The infantry equipment Leman Russ had targeted was nothing exceptional. The armor covering their bodies looked more like tough, wear-resistant stiff cloth, and they approached with crude blades in hand.
Leman Russ drew the bowstring, carefully restraining his strength so the bow would not suffer irreparable deformation under such immense force.
The arrow tore through the air and struck a soldier with tremendous force, piercing straight through his crude armor and chest before emerging from the other side.
"Average."
Leman Russ was deeply dissatisfied with the limits of the longbow in his hand, though that shot was still far more powerful than Magnus's tiny hand cannon.
Magnus emptied a magazine. The more he fired, the more inferior the firearm seemed to him. A bullet had to hit the head to bring down a soldier; even striking a limb could not break it outright.
Magnus's experimentation left his shooting results inferior to Leman Russ's. When all the ordinary soldiers fell in the distance and dissolved into clusters of data, the Doctor in the observation room gave the holographic training ground staff further instructions.
"Increase the intensity. This level of combat is as easy as breathing for them."
A grating buzz came from above as drones with four fans and various weapons rushed toward the two men like a converging swarm of bees.
These remotely controlled little things came in many variants. Besides carrying conventional weapons such as crossbows, armor, and bombs, they could also be fitted with Arts units to serve as extension points for Casters casting Arts.
At Rhodes Island, these drones more often handled construction assistance, or were modified into household items by some dexterous Operators.
With so many drones closing in, the bow and hand cannon in the two men's hands seemed inadequate. This prompted the staff responsible