Treating

First was the biting wound on the side of her waist, still bubbling with blood. The remains of her silk leggings seemed to cover some injury as well. After a moment of consideration, he removed part of it to find the wound trailing further down on her leg. 

He poured a bit of the potion on the wound, watching as more blood bubbled up, along with wisps of smoke as the elixir took effect. Maelora let out a moan, her body shaking slightly, but she remained unconscious. 

The wound closed up slowly, and Klein shifted his attention to her thigh, where another bite mark marred her skin. The sharp indentations suggested jagged teeth, nothing like those of a humanoid creature. Klein didn't waste time speculating and put the elixir to good use again. 

He left the blade wounds alone, as most of them were superficial and not deep. After tending to the wound on her shoulder and finishing the vial, Klein tried to pour another one into her mouth. Unfortunately, even unconscious, she was clenching her teeth. 

Sighing, Klein opened her pale lips, holding her chin up as he dripped the elixir into her mouth, letting it seep through the gaps in her teeth. She tried to cough it out, but Klein saw it coming and shut her mouth, sealing her lips with his palm. 

With that two of his healing potions were gone. He barely has any of the stock left, but considering how progressive his regenerative abilities were becoming, he probably wouldn't be needing them for long fleshly wounds. 

It seemed not everyone received the same regenerative power as him, or else Maelora wouldn't have been in such a dire condition. 

Blood still covered her body, her skin pale, but the wounds had closed. She might remain weakened for a few hours, considering the amount of blood she had lost, but Klein was certain she would wake up in an hour or two. 

Klein looked around the chamber and carried her body into one corner. After fastening the magnetic button of the overcoat, he left her there. 

I better leave before she wakes up, he thought, peering down the snaking pathway ahead. The murky darkness made it difficult to judge how far it extended, but his Spatial Sight easily pierced the gloom, finding no end in sight. 

Giving her one last look, he crept down the path. The chilliness of the place prompted him to pull out another garment to drape over himself. It wasn't as stylish or sturdy as his overcoat, but it fended off the cold, which was enough for now. 

Klein advanced cautiously, his Spatial Sight active, scouting for any potential threats. He would want to cover as much distance, but that didn't mean he would stop being cautious. 

It didn't take long for trouble to arrive. Barely a couple of minutes had passed when his Spatial Sight picked up something. The creature hadn't noticed him yet, drifting through the murky darkness aimlessly. 

Klein didn't turn back but maintained his pace, keeping his spells at the ready. The creature was far larger than the waist-high hyenas he had encountered earlier—perhaps twice their size. Its body was skeletal, with barely any flesh clinging to its bones. Two orb-like eyes glowed with bright purple light in its eye sockets, marking it as something far different from anything he had seen. 

It spotted him from a dozen paces away and charged, a piercing screech tearing from its fleshless maw. The sound was like a howling wind, but far more terrifying. The jagged teeth in its mouth were proof enough of what had caused those bite wounds on Maelora. 

Klein released the huge essence bolt he had prepared, aiming it straight at the undead creature. The spell hit it directly, sending it flying several metres back, but to his confusion, it didn't finish the creature off. 

With no flesh or brain to damage, the spell only managed to scar its skull. The creature rose again and charged at him once more. 

Klein frowned, focusing intently on the strange beast. He had heard tales of undead monstrosities but had never encountered one in his extensive experience in forbidden realms. Like elves, undead were creatures of myth, at least as far as he had been concerned. But apparently, not anymore. 

He thrust out a force shield, pinning the undead to the ground. The creature struggled, almost overpowering his spell, but Klein channelled more essence into it, fully utilising the law of Force. 

As far as he knew, beheading usually did the trick for undead. Klein followed that line of thought, directing an essence bolt to strike at the back of its neck. The bones were tougher than they appeared, but after several attempts, he managed to sever the bestial skull from its body. 

The monster's struggles faded, as did the glow in its eye sockets, though there was still some faint sign of life—or whatever passed for life in the undead. Thankfully, it had lost most of its power to attack him again. 

While the rest of the body flailed on the ground, Klein picked up the skull, noticing the source of the glowing eyes. His Spatial Sense identified a small magical core within the skull, the source that kept the undead animated. 

Without hesitation, Klein broke through the skull and extracted the core. It wasn't much smaller than the others he had harvested, but the power inside seemed far more intense. 

The last remnants of life faded from the undead, the glowing eye sockets fully dimming as its body ceased all movement. 

[Essence harvested.]

The essence from the undead almost filled his well, just shy of the requirement. No matter, he would reach it soon enough. 

Klein considered the bones for a moment, then stored them in his dimension sphere. They were tougher than anything he had come across in this world. He might find a use for them later. 

Suddenly, more screeches echoed through the murky darkness. Klein spread his skill, detecting nearly a dozen similar creatures bolting towards him. 

"Crap!" he cursed. While dealing with one of the undead had been manageable, he wasn't so sure about handling the rest, especially if their bones were as tough as the one he had just fought.