I Activated Cheat Mode in a Bizarre Game

The company-provided housing was a clean officetel located in Incheon.
It was spacious and comfortable—unlike the rundown studio I’d lived in before.

I began adjusting to my new home.
Rahee had also been assigned to a different officetel nearby.
The actual work of the Exploration Team was, surprisingly…

Simple.
Just as Team Leader Park Cheolwoo said, Team 15’s main duty was to “manage” low-risk monsters that had already been fully explored and documented.
We’d report in, receive a briefing, head to the containment facility, pull out our smartphones, and then follow the manual—observe the monster, feed it something specific, or clean the containment room.

I was slowly getting used to the team, too. Team Leader Park still stammered a little and was shy around people, but when it came to work, he was more meticulous and cautious than anyone.
Seo Jihyun, despite her cold first impression, always answered my questions precisely without showing the slightest annoyance. She had the vibe of a reliable senior.
Han Sora was still bright and upbeat, always leading the mood and looking out for me as the newbie.

"...This is weird."
Things were far more peaceful than I expected—but somehow, I couldn’t relax.
It felt like the calm before a storm.

This world I’d possessed into wasn’t normal, and I had the uneasy sense that I shouldn’t let my guard down.
Even in this peaceful daily life, there was one frustrating detail: the item distribution policy.
New team members weren’t allowed to “rent” official company items until a full month after joining.

Which meant I had to endure another three weeks before I could get anything useful.
Somewhat peaceful days passed like that.
Then, for the first time, our team received orders for an “outdoor mission.”

"Everyone… please focus."
Team Leader Park Cheolwoo stood before us in the meeting room, wearing a more nervous expression than usual.
On the tablet he held, there was a photo of a quiet pension located on the outskirts of Incheon.
"A monster called ‘Chameleon’ is suspected to be hiding at the Neulpureun Pension in the Incheon area."

“Chameleon…?”
The next screen displayed the monster’s information.
---
[Chameleon]

- Risk Level: Low
- Eats the corpses of living beings and can transform into them.
-Gains the target’s memories and knowledge.

- However, it can only access memories from the past year. Older memories are unavailable.
---
Along with this info, a few previous cases popped up.
One where it transformed into a cult leader and triggered a mass suicide event. Another where it became a vacationing soldier and returned to base to commit a mass shooting.

“…The risk level isn’t high, but this type grows stronger by stealing the memories and knowledge of what it eats. As you can see from previous cases, if left alone, it’s impossible to predict what it’ll do. We have to find and neutralize it.”
I swallowed dryly before I even realized it.
It might lack direct combat power, but that ability was far too insidious—and dangerous.

I raised my hand and asked:
“…Can’t we detect it using a search-type item?”
“Low-grade search items can’t detect it. High-grade ones… unfortunately, are only allowed for use by higher-ranked teams. And for this mission, offensive and defensive item use is restricted. Just in case.”

Team Leader gave a bitter smile.
By “just in case,” he probably meant the scenario where one of us dies, and the monster gets its hands on our items.
A monster that uses items.

Just the thought was terrifying.
“Currently, due to heavy rain, the road to the pension has partially collapsed and the location is isolated. There are six people inside. No—five people and one creature.”
Grainy images, likely from the pension’s CCTV, popped up on the screen along with brief profiles of those inside.

A middle-aged man who appeared to enjoy fishing.
An elderly man, the owner of the pension.
A young boy, presumably the old man’s grandson.
A medium-sized dog that seemed to be the boy’s pet.
A young man and woman who looked to be a couple on vacation.
“One of them is the Chameleon. The problem is, we don’t know which one. And unless we directly provoke it, it’s unlikely to reveal itself.”
“…Could the dog be the Chameleon?”

“Yes… there are no exceptions.”
Team Leader Park continued.
“So, this mission will be a covert infiltration. If we suddenly barge in, the monster might hide or attack the others. That’s why, excluding myself, the three of you will pose as guests who made a reservation and naturally approach the pension.”

At that, Han Sora whistled.
“Nice~ Since it’s outdoor work, we get hazard pay, right? This is sweet!”
“…You really think so?”

Seo Jihyun adjusted her glasses with a disapproving frown but didn’t say more.
“The goal is to blend in as naturally as possible and figure out who the monster is. Once we have solid evidence or if it tries to escape, I’ll provide backup from outside.”
Park turned to me.

