Maxver sat in the waiting lounge of the Matching Center's S rank wing, a section of the building he hadn't even known existed until the staff practically carried him there after his test results went public. The chairs were softer here. The air smelled faintly of jasmine instead of recycled metal. Even the receptionist robot was plated in gold instead of chrome.
"System, what kind of matches does an S rank male get?"
[S rank males are matched with high tier beast wives based on compatibility algorithms. Expect significantly stronger candidates than your previous household.]
"That's not saying much. A basket of rocks would be stronger candidates than my previous household."
His light brain chimed. A soft golden pulse behind his left eye, followed by a notification that expanded into five glowing profile cards floating in his vision.
He read the first one and nearly choked.
Sienna Blake. Five star Azure Phoenix. Age twenty three. Compatibility rating: one hundred percent.
Autumn Reyes. Five star Nine Tailed Fox. Age twenty two. Compatibility rating: one hundred percent.
Chloe Bennett. Five star Elk. Age twenty four. Compatibility rating: one hundred percent.
Winter Hayes. Four star Ice Soul Snake. Age twenty one. Compatibility rating: one hundred percent.
Riley Shaw. Three star Lion Cat. Age twenty. Compatibility rating: one hundred percent.
Five wives. Two five stars, one more five star, a four star, and a three star. Every single one matched at one hundred percent compatibility.
And not a single photo on any profile.
"Where are the pictures?" Maxver scrolled through the cards again, tapping at blank image frames. "Why can't I see what they look like?"
The staff member assigned to him, a middle aged woman named Director Huang with sharp glasses and an even sharper smile, leaned forward from across the desk. "S rank matching profiles are photo restricted for security purposes, Mr. Cole. High value males and high tier beastkin are protected from external targeting. You'll see their faces when you meet them in person."
"So it's a blind box." Maxver leaned back in his chair, staring at the five faceless profiles floating in front of him. "I just got handed five mystery women and I'm supposed to go with it."
"Mr. Cole." Director Huang's voice dropped into something almost reverent. "Do you understand what you're looking at right now? One hundred percent compatibility. With all five. I have worked at this center for nineteen years and I have never, not once, seen a single match hit one hundred percent. You have five."
"What does that actually mean though?" Maxver closed the profiles and looked at her directly. "In practical terms."
"It means your mental power frequencies are in perfect resonance with theirs." Her glasses caught the light as she straightened up. "Purification between you and these women will be exponentially more effective than standard pairings. Your mental power growth will accelerate dramatically. And from a biological standpoint, the likelihood of conceiving exceptionally talented offspring is as high as it can possibly get. You are looking at the rarest match configuration in the country."
Maxver let that sink in. Five wives, all perfectly tuned to him on a biological level. The original Maxver had spent his entire marriage clinging to five women who probably registered at thirty percent compatibility on a good day.
"What happens now?"
"Now you get acquainted." Director Huang pulled up a scheduling interface. "Each of your matched wives will receive their notification today. They have up to one month to move into your residence. I recommend reaching out through your light brain's friend request system and beginning communication immediately."
"One more thing." She smiled, and for the first time it looked genuinely warm. "Given your new S rank status and the tier of your matched wives, you are entitled to significant upgrades. We will be reassigning you a top tier S rank residence, a new S rank flying car, and an S rank butler robot. The housing authority will process everything within forty eight hours."
Maxver blinked. "You're giving me a new house?"
"The government provides for its S rank males, Mr. Cole. You are a national asset now."
A national asset. Yesterday he was a divorced laughingstock whose five wives compared him to insects. Today he was a national asset being handed a mansion and a luxury car.
This world was insane. He loved it.
Three miles east, on the Upper East Side of New York, the Blake family estate occupied the top four floors of a white marble tower overlooking Central Park. The living room alone was the size of Maxver's entire old apartment, decorated with crystal fixtures and furniture that probably cost more than most people earned in a year.
Sienna Blake sat on the edge of a velvet couch, her arms crossed, her jaw set in a way that told anyone who knew her that this conversation was already over.
Her father Robert Blake stood by the window, a tall man with silver hair and the posture of someone who had never been told no in his life. Her mother Diane sat across from Sienna, her legs crossed, her expression calm but carrying the particular kind of pressure that only mothers could apply.
"Chase Whitmore is the most eligible S rank male on the eastern seaboard." Robert didn't turn from the window. His voice was measured, the kind of calm that came before a storm. "His family controls three purification plants. His contamination value is managed by a dedicated medical team. Any woman matched with him would want for nothing."
"I don't care." Sienna's voice was flat and final.
"Sienna, be reasonable." Diane uncrossed her legs and leaned forward, her tone softening into something designed to sound like concern. "You're a five star Azure Phoenix. Do you know how many families would give everything to place their daughter in Chase Whitmore's household? And you're sitting here turning it down like he offered you something rotten."
"He is rotten." Sienna met her mother's eyes without blinking. "I've heard how he treats his current wives. He rotates them like furniture and throws them out when he gets bored. I am not furniture, Mother."
"All men have their quirks." Robert turned from the window, his face unreadable. "What matters is status, stability, and genetic compatibility. Romance is for novels."
Sienna opened her mouth to argue, but before a single word came out, her light brain chimed.
A golden notification pulsed behind her left eye. She blinked, focused, and the message expanded.
[Matching Center Official Notification: You have been matched with Maxver Cole. S Rank Male. Compatibility Rating: 100%.]
The room went silent.
"What is it?" Diane noticed the shift in her daughter's expression immediately.
"I've been matched." Sienna's voice came out quiet, almost disbelieving. "The Matching Center just assigned me to someone. An S rank male. One hundred percent compatibility."
Robert crossed the room in three steps. "One hundred percent? Show me."
Sienna projected the notification from her light brain onto the room's display screen. The golden text floated in the air, clear and unmistakable.
"One hundred percent." Diane pressed her hand to her chest, her composure cracking for the first time. "Robert, that's one hundred percent. I've never even heard of that outside of textbooks."
"Maxver Cole." Robert was already pulling up StarNet on his own light brain, his fingers moving fast. "Let me see who this man is."
The results loaded within seconds. And the first headline was not flattering.
[S Rank Male Maxver Cole Divorces Five Beast Wives In Single Day.]
Robert scrolled further. Comment sections were filled with old posts about the original Maxver's terrible temper, his possessive behavior, his reputation as a vicious and difficult husband.
Diane read over his shoulder, her brow furrowing. "He divorced five wives yesterday? And people are calling him violent and ill tempered?"
"Internet gossip." Robert closed the screen with a sharp flick. "Noise from bitter women and bored strangers. One hundred percent compatibility, Diane. One hundred percent. I don't care if this man yells at her every morning and throws plates at the wall on weekends. A match like this comes once in a generation."
"Your father is right." Diane turned to Sienna, her eyes bright with a certainty that left no room for debate. "Even if he scolds you, even if his temper is as bad as they say, you endure it. A compatibility like this means your children could be the most gifted beastkin this family has produced in a century. Pack your things. Go tonight if you can. Be the first wife through his door."
Sienna barely heard them. She was already pulling up her light brain, navigating to the social channel, her fingers hovering over a single button.
[Send Friend Request to Maxver Cole?]
She pressed it without hesitation.
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