"Of course I can! Otherwise, I would've died a long time ago!"
I swallowed hard and stared blankly at Entity 001. She turned her face, smiling sweetly at me. Then, all of a sudden, she waved her hand—crack! The Oblivion Chain binding me was undone. I looked at her in astonishment.
"Here's a little reward. You can move around freely until tonight."
I let out an "oh," immediately raised my paws, and stood up straight. Entity 001 yelped in surprise, having not expected it, and I knocked her over onto the ground. She looked at me with a face full of grievance and reached out a hand.
"Help me up."
Without thinking, I turned and started running on all fours, but my bulky body made it hard to move quickly.
"Just you wait."
I heard Entity 001's voice behind me as she started running after me, not using any of her powers. In my mind, I was pondering how to stall her until dusk. Suddenly, I came up with an idea, stopped abruptly, and stood up—bang.
With a yelp, I turned my head—Entity 001 had fallen right onto her butt. I looked at her and finally reached out a paw. She grabbed onto it with both hands, pulling me down to the ground. Lying on my back, she wasted no time climbing onto my belly and started wriggling around. Soon, I found it hard to breathe.
"Stop, stop..."
But Entity 001 wouldn't stop until I started roaring. Only then did she climb off me, giggling.
"I'll just play with you for a bit."
After resting for a while, I spoke. As soon as the words left my mouth, Entity 001 perked up, clapping her hands and feet in excitement.
"Yay, yay..."
"How about hide-and-seek? You can't use any powers or senses, and the deadline is sunset. If you find me, I'll keep playing with you. But if you can't, you have to give me back the pendant."
Entity 001 nodded without any hesitation. Then, happy as a child, she lay on the ground, covered her eyes, and started counting. I hurried off, searching carefully for a place to hide.
"Over here..."
Just as I was about to keep looking for a hiding spot, I heard the Earthly Soul's voice. I looked over—he was hiding among a pile of what seemed like vehicles. I crawled into one of the strange cars, following the voice, and soon he grabbed my leg. There was a space below, with a lid above it. Earthly Soul quickly closed the lid.
The car looked ordinary on the outside, but inside it was a whole other world. From the outside, you'd never guess it was so spacious. Through some screw holes in the metal plate, I could see out clearly—Entity 001 was still counting, already up to seventy.
"See, I told you—she's got the temperament of a spoiled heiress, and she's unbelievably stubborn. Once she sets her sights on something, she won't let go, no matter what. She'll definitely stick to the agreement. She's clever, but now that she's found you, this strange, fun thing, she won't cheat. She believes she can find you even without powers."
I let out a sound, and Earthly Soul immediately covered my mouth, signaling me to stay quiet. Entity 001 was already on her feet, just forty or fifty meters away, grinning as if she had victory in the bag.
"Don't bother hiding, I'll find you soon. In a hundred seconds, you can run at most two hundred meters, and after looking for a hiding spot, maybe only a hundred and fifty. In such a small area, I'll find you quickly."
I watched calmly. Sure enough, Entity 001 stuck to the rules and didn't use any powers. She started a thorough search, circling around and picking up bits of trash, only stopping when she checked the ground. She finished searching a thirty-meter radius in just a few minutes.
"Are you really not going to be found?"
I started to worry. In the distance, there were more strange cars piled up, but Entity 001 would check each one thoroughly.
"What do you think is the most important thing in hide-and-seek?"
I thought carefully and whispered my answer.
"You have to know what the seeker is thinking—how she'll try to find you, where she'll start."
Earthly Soul nodded.
Entity 001 was getting closer—less than ten meters away now. She kept searching, calling out for me, and gradually moved right next to us. She started checking the pile of cars, turning them over and searching seriously. I felt the space start to shake.