I Activated Cheat Mode in a Bizarre Game

After I easily succeeded at the first challenge, the next task appeared on the screen.

[Read the following sentence aloud without error within 5 seconds.]
[The soy sauce factory manager is Mr. Kang, and the soybean paste factory manager is Mr. Jang.]
It was the kind of sentence used for announcer pronunciation tests I used to do often as a kid.
Honestly, I wasn’t confident.

I would’ve rather kept lifting heavy barbells like before.
It looked like it would be hard even for the trembling guy next to us.
He would definitely mess up while trying to pronounce it.

"...I’ll do it."
That’s when Rahee stepped up.
She took a few slow breaths, inhaled deeply, and pressed the red challenge button.

"The soy sauce factory manager is Mr. Kang, and the soybean paste factory manager is Mr. Jang."
She read the sentence perfectly, with clear and precise pronunciation.
She timed it well within five seconds, pausing once in the middle to control her breathing—she was quite skilled.

Even back at the underground hotel, Rahee had been easily frightened, but when it counted, she had guts.
[Success: 2/10 | Failure: 0/10]
[Reward after 10 successes / Penalty after 10 failures]
"Nice...!"

Without realizing it, I clenched my fist.
The next challenge displayed was aimed at someone specific.
[Mr. Choi, can you confess to your teammates the most shameful secret you’ve been hiding?]

"Mr. Choi...?"
I turned my gaze.
My name was Kim Minjun, so it clearly wasn’t me. And Rahee’s surname was Lee.
"...!"

The male team member, now the focus of Rahee’s and my gaze, went pale as a sheet.
He hesitated for a long time, fidgeting, then pressed the challenge button.
He confessed something he hadn’t told anyone—that not long ago, he had wet himself in fear after seeing a monster.

The mood turned awkward, but it was still a success.
[Success: 3/10 | Failure: 0/10]
Things had gone smoothly up to this point, more or less.

But the fourth challenge wiped the smiles from our faces.
[When 'Code Black' is issued under Emergency Operations Protocol Article 13 Clause 4 for the Frozen Lands Exploration Team, what is the top-priority asset to be secured?]
"...?"

I tilted my head the moment I saw the question.
The difficulty had clearly jumped.
I didn’t even know what Article 1 Clause 1 was, let alone 13 Clause 4.

This was the first I’d even heard of something called an emergency operations protocol.
Rahee, the male teammate, and I just looked at each other blankly.
"...Team Leader would’ve known this..."

As soon as the male employee said that, we all turned to look helplessly at Team 12’s unconscious leader.
He still lay passed out cold, eyes shut, using the hard floor as a bed.
We couldn’t attempt this challenge.

"...I don’t know."
In the end, we pressed the blue [Forfeit] button.
The words [1 Forfeit] flashed briefly on the screen.

Immediately after, the fifth challenge appeared.
It was far more malicious and grotesque than anything that had come before.
[Can you sever the first knuckle of your left index finger within 1 minute and place it on the altar over there?]

With the task, a small stone altar rose from the floor beside the platform.
As if trying to be helpful, a small dagger rested next to it.
"What the hell is this?!"
"This is insane...!"

Rahee shouted in horror. This was no longer a quiz or test.
This was outright malice.
Of course it was impossible.

We didn’t hesitate and immediately pressed the forfeit button again. The message on the screen updated.
[2 forfeits recorded. Counted as 1 failure.]
[Success: 3/10 | Failure: 1/10]
Two forfeits added up to a failure count.

With this kind of task, this quiz-show monster—or rather, this digital screen—had clearly crossed the line.
I steeled myself.
If it keeps giving us problems like this, reaching 10 failures is only a matter of time.

I clenched my fist.
Maybe solving the questions wasn’t the real solution. Maybe I needed to deal with the scoreboard itself.
I wasn’t about to cut off a finger.

Whether that meant disabling the power or smashing the thing...
As I considered my next move, a new challenge appeared on the screen.
[Summon ‘Herald of the Night’ and defeat it within 1 minute.]

An image of a jet-black, crimson-eyed creature resembling a giant crow appeared on the screen.
It was better than cutting off a finger, sure—but clearly, this wasn’t just some ordinary bird fight.
It was called the “Herald of the Night,” after all.

It had to be a monster.
"That... that thing!"
"A crow...!"
Rahee and the male teammate next to me both recoiled in fright at the same time.

Their reaction wasn’t just fear from seeing the image.
There was something deeper.
"You know this monster?"

