I Activated Cheat Mode in a Bizarre Game

Bzzzt—!
As the ominous sound rang out and a blue light flickered, I instinctively threw myself backward to dodge—but several stray arcs of electricity still grazed my arm.

With a jolt of pain came the smell of burning flesh… or so I expected.
“…?”
My arm was fine.

Even though that powerful shock had just grazed me, only my clothes were singed.
Not a single scratch marked my skin.
Was ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ this… because of my stats too?

Maybe I had been misunderstanding something.
I had assumed the Strength stat only affected pure physical power.
But this latest experience made me consider another possibility.

Maybe Strength affected not just muscle power, but also physical durability or resistance.
In fact, that was common in many games.
Raising Strength didn’t just increase attack power—it sometimes improved stamina or health too.

I needed to reconsider the meaning of my stats.
At the same time, I let out a self-mocking chuckle.
Come to think of it, even though my Intelligence stat had gone up, I hadn’t suddenly become a genius or gained immense knowledge.

So Intelligence must also be affecting some other part of me.
Then what exactly was my high Intelligence stat influencing?
I cleared away the irrelevant thoughts flashing through my head. This was still a sparring match.

As the smoke from the Lightning Talisman lingered in the air, I stepped forward toward Bora without a moment’s hesitation.
She probably thought I’d been struck down or, at the very least, frozen in place.
But I was fine.
And fast.

“…!”
When I emerged through the smoke in an instant, Bora’s eyes widened in shock.
Before she could make another move, I pressed the tip of my mock sword firmly against the base of her neck.

Feeling the cold touch of the blade, her body stiffened.
Bora looked up at me with disbelief. Then, slowly, she raised both hands.
A clear gesture of surrender.

She pouted slightly as she spoke.
“…I lost. Cleanly. But are you really not hurt at all? I figured I might not win, but I thought I’d at least leave a mark…”
She muttered it like she was genuinely frustrated—and also disappointed that I’d come out unscathed.

I gave a bitter smile.
“It was dangerous.”
“…Liar. It wasn’t dangerous at all. I only used the Lightning Talisman because I thought you’d be fine.”

“…”
Was Bora just weak?
No. Absolutely not.

That Lightning Talisman she used at the end was more intense and threatening than any item or monster attack I’d experienced so far.
Its power could’ve roasted a normal person alive on the spot.
Yet I took it almost bare-skinned—and came out completely unharmed.

So this is it.
I had no choice but to acknowledge it now.
An arrogant thought, no doubt.

But still—
I think I’m strong.
Strong enough that I no longer need to be afraid of monsters.

“Supervisor Kim Minjun.”
Shun, who had been watching our sparring from afar, had now approached.
His eyes were far more serious than before—shining with a kind of eager desire.

“May I also—”
Just as he was about to speak—
“Wait a moment, Shun.”

Park Soyoung—or rather, now firmly recognized in my mind as Park Sunja—gently stopped him with a hand on his arm and addressed me directly.
Her expression held none of the previous awkwardness or fear.
Instead, it was filled with a resolute seriousness, like she had made up her mind.

“Mr. Kim Minjun, I’d like to speak with you for a moment.”
Shun looked a bit disappointed, but at her words—“It’ll be quick”—he said nothing more and returned to Hanbit and Bora.
I followed Park Sunja, putting some distance between us and the others.

When we reached a quiet corner of the training facility, she suddenly stopped and looked at me head-on.
Her gaze was astonishingly calm and intense.
It was hard to believe this was the same woman who had flinched and trembled every time we made eye contact just a short while ago.

“Mr. Kim Minjun… you already know, don’t you? About who I really am.”
A direct question.
I was momentarily flustered, but quickly masked my expression.

All I truly knew was that her real name was Park Sunja—and a vague suspicion that she might be a key character from the original Tale of Aberrations game.
Beyond that, I knew nothing.
But admitting that here would’ve been foolish.

