My whole body shivered the moment I sat down in the car seat. I felt that something bad was going to happen, but I ignored the feeling—there was nothing I could do but obey and go wherever they were taking me.
They weren't friendly at all.
Throughout the whole ride, they said nothing—just kept staring into my eyes, as if trying to see something inside them. Their gaze was terrifying.
There were four of them:
two men sitting beside me—one on my right and the other on my left—while the other two sat in the front, murmuring in a strange tone the entire way.
Their clothes weren't suspicious; in fact, they looked like ordinary people.
Each had his own taste in fashion.
But despite that, the questions kept spinning in my head.
I couldn't ask them anything—my tongue felt paralyzed.
Their bodies were athletic, perfectly healthy, and there was no other way to describe them except that they carried an aura of darkness—one that dragged my heart into misery throughout the whole drive.
My eyes kept darting left and right, trying to see through the car windows, but they were completely tinted from the inside.
I closed my eyes and tried to rely on my hearing instead—to figure out if I was still among humans or if I'd already been isolated from them.
My thoughts began working together, analyzing every sound I heard outside the car—
the noise of traffic, footsteps of people on the sidewalks…
I didn't know since when my hearing had become this sharp.
Now I could even hear the breathing of every passerby…
But then, suddenly, the sounds of cars and people started fading away, one by one.
It seemed like they were taking me somewhere far—far from the city, or maybe far from humanity itself.
My breathing grew rapid—so loud it almost made my mind explode for a moment.
Are they planning to take my organs and dump me somewhere dark, away from everyone?
I don't want to die alone, not like I lived my whole life.
Is this really my cursed fate?
It's funny—
I can't even defend myself.
A heavy hand suddenly shook my shoulder, and a sharp, rough voice spoke to me:
"Stop your yoga meditation and open your eyes. We've arrived."
That bastard was trying to be funny now.
I opened my eyes, looked at them, and gathered my courage to ask,
"Are we still in Tokyo? Where's the university I got accepted into?"
Their faces showed clear annoyance at my question.
The driver glanced at me through the front mirror and replied in a raspy, muffled voice:
"Get out of the car now, Iris-boy. Your questions will be answered later."
"Iris-boy"?
I didn't understand what he meant by that.
I thought maybe he was mocking me with some weird nickname—or using a code I didn't know.
Back then, I had no idea that I was the precious game piece they had been preparing for eighteen long years.
I got out of the car with the four men.
They weren't cautious or worried that I might run away—as if they already knew there was no escape from this place.
The place looked like a sparse forest—hard to describe.
I couldn't even tell if it was real or something they had created themselves.
It was completely isolated from civilization, filled with the scent of fear and loneliness.
The air was freezing, and rain was pouring heavily.
Each man had an umbrella to protect himself—except me.
I was soaked to the bone.
That's when I realized… I was heading straight into a hell I didn't yet understand.
Maybe the orphanage sold me.
And honestly—they were right to.
No one in this world would care if the earth swallowed me whole.
My whole body trembled from the cold; my teeth chattered, and my lips turned blue.
Damn it—was I still in Japan or in some icy grave?
My clothes dripped with water.
I wrapped my arms around my shoulders, bowed my head, blowing warm air into my hands and rubbing my body in a hopeless attempt to stay warm.
Meanwhile, the men kept checking their watches every five minutes,
as if waiting for something—or someone—to arrive.
And I stood there, clueless, shivering like an idiot, wishing only for a bit of warmth before I froze to death.
Then, just moments later, a massive black truck appeared in the distance, driving toward us.
The man standing to my left smirked, his expression full of wickedness:
"Finally, they've arrived. Our job will be over in a few moments."
At that instant, I felt something strange.
Tears welled in my eyes as I watched the truck approach, realizing just how deep the disaster I'd fallen into was.
When the truck stopped, the back door swung open.
A man stepped out—wearing a long black coat and a black mask covering his face.
He looked… strange.
His eyes were black, yet every second they flickered green, then back to black again.
A strange number was tattooed on his neck.
He walked toward me with calm, deliberate steps, hands behind his back.
He leaned slightly forward to look into my face and smiled.
"Welcome. We've waited a long time to meet you.
I'm Dr. Takumi.
It's a pleasure to meet you."
I stared at him, my eyes full of fear for what was coming next.
I swear, they were all a bunch of insane monsters.
He straightened his back like a soldier, turned to the men who brought me, and glared at them coldly—but with clear anger in his voice:
"How could you leave my dear Adam out here without an umbrella, freezing to death? How careless of you."
As the men tried to explain themselves, Dr. Takumi reached to his side, pulled out a small black gun, and—
in a blink of an eye—shot each one of them in the head right before my eyes.
Their blood splattered across my face.
I couldn't take it.
I was terrified—
a scream tore out of my throat so violently that it felt like it would shred my vocal cords.
Dr. Takumi approached me slowly, extending his hand.
"Come on," he said calmly. "Let's go. Your companions are waiting for you inside."
I took his hand.
We walked toward the truck, and the moment I stepped inside, the doors slammed shut—tight and soundproof.
There was only pitch-black darkness… and silence.
Still, I didn't react.
I didn't fight back or even try to escape.
I just wanted to see what these bastards wanted from me.
Then, out of nowhere, a strange male voice echoed in the darkness, deep and mechanical:
"Subjects will now be classified into different types.
Prepare yourselves in 3… 2… 1…
Let's begin."
Next....