I Activated Cheat Mode in a Bizarre Game

The other Baekho exploration team members who showed up late kept tilting their heads in confusion at the small tiger sitting obediently at my feet.
"A tiger cub… in the middle of the city…?"

I heard them muttering behind us.
None of us really knew how to explain this situation.
We weren’t even sure if this tiger—Daeho—was technically a monster or not.

So we all just stood there, lips twitching, struggling to find the right words.
"This, this tiger is…!"
That’s when, unexpectedly, someone stepped forward.

It was Bora.
In a slightly stammering voice, she started to explain.
"Ah, ahaha… This kid is m-my shikigami! A spiritual creature that helps with exorcisms! Sometimes it… transforms into a small animal like this… or gets bigger… That sort of thing! Yes!"

Her excuse was awkward, and all of us were tense inside, but to our surprise, the Baekho team seemed to accept her explanation with surprising ease.
They whispered among themselves.
"Ah, she’s the exorcist who got scouted at the team leader level, right…?"
"A shikigami, huh… Exorcists really are built different."

Apparently, Bora’s reputation in the field helped a lot here.
They seemed to take it in stride, like it was just natural for a skilled exorcist to command a spiritual beast.
Since exorcists were rare, they seemed more inclined to believe it.

As they stared at Daeho in fascination, one young woman from the exploration team cautiously approached and held out her hand.
"...So cute. Can I pet him?"
Daeho, clearly uncomfortable or wary of the unfamiliar touch, backed away slightly and tried to hide behind my leg.

I gently stroked his back and murmured in a low voice,
"It’s okay. She won’t hurt you."
Whether he was reassured or just resigned to his fate, Daeho quietly allowed her to touch him.
The woman stroked his soft fur and gasped over and over again about how adorable he was.

Good. Let them see you’re just a gentle tiger.
Seeing Daeho accept the petting so calmly erased any lingering suspicion from their faces.
"We’ll hear the full story later. We’ve got another site to head to now."

A man who seemed to be their leader got a call over the radio, gave us a quick nod, and then led his team away.
The moment they left, all of us let out a collective sigh of relief.
It felt like the life had drained out of our bodies.

Park Sunja suggested that we all go home and get some rest for now, and we readily agreed. The absurdity of the shoot had left our bodies and minds completely exhausted.
As we were getting ready to go our separate ways and saying our goodbyes, I glanced down—and saw the small tiger still sitting at my feet, staring blankly up at me.
Wait a minute.

Am I really supposed to take care of this guy now?
I already have Leo.
A wave of very real, very practical panic hit me. My head throbbed.

In the end, I couldn’t turn Daeho away.
I couldn’t just leave him in front of the Baekho building, and there wasn’t exactly anywhere else I could hand him off to.
So I had no choice but to hide him carefully in ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) my arms and take a taxi home.

Maybe it was because he felt cramped, or maybe he was just grumpy, but Daeho kept growling low in my arms—"Grrrr… grrrrowl…"—and I broke out in a nervous sweat.
Sure enough, the taxi driver eventually glanced at the rearview mirror and asked,
"Um… sir, do you hear something back there?"
"Ah, that…"

My heart dropped.
Panicking, I clutched my stomach and forced a calm tone.
"Ah, no, it’s nothing, sir. I just… have an upset stomach today. That’s probably the sound you’re hearing…"
"Oh no, poor thing. If you feel sick, just say the word."
"I’m okay… Thank you…"

Thankfully, he didn’t ask anything else, but I spent the rest of the ride in a cold sweat, praying Daeho wouldn’t make any louder noises.
And just like that, after all that chaos, I finally managed to smuggle the tiger into my home.
"Leo, I’m home."

As soon as I opened the door, Leo—who had, as usual, claimed my bed as his own—meowed warmly at the sight of me.
But that only lasted a moment.
The instant he sensed something unfamiliar, he leapt to his feet, all his fur standing on end, and hissed sharply,

"Hisssss—!"
The sound wasn’t directed at me.
Maybe it was Leo’s hiss that provoked him, but Daeho, who had been squirming in my arms, suddenly pushed his head out of my shirt and leapt down to the floor.