If she had misunderstood me, that misunderstanding was something I could use.
I didn’t avoid her gaze. Instead, I nodded slowly, meaningfully.
As if I knew everything.

Park Sunja’s eyes wavered subtly at my response.
She let out a small sigh, then seemed to steel herself.
“…I thought so. When you said my real name back then, I figured… maybe you knew it all.”

She paused briefly to gather her thoughts.
“Let me speak honestly. The name Park Soyoung is an alias. My real name is Park Sunja. And…”
She looked directly into my eyes as she spoke.

“…I’m a spy sent by Baekho. I infiltrated under orders to investigate Dongto.”
A spy.
So my suspicion was correct.

But her next words were even more shocking.
“Mr. Kim Minjun, I’m sure you’ve realized it too—something’s not right about Dongto.”
“…”

Her voice was low and firm.
“You must’ve felt it by now. There’s something wrong with Dongto’s Exploration Team.”
She claimed I had already noticed.

I simply nodded without saying a word.
“The first clue was the practical test during the interview. Compared to the interviews I’ve had with Baekho or other companies… honestly, it was far too sloppy.”
“Sloppy?”

“Yes. I don’t mean the design of the labyrinth or the skill of the proctor. Of course, you were an exception… but the overall difficulty and evaluation criteria were bizarrely low. It felt like they weren’t testing applicants’ real skills, but something else entirely. Do you know what the pass rate was for our test?”
“…”
The pass rate?

I didn’t know.
All I knew was that the entire Group 8 I’d overseen had passed and were now designated Team 16.
“Half of us passed. Half.”

I was surprised at her words—it was the first I’d heard of it.
Back in the van after the test, most of my team had commented that the applicants had been disappointing overall.
Yet half had passed?

“The pass rate is too high… Honestly, I even felt it when I looked at your Team 15.”
“…When you looked at us?”
She spoke carefully, gauging my reaction.

“From what little I’ve seen, Team Leader Park Cheolwoo seems like someone who listens to his teammates. Ms. Seo Jihyun is calm and analytically sharp. Ms. Han Sora is always bright and cheerful, and helps keep the team’s spirits up. As people, I think they’re all wonderful.”
I agreed with that part.
“But… if we’re talking purely about combat or exploration ability, I honestly found them lacking.”

She said it flatly.
And I couldn’t argue.
Truthfully, I’d felt the same.

If any one of my teammates were to face a monster alone… I couldn’t imagine it ending well.
Park Sunja pointed toward the training ground, at Hanbit, Bora, and Shun.
“Look at them. Hanbit, Bora, Shun. By Baekho’s standards, they’re just slightly above-average exploration team members. Each has a clear specialty and a decent level of combat ability. But Team 15… Honestly, without you, I wonder if they could function as an exploration unit at all.”

Her words stung, but they weren’t wrong.
Comparing Hanbit, Bora, and Shun with our team…
It was clear we were lacking.

And that—that was Baekho’s average?
“…But the lower-tier teams in Dongto are usually in charge of monster management, so maybe they’re just calibrated for that…”
“Dongto is a top-tier company in the monster-related industry. There’s no reason for them to deliberately lower hiring standards for their lower teams.”

“…"
Her sharp rebuttal left me speechless.
If what she said was true, then something really was off about Dongto.

And that suspicion… pointed to an unpleasant future—for me and my teammates.
“Why are you telling me all this?”
“…Because Baekho is looking for people like you.”

Park Sunja pulled out a small, simply designed business card from her pocket.
On it was a clean tiger logo and a contact number.
“If you want better treatment and a safer environment, please contact us. …And if the rest of Team 15 wants to switch to office roles, we’d welcome them too.”

I accepted the card.
A scout offer.
As my thoughts swirled in confusion, another translucent window appeared before my eyes.

[Remain with Dongto, or transfer to Baekho.]
A quest window—clear as day, standing at a crossroads.