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Chapter 28: Hide and Seek II

COURAGE

"Na-check mo na 'yung sa Room 17?"

"Wala sa taas? Weh, 'di nga?"

"Baka andun? Tignan mo nga!"

THE SEEKERS were more determined as I thought. Ang pinaka-active sa kanilang maghanap ay si Eden at Prisoner 2. Ako naman, sumuko na 'ko kakahanap sa katawan. Since the one who hid it was one of us, talagang alam niya kung saan maganda itago 'yung katawan. Lalo na kapag alam niya ang bawat kanto nitong lugar na 'to.

Andito ako ngayon sa lobby, nag-aantay. Would they be able to find it under two hours? One hour had already passed.

"Found it!" Sigaw ni Eden mula sa taas. Nakangiti itong dala-dala ang katawan—totally not matching the vibe we're currently in. When he realized, he immediately put on a poker face while going down.

Of course, it's a bummer for Prisoner 2 who only needs a single point for her escape. Masama ang tingin nito kay Eden but she couldn't do anything about it. Eden's way taller than her and way stronger. If I were her I would also just shut my mouth. Not the same reason she has, but I don't want to jinx it.

"Saan mo nakita?" Ana asked.

Nginitian lang siya ni Eden. She did not dare to ask again. We saw him from upstairs, so it must be one of those rooms. Minus my room, it can't be mine.

Gaya nga ng sinabi ni MC, it wasn't a dead body. Replica lang pala siya—remotely close to a real one. It's scary how people can create something like this. Creativity like this can fabricate thousands of rumors and stories.

Linagay ito ni Eden sa gitna. We were too focused on the body, identifying what we had probably missed. Gano'n pa rin naman itsura niya, pero no'ng sinabi nang hindi ito totoo, nabawasan ng takot ang aking katawan. Isn't it creepy if you'd been staring at a dead body for too long?

Ting! Tumingala kami para tignan ang nasa screen. That sound was always used if the rankings were to be updated. But now, we only see MC.

"The rankings are now updated! Prisoner 2 still at 9 points, Prisoner 6 and 7 at 8, and the rest are still the same. Congratulations, Prisoner 7! Now, onto the next subject, Mental Education~" palakpak nito.

"For those who forgot the rewards—Prisoners who'll get to identify its name will get two INT Points. Meanwhile, the highest reward, if a Prisoner identifies its cause of death will be granted three INT Points. How's that for a reward?~" tuloy niya.

"Like the first Mental Education test, the prisoners shall watch a video before receiving their walkie-talkies. Everyone must proceed to the classroom for the video. You guys already know the drill~"

Since we've gotten a trauma with the first case, we all checked if we were complete. Thankfully, we are. Mas madali nang mahanap ang kulang dahil mas onti na kami. Not that I'm saying that it's a good thing though.

Naka-ready na ang aming walkie-talkies sa mga upuan namin. Natandaan ko nanaman 'yung nakuryente si Prisoner 2 sa kaniyang pagiging bungangera. Pasimple akong lumingon sa kaniya at nakita siyang nagdadalawang isip na kunin ito.

Sa tingin ko naman ay wala na itong kuryente dahil wala na siyang dugo at wala nang ginawa si Prisoner 2 na ikagagalit ni MC. Pero kung kami ang masusunod sana inulit nalang 'yon ulit.