved the broken chair hard against the wall. Crash!

Tae-o burst into genuine laughter when he saw the last line. "If wanting to own my own body means I need 'control,' then every single one of you bitches needs to put on a collar and bark beneath me."

From one side of the wall, thin, transparent sheets of film began to slide out.

Tae-o snatched the film. It felt hot to the touch.

"Eve."

"Yes."

"Does this melt if it gets hot?"

"It deforms under high temperatures."

"Perfect. Let's burn it." He pressed the exposed battery terminals of the broken extraction module against the film. Sparks flew. The transparent film curled black, emitting a pungent, burnt odor.

"So even your precious documents burn. I wonder if your sense of chastity will burn just as easily." He jammed a bloody shard of glass into the terminal. Sparks showered the room, and the screen flared back to life in a crimson hue.

Ten minutes. On the battlefield, ten minutes was an eternity. And it was more than enough time to break a woman.

The wall lit up once more, displaying several concentric circles labeled: Central, Research, Protection, Medical, and Breeding Integration.

This time, Eve didn't hesitate. A thin cable shot out from her wrist and plugged directly into the port. "I am locking the doors to this room. No one will lay a hand on you." Sparks flew, and Eve's fingers trembled. Tae-o saw the tremor. She was trying to protect him, yes, but she was also trying to monopolize him.

He jammed the crumpled metal patch into the slot of the second pillar, forcing more of his blood inside.

Tae-o didn't stop ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠there. He smashed the pillars and tore at the wiring, scrambling the circuits.

Fifteen minutes. Tae-o panted, a wild grin on his face. A single ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠piece of bloody, mangled junk had completely tangled Central's pristine network.

Eve's cable was forcibly ejected. Blue sparks scattered along her wrist. She stumbled, dropping to one knee, but immediately forced herself back up. "Looks like you're on Central's shit list now. Care to join me in hell?"

"It is already recorded," she replied without hesitation. "I will go anywhere with you."

She didn't sound like she was lying. Which only made things more complicated.

The lights in the stabilization room cut out completely. All remaining light was sucked into the central wall.

Eve stepped in front of him. Her wet uniform gleamed dark under the crimson warning lights, accentuating her voluptuous silhouette. Past her shoulder, Tae-o saw blue particles beginning to materialize. Someone was coming. Someone with a tongue that would call him an "asset." A woman who wanted nothing more than to pin him to a lab table and dissect his secrets. Tae-o bared his teeth in a savage grin. "Good. Let's see her face when I drag her into the dirt. A researcher desperate for my seed... now that's an experiment I can get behind."