“Minjun-ssi, I know it’s your first field mission, so you might be nervous… but this job is more about observation and analysis than combat. Work closely with your two seniors.”
“…Understood.”
My first field mission.

And it had to be a covert op to expose a monster in disguise.
It was a completely different kind of tension from scooping up monster tears in a containment room.
...If only I could just solve it with force.

Honestly, I wasn’t confident.
We hurried to prepare for the mission.
Instead of our standard-issue uniforms, we changed into casual clothes we’d brought ourselves.

Seo Jihyun sent satellite photos, the floor plan of the pension, and the suspects’ basic info to our phones.
Han Sora packed props like a big suitcase and a neck pillow into the car trunk, fully committing to the tourist disguise.
Soon, we were driving a plain black van toward the rain-drenched pension on the outskirts of Incheon.

We stopped near a forest path a short distance from the pension.
“From here, we walk. Stay natural. Use this for communication.”
Park handed us small walkie-talkies.

“We must find it.”
We got out of ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) the car, grabbed our bags, and walked through the pouring rain toward the pension.
Up on the hill in the distance, we saw the Neulpureun Pension. In the storm, it looked scenic—but also slightly eerie.

According to the intel, the first floor was shared space, and the second floor held the guest rooms.
“Let’s go already!”
“Y-Yeah… okay…”

Han Sora slung an arm over my shoulder and grinned wide.
Seo Jihyun kept her usual stoic face, but her eyes sharply scanned the surroundings.
I forced a smile and walked with them toward the entrance.

Click.
As the door opened, we were greeted by a mix of musty rain and warm indoor air.
“Oh my, you poor things! Come on in!”

A white-haired old woman sitting in the living room welcomed us with a gentle smile.
At her feet, a fluffy white medium-sized dog wagged its tail and looked up at us. Nearby, a young boy sat at a small table, drawing and staring at us with curiosity.
The pension owner, her grandson, and the dog.

Half of our suspect list in one go.
“Excuse me~ I’m Kim Sora, the one who made the reservation! Wow, this rain’s really something, huh?”
Han Sora greeted the old woman in her usual cheerful and sociable tone.

It was perfect acting.
I played the passive guy in the background, bowing my head slightly. Seo Jihyun, as if feeling out of place, kept fiddling with her smartphone.
Of course, she was probably reviewing the suspect info and pension layout again through the screen.

Even now, she kept glancing at the old woman and the boy.
“Hehe, you’re telling me. Ugh… this sudden downpour has trapped everyone here.”
The old woman clicked her tongue and gestured toward the side of the living room.

There, a middle-aged man in fishing gear and a young couple sat on separate sofas, blankly staring out the window.
The couple looked annoyed, leaning on each other, while the fisherman kept yawning out of boredom.
The rest of the suspects.

All the suspects were gathered in this small space.
I bit my lip secretly.
When I opened my mental map, a faint red dot blinked near the center of the living room.

The problem was, the pension was smaller than I thought, and everyone was so close together, I couldn’t pinpoint who the red dot was marking.
The old woman? The grandson? The dog? One of the couple? The fisherman?
One thing was clear—the Chameleon was way better at acting than I’d anticipated.

Just from facial expressions, everyone looked completely human.
“Your room’s labeled ‘4’ on the second floor, okay?”
“Got it~!”

We took the key and headed upstairs.
The pension was cozier than expected.
The first floor had a living room and dining area, and a staircase leading to the second floor.

The second floor had guest rooms, obviously.
Once inside, we unpacked and shared our first impressions of the suspects.
“I got it…! It’s the fisherman, right?”

“Huh? Why?”
Han Sora smiled and explained:
“Well, the grandma, the kid, and the dog live together, so they’d notice if something was off. The couple would definitely know each other too! That just leaves the fisherman!”

“…That’s not a bad theory…”
It wasn’t baseless at all.
Then Seo Jihyun added something.

“Regardless of suspicion, I think we should be careful of the pension owner.”
“Huh? Why the old lady…?”
“She prepares all the meals. That gives her easy access to kitchen knives. If the Chameleon were to arm itself here, the kitchen would be the most likely place.”

“R-Right…”
Her chilling logic made me involuntarily shiver a little.
At the same time, though, a thought crossed my mind.

…If only it would just attack. That’d make things easier.
I shook my head, brushing that dangerous idea away.