***PAPAPAPAPAPA!!!!
The basilisk slithered aside to avoid the rapid fire, and in doing so, ended up retreating, unintentionally creating distance between itself and the duo.
Arthur seized the opportunity and leapt back to where Layla stood. Glancing at the gun in her hands, he sighed and said,
"I still don't get how you managed to turn an assault rifle with a fifty-round capacity into a bayonet with a one-meter-long sword attached to it."
"We'll talk about how awesome my gun is later. Right now, we need to kill that thing."
Layla replied with a straight face, though if one looked closely, they'd notice she was barely holding back a smile.
Arthur, standing beside her, did notice and chuckled quietly. Naturally, that earned him a glare from Layla.
[HISSSS!]
The basilisk, infuriated at being ignored, charged at the pair with its eyes glowing ominously.
"Haahp!"
Arthur, realising this wasn't the time for jokes, swung his sword at the oncoming basilisk, carefully averting his gaze to avoid eye contact and petrification.
'Aura Claw.'
As the silver, three-pronged aura shot forth, Arthur followed up with a horizontal slash, releasing a second aura, this one golden in colour.
'Sword of Victory!'
He couldn't afford to take the Basilisk lightly, not when its strength was close to his own.
Right after releasing both attacks, he took several steps back, his free left hand behind him, eyes fixed on the creature as the silver and golden auras struck it in succession.
***BAM! BAM!!
Several of its scales shattered upon impact. Though its scales were incredibly tough, they weren't indestructible.
Even so, while the Basilisk had clearly taken damage, it wasn't enough to stop its advance. It pressed forward, attempting to devour him in one bite.
Arthur dropped into a roll, narrowly evading the attack, then swung downward with his sword. But in that moment, the Basilisk's scales suddenly stiffened and shot out at him like projectiles.
"Arthur!"
Layla's shout rang out just as three sharp, triangular scales pierced into his body.
But instead of blood, massive shards of light burst out from the points of impact.
Layla's eyes widened as she grasped what had happened and what Arthur intended. Without hesitation, she took aim and opened fire again, her aura-charged bullets keeping the Basilisk occupied as it struggled to avoid them.
High above, the real Arthur rolled his shoulders and a pair of jet-black wings unfolded from his back.
Using them to stay airborne, he poured aura into his sword and swung it downward.
"Sword of Victory!"
*BOOM!
A massive blast of golden aura crashed into the Basilisk, and his blade left a visible wound behind.
[TSS!]
The Basilisk narrowed its eyes sharply and spat a stream of black liquid up at him.
"I get the feeling I shouldn't let that touch me, even if I'd survive it."
With that, he pulled his wings back and let gravity drag him down toward the ground.
The instant he landed, he launched himself forward, charging at the Basilisk while it was still looking skyward.
"Body strengthening, body strengthening again, and kick to the face!"
Strengthening his body with magic multiple times as he spoke, he slammed a kick into the Basilisk's face, sending it flying.
"Layla! Follow up, please!"
"You don't need to tell me."
Layla took aim once more and opened fire. This time, the bullets were faster than before, and unlike the earlier ones, these were spinning as they flew.
The Basilisk, still dazed from the kick, couldn't dodge in time and took the full hit.
The spinning bullets drilled through its scales, digging deep into the flesh beneath.
Arthur walked over to Layla, who was now glaring at him.
"Next time, give me a heads-up before pulling something like that. I nearly had a heart attack thinking that was actually you."
"Sorry," Arthur replied. "The Basilisk is pretty smart, so I didn't want it catching on to the trick if it overheard us."
Right after launching the golden and silver aura attack, he had discreetly placed a hand behind his back and activated a mirage artifact.
By the time the Basilisk fired its scales toward him, Arthur was already in the air, and the artifact had left an afterimage in his place, fooling the creature into striking the illusion instead.
He glanced toward the Basilisk, then looked at Layla with a questioning tone.
"That's not the end of it, is it?"
"Of course not."
*SNAP
As Layla snapped her fingers, the Basilisk, which had just barely managed to stand, suddenly began screaming in agony.
The bullets embedded in its body had started spinning once more—and then,
**BOOM! BOOM!! BOOM!!!
They began to explode.
"Spinning bullets laced with explosives to drill through its scales and pierce its flesh, then, with a snap of my fingers, they detonate inside the monster's body.
Just developed these recently."
Layla explained with a smug look on her face, and seeing that expression full of pride, Arthur couldn't help but chuckle.
"It didn't finish it off though..."
"Of course it didn't," she replied. "That Basilisk's two stages above me, and those bullets are still just prototypes. I never expected to finish it with that."
Even as she spoke, the wounded Basilisk, its injuries healing slowly, hissed and spat out a mixture of green and black liquid in their direction.
"Dodge now, talk later."
Both of them leapt in opposite directions, forcing the Basilisk to choose.
It turned its head toward Arthur, sensing him as the greater threat, and its eyes flashed.
[HISSSSSSSSS!!!!!]
"Did this thing just try to petrify me?!"
Arthur, who was running while keeping his eyes on the Basilisk's lower body, called out in disbelief after hearing the unnaturally loud hiss.
Realising that its petrification had no effect, the Basilisk slithered toward him at an even faster pace.
"Sorry in advance," Arthur muttered to his blade as he tossed it into the air.
The semi-transparent blade spun violently like the blades of a fan, slicing deep into the flesh at the back of the Basilisk's neck.
**BAM
Blood burst from the Basilisk's wound, and Layla immediately fired at the injured spot without hesitation.
[HISSS!]
Enraged, the Basilisk launched a green blob in Layla's direction, then turned to Arthur and spewed both green and black liquids at him.
Arthur dodged gracefully and extended his right hand.
"Return!"
At his command, the blade flew back into his hand.
He kicked off the ground and leapt into the air, swinging his sword mid-air.
'Aura Slash.'
A silver aura burst from his sword, carving a long wound into the Basilisk's body.
[HISS!]
It hissed, and its scales bristled before shooting toward him again—this time in dozens.
Arthur landed and immediately formed a double-layered aura barrier to block some of the incoming scales, deflecting the rest with his sword.
Layla backed him up, firing at the ones he missed.
Seeing her interfere again, the Basilisk roared and charged at Layla in fury.
Naturally, she didn't stay in place to let it reach her. Lifting her gun into the air, she channelled her aura into it.
To be more specific, she channelled her aura into the one-meter-long sword mounted on top of her gun.
"Dark Slash!"
A savage dark energy burst from the blade and shot towards the Basilisk, striking its body head-on.
[KIYYAAAAKK!]
The Basilisk screeched in pain but still lunged forward, attempting to slam into her with its body, only to be met with a barrage of bullets to the face.
She emptied the entire magazine of her gun, then swiftly dodged to the side. With a snap of her fingers, the bullets embedded in its body all detonated.
**BOOOM!!
[KYYAAAAAAAAAAAII!!!!]
Its pained screams echoed as multiple small explosions erupted across and within its body.
Riddled with holes, the Basilisk collapsed to the ground with a loud thud.
"The... End."