Single Mother of a Werewolf Baby novel Chapter 315

Chapter 315: Tunnel of Fire

Suddenly, Eleanor felt an unbearable heat consume her entire body. In the next instant, she found herself standing inside a cave, already in her wolf form. She instinctively tried to revert to her human shape, but failed again and again. Frustrated, she turned her attention to the source of the scorching heat. One glance was enough to drain the colour from her face... a vast expanse of lava churned before her.

After examining her surroundings more carefully, she realised there was no exit except the path that led towards the molten flow. She padded forward to gauge the heat and recoiled in shock. With temperatures like these, even metal would melt in moments. The lava pool stretched for kilometres, its sheer scale making her lips twitch.

She searched the cave for any other way out, but there was none. Feeling helpless, she waited to see whether the trial would give her some form of instruction or guidance. Nothing appeared.

"Since there’s no instruction, the only way to discover the path is to explore it myself. This isn’t a scene playing out like before... so this must be the real trial," she thought.

After a moment of consideration, she stepped along the one narrow strip where the lava had spared a line of rock. She walked beside the molten pool for more than a kilometre, and by then she was certain... this was no illusion. This was the true trial.

The further she ventured, the more intense the heat became, until she had to stop and rest. Yet she noticed something curious: her body’s resistance to the heat was gradually increasing. Her wolf form was clearly suited to this infernal environment. Had she been in her human body, she would already have been burnt in several places. Her fur acted as a barrier between her and the scorching stone.

Finding a relatively stable perch, she settled down and began to meditate.

Over an hour later, she felt her heat resistance slow its progression and then level out entirely. The blistering air no longer troubled her. She rose and continued walking.

The process continued for an unknown span of time. She walked until the heat overwhelmed her, then stopped to meditate until her body adapted once more, before pressing on again.

Eleanor had long lost any sense of time. All she wanted was to pass the trial and return to the world she knew.

Without warning, the lava pool widened. She was still underground, yet the molten expanse now stretched like a lake. As she approached its edge, several creatures she did not recognise lunged at her.

They were coated in lava, as though they had just crawled out of the lake itself... crocodile-like beasts in various sizes. The larger ones spewed fire; the smaller ones threw themselves at her in frenzied, physical attacks.

Fortunately, she was no longer as drained as she had been at the start of her journey. Her meditations had restored much of her strength, and the heat was no longer unbearable. She launched several lightning projectiles at the approaching creatures, but they seemed barely affected. She was forced to fight them directly. Thankfully, her claws tore through their bodies with brutal efficiency. She carved a path through the line of enemies by sheer force.

By the time the last creature fell, she was panting heavily. Despite her efforts to dodge, several blows had landed. Black burn marks streaked her fur and skin, leaving her looking rather pitiful.

After meditating for a while and regaining more than half her energy, she turned her attention to the lake.

It was an enormous subterranean lava lake. A few crocodile-like creatures floated in its centre. On the far side, she spotted a tunnel that looked almost identical to the one she had entered from.

Judging by the situation, she would have to cross the lake and reach that tunnel to complete the trial.

Taking a deep breath, she walked along the narrow ledge. It was treacherous; in several places there was barely enough space for a pawhold. She was forced to leap across gaps and take perilous steps to avoid slipping into the lava. She had no intention of testing whether she could survive being submerged in molten rock.

During her journey, several crocodiles attacked her, but their assaults were scattered, and she could easily defend herself so long as she chose her battleground wisely.

After a long while and after killing more than twenty of the creatures, she finally reached the opposite side. As she stepped into the new tunnel, she immediately felt the heat diminishing, little by little.

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