When I asked, Rahee nodded frantically.
"Yes! We... we encountered it a week ago! It's way faster than it looks and its beak is hard like steel... That time, even our team leader got badly hurt in the shoulder..."
Her voice trembled faintly, as if recalling the terror from back then.

The man beside her, his face still pale, nodded in agreement. It had been a tough fight for them.
"...Is it especially strong compared to other monsters?"
"Y-yes. It can fly, and it’s so fast... But if you’re comparing it to other monsters..."

The man seemed to hesitate, thinking it over.
I got the sense that, while troublesome like all monsters, it wasn’t overwhelmingly powerful compared to the rest.
It gave Team 12 trouble... but if it’s me now, and with this sword—

I tightened my grip on the Return Blade at my waist.
For my teammates’ safety—and to put an end to this damned quiz show—I couldn’t hesitate.
I had no choice but to keep moving forward.

And if it came to it, I’d try smashing the scoreboard then.
Fighting a monster was still a more reasonable gamble than giving up a finger.
"...I’ll take this one."
"What? Minjun-oppa, it’s too dangerous!"
"It’s okay. I have an item. You two, please stay back."

Rahee tried to stop me, but I strode firmly toward the red challenge button.
Just in case, I made sure they both backed away before I pressed it.
The moment I did, the air in the center of the room turned pitch black—and from within it, a massive crow-like monster began to emerge.

Flap. Fwup.
It twisted its way out of the tight space, revealing its head first, then slowly the rest of its body.
A razor-sharp beak. Blood-red eyes.

With each beat of its wings, jet-black feathers scattered across the floor.
"Ugh..."
Had crows always been this terrifying? Or was it just bigger than I’d expected?

Once it had fully emerged, the crow landed lightly on the floor.
Its wings made for a soft landing.
I stepped forward slowly to face it.

CAAW!
With a chilling cry, it spread its wings and lunged toward me.
I gripped the sword hilt tightly and lowered my stance.

Thanks to something I’d seen before, I struck a halfway-decent pose.
Shhhhk—!
I drew the sword from my hip and swung it straight ahead.

The blade tore through the air like a black flash, reacting to my will and strength.
It wasn’t some special technique—just a powerful draw slash backed by raw Strength and Agility, aiming straight for the monster’s torso—
Slicing sound—!
Thud. Thudump.

"CAAA—!"
The monster didn’t even get to finish its scream.
Its massive body was cleanly cleaved in two, collapsing limply to the ground.

Instead of blood, black feathers and dust scattered like mist.
[Success: 4/10 | Failure: 1/10]
The scoreboard updated. Silence filled the room for a moment.

Rahee and the male teammate stared at the remains of the split crow, then back at me, mouths agape in disbelief.
Their eyes were wide with shock and confusion.
I casually brushed the black dust off the blade and slid it back into its sheath.

My heart was still pounding, but I forced myself to look composed.
Then I exaggerated a little and spoke with feigned awe.
"See? The item really makes a difference... Thanks to this sword, my body ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ moved on its own."

As I said that, the two finally looked at each other and then excitedly began to speak.
"Ah... I thought you’d become a swordsman from some movie!"
"Seriously. It felt like watching a martial arts fantasy! Must be the item’s effect..."
They were saying things that would make any actual martial artist faint.

What I’d done just now was... honestly, more like a freak show.
No technique, just brute strength and stat abuse.
As the two continued to praise my item, the scoreboard displayed the next challenge.

[Offer up the sword as a sacrifice. Place it on the altar atop the platform.]
Simultaneously, the stone altar rose again from the floor beside the platform—identical to the one before.
"Huh?"

This was unexpected.
Apparently, the scoreboard had been listening in. It must’ve been annoyed by how helpful my item was.
"What, this sword...?"

I made a show of being reluctant.
Rahee and the male teammate also wore expressions of regret—How could they take away such a good weapon?!
Rahee even seemed guilty enough to try and stop me.

"...Let’s skip this one. You just used that item to beat the last challenge..."
"No. If I can succeed, I need to keep increasing the success count."
I sighed like I had no choice, then walked toward the altar.

Drawing the Return Blade from my waist, I ran my hand along the blade one last time like I was saying goodbye, then carefully laid it on the altar.
As soon as I pressed the button, the sword vanished into the stone with a faint light.
[Challenge completed!]
[Success: 5/10 | Failure: 1/10]

For the first time, the screen spoke in an almost gleeful tone.
And as if it had been waiting, the next challenge appeared.
[Summon ‘Herald of the Night’ and defeat it within 1 minute.]

The exact same challenge as before.
But now, I didn’t have a sword.
Rahee and the male teammate’s faces twisted in despair again.

Huh?
A faint smile spread across my lips.