Single Mother of a Werewolf Baby-Chapter 319: When all is Lost

Eleanor suddenly realised she was in a precarious position. Along with her vision, hearing, and sense of touch, even her awareness of self had faded. Apart from the pull of gravity, she could sense nothing at all. Her abilities were blocked, just as they had been in the previous levels.

"What an annoying way to train one’s sense of danger," Eleanor thought bitterly. This level might well be the hardest of the trial. By stripping away her senses, it forced her to rely solely on instinct.

She understood all too clearly how traumatic such a situation could be. To be surrounded by silence on all sides was far more terrifying than facing a horde of monsters. It could make one believe they were already dead.

"Fine. I just have to endure it. It’s only pain. I won’t give up so easily."

She relaxed her entire body, and her presence began to fade, as though she had died on the spot.

She closed her eyes, though it made no difference in this environment. She prepared herself for an attack, and released her killing intent. The instant she did, danger flooded in from all directions.

"Shit!" She cursed inwardly, immediately retreating and lashing out with a kick towards the point where she sensed the threat.

Her strike connected with bone. With her sense of touch suppressed, she couldn’t identify her opponent. Pain flared, but she clenched her teeth and remained silent. At the same time, she braced herself for the counterattack... but none came.

Minutes passed. Eleanor could no longer sense any danger, which only deepened her unease. She was certain the threat was right in front of her, yet there was no killing intent, no hostility, not even the sound of breathing or movement. Everything was deathly still. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

She began to wonder whether her opponent reacted only to her killing intent. After waiting a while longer, she released it once more.

Danger surged around her almost instantly.

She tried to block the incoming assault, but the force sent her crashing across the ground. This time, she vaguely sensed that her opponent was not human—most likely a monster.

The impact was so heavy that she coughed up blood. She could feel the force ripple through her body as she hastily steadied herself.

So the monster is extremely sensitive to killing intent, she reasoned. But it, too, lacks vision and hearing. I’m not sure about touch. If it’s the same for both of us, then we’re trapped in identical circumstances.

As she struggled to recover from her injuries, she began to devise a plan.

"I don’t know how strong it is, or how large this room might be. I need a way to see in this darkness without provoking it. The first step is to map the room manually."

Forcing herself upright, she chose a direction at random and moved forward until her path was blocked by a wall. She placed her right hand against the surface and advanced as quietly as possible, careful not to alert the monster.

After some time, she had traced the boundaries of the chamber. It formed a circle with a radius of roughly a hundred feet. As for the height, she had no way of knowing yet, but given the size of the space, she suspected the monster was enormous.

By now, she was certain that releasing her killing intent would immediately draw its attention and trigger an attack. If not for her mastery of suppressing her presence, she would already have been subjected to a relentless barrage.

This was a truly difficult fight. With neither side able to track the other, they were locked in a stalemate, incapable of acting unless one revealed intent first.

Now she knew what had to be done.

She needed to break beyond the boundaries of her senses... to see without seeing. She had to enter that state as naturally as breathing itself. Like the surface of still water, she needed to perceive everything without disturbing it at all. Only when she clearly perceived her target would she strike, and in that instant, everything would react.

"Once I break past my limit, I’ll be able to sense the area around me without releasing my presence at all. It’ll be like seeing while blindfolded. If I can do this with all my senses suppressed, I’ll be able to take the initiative against this monster," she thought.

By repeatedly releasing her killing intent, Eleanor deliberately drew the monster out, exchanging several blows with it. Naturally, she lost each time, but with every clash she gained a clearer understanding of how her senses, or lack thereof... worked in this space.

Comparing it to the period when she had first learned to perceive her surroundings while blindfolded, she realised the key was the same: grasping the environment without relying on energy or intent. It had to be passive.

"Sigh. If Nora were here, I wouldn’t have to resort to this self-punishing method. I’m not a masochist," she thought, sitting down cross-legged and attempting to visualise the space beyond herself. She took the fragments of awareness she had gained through each violent exchange and carefully pushed that perception outward.

After a few minutes, she faintly sensed a massive shape not far away. Deciding to test her theory, she moved towards it and threw a powerful punch.

The moment her strike left her arm, the shape shifted. A claw slashed towards her. Her punch connected, but sharp pain flared as talons raked across her hand. Gritting her teeth, she withdrew at once.

Though she couldn’t clearly perceive her own body, she knew she had lost a significant amount of blood during this trial. Countless cuts covered her.

After a long stretch of time and many brutal exchanges, Eleanor finally formed a rough understanding of her surroundings. Within the vast chamber stood numerous enormous pillars, each rising only to a certain height. Even now, she was unable to sense the ceiling at all.

As for the monster itself, it resembled a serpent, its lower body that of a massive snake, yet its upper half was anything but serpentine. It possessed four powerful legs tipped with razor-sharp claws. Its head was utterly featureless, like that of a mannequin... no hair, no ears, no eyes, no nose; only a gaping mouth packed with endless rows of teeth.

Adding to the difficulty, a translucent armour seemed to sheath its entire body, making it extremely difficult for her to inflict damage. Moving in carefully, Eleanor launched a punch towards its head. The monster reacted before her strike could land.

Weaving between the pillars, it twisted its body and slashed at her with a claw. She darted behind one of the pillars, using it as cover to evade the attack.

Her punch struck the side of its mouth, causing its body to twitch slightly, but its claw smashed into the pillar instead, sending fragments of stone exploding outward.

Slipping behind another pillar, Eleanor launched a sneak attack at its head once more. She had already confirmed that attacking its body was useless with her current strength; only the head showed any sign of vulnerability.

The monster retaliated by whipping its tail towards her. She shifted her position instantly. The tail slammed into where she had stood a heartbeat earlier. Even so, the sheer force of the strike sent her stumbling back.

Eleanor continued her guerrilla-style assault on the monster’s head, retreating immediately after every blow to evade the inevitable counterattack.

After a prolonged and punishing battle, the monster finally fell. Eleanor brought her fist down upon its head from above, and the creature collapsed, motionless at last.

Eleanor finally let her guard drop. She was exhausted, battered, and bruised, having lost a great deal of blood—some of it already dried around her wounds. Her uniform was torn beyond wear.

She sank to her knees to support her weight, then lowered herself to the ground. She needed rest before she could even begin to decide what to do next.

As she rested and slowly recovered, she suddenly felt her senses return. Though she remained surrounded by darkness, she could see the dark itself. Her sharpened sense of smell immediately caught the heavy scent of blood. Eleanor let out a long sigh of relief, a flicker of excitement stirring within her at the familiar return of her human faculties.

The relief did not last.

Her body began to glow with a purple light, and in the next instant she was violently transported elsewhere.

When her orientation returned, a colossal temple stood before her. It was constructed from some dark purple material, its surface marred by deep cracks and other signs of great age. Broken pillars littered the area, and sections of brickwork were missing entirely.

Lush greenery surrounded the temple. Eleanor took a moment to look around. The structure stood deep within a forest, massive trees rising on all sides. From where she stood, she could see no edge to it at all. Above, a clear blue sky stretched endlessly, sunlight hanging quietly overhead.

Her gaze rose to the enormous doors, their surfaces covered in endless rows of engravings of unknown origin. As she took them in, Eleanor noticed a woman seated cross-legged before the gate.