The small, cuddly form from a moment ago was gone—he lowered his body, growling in a deep, threatening tone.
"Grrrrrrrr…"
A tense standoff immediately erupted between the two felines.

To my surprise, Daeho and Leo were now almost the same size.
One had sleek black fur and a sharp, elegant form.
The other had golden fur and an awkward, almost clumsy air—but with the unmistakable pressure of a predator.

They stared each other down, eyes locked, as if they were seconds away from lunging.
"You two!"
I couldn’t take it anymore.

I clicked my tongue and smacked the floor with my palm—my usual discipline signal.
Leo, already familiar with it, and Daeho, who still remembered the beatdown, both glanced at me with annoyed expressions.
Still growling at each other, they turned their heads away with a loud "Hmph!" of forced restraint.

The immediate danger seemed to be over, but I couldn’t help sighing.
Yeah… this first meeting between my two roommates was definitely not off to a great start.
It felt like things were going to get real noisy around here.

As I watched the two growling beasts reluctantly retreat to their respective corners, a sudden realization hit me.
"What am I going to do for dinner?"
Leo, as always, could just have his premium cat food.

But that little tiger—Daeho—could I feed him the same thing?
Even if he’d shrunk, he was still a tiger at his core.
I quickly pulled out my phone and searched, "Can tigers eat cat food?"

Of course, there were no answers.
Who the hell would think of feeding a tiger cat food? My situation was just that special.
"...Raw meat should be okay, right?"

After thinking it over, I decided to go buy some myself. Surely tigers liked raw meat.
These days, even convenience stores sold decent-quality cuts, so it wouldn’t be hard to get.
Grabbing my wallet, I glanced back at my two feline roommates, both still glaring at each other from opposite ends of the room.

"If you two fight while I’m gone, you’re both in big trouble. Got it?"
Maybe it was just my imagination, but they both seemed to understand me.
They stayed put, keeping a healthy distance between them.

Good enough.
I picked up some nice cuts of pork shoulder and belly at the convenience store and hurried back home.
When I came in, it was clear the two had already claimed their territories.

My bed still belonged to Leo.
My computer chair now belonged to Daeho.
Guess they both liked soft places.

Even though I’d only added one more roommate, the house already felt way smaller.
"...I’m going to need a bigger place."
Once I officially joined Baekho, I’d have to seriously consider moving.

I prepared each of their meals.
Leo got a full bowl of his usual luxury cat food.
Daeho got fresh raw meat, cut into easy-to-eat pieces and served in a separate bowl.

Leo looked back and forth between the two bowls, then gave me a look like I’d stabbed him in the back and let out the saddest cry I’d ever heard.
"...Yaaaaooow… kyaaaaooow…!"
Normally he just purred, but now he was wailing like a proper cat in deep betrayal.

As if to say, How could you do this to me?
Daeho, watching from the side, let out a smug little growl that almost sounded like laughter.
"Grrowl… kyarrhrhrh…"

Leo, even more upset, clung to my leg and scratched at my calf with his front paws.
It didn’t hurt, but the desperation was clear.
"Come on, Leo. Your food is more expensive, you know… Fine, fine."

I hurriedly looked up whether cats could safely eat raw meat.
Thankfully, it seemed that in moderation, with the right cuts, it was okay.
I sighed in relief and prepared another bowl of raw meat for Leo, just like Daeho’s.

And just like that, the cat and the tiger sat side by side, noses deep in their bowls, devouring their meals in perfect harmony.
I had a bad feeling that from now on, my fridge would be stocked with more raw meat for them than actual food for myself.
But seeing them eat so happily did warm my heart.

"Yeah… I’ll work hard to feed you."
Just like that, I’d found another reason to earn money.