I Activated Cheat Mode in a Bizarre Game

The sight of the massive Daeho descending from the mountain with its horde of deformed wild dogs was nothing short of spectacular.
No—“spectacular” didn’t quite capture it. There was something more complicated beneath the awe.

It felt like being prey.
Even just watching them approach was enough to choke the air from our lungs. The sheer pressure bore down on us like a weight, and the encirclement that crept down the slope left no room for escape.
The number of wild dog monsters was overwhelming. We were completely surrounded in Bora’s front yard.

And in the face of that despair, the first to speak calmly was Park Sunja.
She glanced over us all and said with an unwavering voice:
“…We have to fight.”

Bora’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“You’re—you’re thinking of fighting that tiger? Are you out of your mind?”
Her voice trembled, but when she realized there was nowhere left to run, she sighed and slowly nodded.

“My talismans… won’t work on Daeho. You saw the barrier talismans burn earlier. I’ll handle the wild dogs.”
With resolve in her eyes, Bora pulled several talismans from her waistband.
“There are too many wild dogs. We’ll assist you, Ms. Bora.”

Shun and Hanbit took up positions at her side, preparing for battle.
That left only Park Sunja and me.
And our opponent was the great tiger, shaking the entire mountain as it descended—Daeho.

Park Sunja turned to me and asked:
“Kim Minjun, are you up for this? It looks like the two of us will have to take on that tiger.”
Even Bora, her voice shaking, added:

“…Please be careful.”
I gave a silent nod.
Truth be told, I preferred it this way.
Compared to those grotesque wild dogs with twisted limbs and too many eyes, a tiger—while far more dangerous—felt just slightly less terrifying, at least psychologically.

…Or maybe not. The closer it came, the drier my mouth became.
I adjusted my stance.
My heart pounded like mad, but if anyone was going ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) to take that giant tiger on, it had to be me.

Grrrrr…
As Daeho let out a deep rumble, like a conductor raising his baton, the wild dogs surged forward in a wave, snarling and growling with blood-red eyes.
Their mangled bodies gave off a foul, rotten stench.

“They’re coming!”
Shun was the first to launch forward.
He moved like the wind, dodging their fangs and claws by mere hairs, delivering precise and rapid counterblows into their openings.

Each time his fists and feet landed, one of the wild dogs was sent flying with a yelp, but their numbers didn’t seem to shrink at all.
Then, Hanbit uncoiled a rope-like item from his belt and flung it low across the ground.
It slithered like a living snake and expertly tripped up several charging wild dogs at once, sending them tumbling and entangling with the others.

“Nice! You two, back off! Lightning Talisman—!”
Satisfied, Bora shouted, then tossed one of her talismans high into the air.
From a sky that had been clear moments ago, a swirl of blue lightning began to gather.

“Hup—!”
Shun dashed back and grabbed Hanbit, pulling them both away from the impact zone.
CRACKLE!

The talisman sparked, and a bolt of blinding blue light struck the spot where the fallen wild dogs flailed.
BOOOOOOM!
A thunderous blast rocked the ground, the smell of burnt flesh filling the air.

There were still wild dogs left—but those three could handle them now.
While the others were locked in battle, Daeho and I stood face to face, locked in a tense standoff.
The enormous tiger didn’t move, simply staring me down with burning red eyes.

I stared back, trying to measure the distance.
Beside me, Park Sunja was glancing back and forth between me and the script with trembling hands, visibly anxious.
I spoke to her quietly.

“…Trust me. Please don’t step in.”
She looked at me with worried eyes, but eventually gave a small nod.
She must have believed in what I’d shown so far.

I turned back to Daeho.
When I first met Leo at Dongto, that feral, wary cat had opened up to me within a day.
Of course, the beast before me was incomparably larger and more dangerous—but strangely, I could feel something about Daeho that reminded me of Leo.

“Easy now…”
“…Minjun?”
Just as I cautiously took a step forward, doing my best to appear non-threatening, Park Sunja called out in alarm from behind.
But I kept moving.

The moment I stepped forward, Daeho bared all its fearsome fangs and let out a guttural growl—then lunged at me like a bolt of lightning.
“Gah!”
The speed—it was like a storm had exploded in front of me.

Even with my trained eyes, I couldn’t fully track the movement.
I twisted instinctively, but its claws grazed me, tearing my clothes and leaving a shallow gash on my forearm.
Stinging pain and a line of red blood followed.

It was the first real injury I’d sustained since entering this world—tiny as it was.
But more than pain, it stirred something deeper: fear. The real, visceral kind—the feeling that I could actually get hurt.
And that fear—woke something in me.

Yes. I had to face this thing head-on.
I pulled a small piece of paper from my pocket.
A stat ticket.

I marked the section for Agility with a drop of blood from my scratch and tore it.
A message flashed before my eyes:
Agility+1Agility +1

“…Hoo.”
My body felt lighter instantly.
Clicking my tongue the way I did when Leo misbehaved—“Tsk-tsk”—I stepped toward Daeho again.

Maybe because it didn’t expect me to keep coming after that last attack, Daeho flinched, confused, and hesitated for a split second.
Grrrowl…!
I didn’t miss that moment.

In a flash, I closed the distance and grabbed the thick scruff of its neck.
Snap!
Its eyes widened in shock.

Even I was surprised by my own speed.
Grrrrrrrr!
Daeho roared and bucked violently, trying to shake me off, but I had no intention of letting go.

My grip clamped around its neck like a stone vise.
But its resistance was too wild.
So with my free hand, I slapped the bridge of its nose. Smack!

A reprimand.
I’d put some force behind it—hoping it’d knock the wind out of him a little—
RAWR!

But this thing was a tank. It took the hit like it was nothing and growled even louder, thrashing harder.
Then, suddenly, a blinding white light erupted from its body.
The force of light and wind blurred my vision—and in that moment, Daeho slipped free from my grip like a ghost and leapt backward.

“Huh? Just now…?”
Park Sunja, who had been watching everything unfold, murmured in confusion.
“The tiger… looks smaller now.”

I looked closely.
She was right.
The body that had towered like a house before—was noticeably smaller now.

Still huge—but the crushing pressure had faded.
Right as we were witnessing this strange phenomenon—Daeho shrinking after bursting into light—
“Wait. The script…!”

From beside me, the pages in Park Sunja’s hands began to tremble. The title printed on the script’s cover started to shift.
The ominous [Tiger Murder Case] faded away, replaced by new letters:
[Tiger Mayhem]

Compared to the previous title, it was almost comically silly.
But to us—it felt like the best news we’d heard all day.
After all, mayhem was a lot more hopeful than murder.

“Minjun!”
Park Sunja called to me with urgency—but also with certainty.
“Keep going! I don’t know what you did, but you have to keep shrinking the tiger! That might be the key to turning this around!”

I nodded.
Right after I grabbed its scruff and slapped its nose—Daeho had shrunk.
No other explanation made sense.

For now, I had to do the same thing again.
I stretched my hand out slowly toward Daeho, step by step.
Even smaller, it was still an enormous predator.

Grrrrng…!
Was it just my imagination?
As I approached, its massive body seemed to twitch slightly—like it was flinching.

I dashed in again, aiming once more for its scruff.
This time—I had to bring this Tiger Mayhem to an end.