When Alex regained his senses, he felt himself floating in what seemed to be the vastness of space.
Far ahead, a bright light flickered.
An invisible force began pulling him toward it. Before he knew it, he was speeding forward. Panic surged through him.
’W-Wait! Did I die?!’ Alex thought anxiously. ’Am I about to get reincarnated?!’
Before the young man could even brace himself, the light expanded, enveloping his entire body.
Inexplicably, he found himself standing on top of a hill, overlooking a vast plain.
"Am I in heaven?" Alex muttered as he looked at his surroundings.
The sudden reply from behind him almost made the young man jump in fright.
When he turned around to look at the person who spoke, he saw an old Catkin with long white hair and green eyes.
The old man looked frail from his age, but the resoluteness of his gaze convinced Alex that he was looking at someone who had fought countless battles and overcome impossible odds.
"Don’t be afraid, Alex Stratos," the Old Catkin said. "You are not in heaven or in hell. At least, not yet."
"Y-You know my name, Grandpa?" Alex asked.
"Yes." The old man nodded. "And since I know your name, let me introduce myself as well. My friends call me Leo, and I will be happy if you call me that as well."
"Understood, Grandpa Leo," Alex replied. "Can you tell me where I am?"
"You’ll know in a bit," Leo answered. "But first, take a good look at that group of people."
The old Catkin pointed at a group of caravans that seemed to be heading in their direction.
"They are a newly formed tribe traveling the land to look for a place they can call home," Leo said softly.
"Some of them were exiled, some chose exile, some were abandoned, and some were orphaned. Every single person in that group didn’t belong anywhere, so they have banded together for the sake of safety.
"But in the lands of Avalon, numbers alone don’t equate to safety. Even a school of fish can’t deter predators from eating them. The most they can do is reduce their chances of being eaten by their hunters by hiding within a bigger group."
The old man then pointed at a group of Orcs riding on savage boars. They just so happened to be traveling toward the caravans.
Even from a glance, Alex knew this wouldn’t end up well. And just as he thought, tragedy struck the Catkin Tribe.
The few warriors fought valiantly to repel the Orcs. Even those who couldn’t fight still took up arms to protect those whom they held sacred.
Although the Orcs were defeated in the end, they still managed to kill nearly a third of the members of their tribe.
It was truly a tragedy. Some of the children had even lost their parents in a skirmish that lasted less than half an hour.
Alex watched as the Catkins buried their dead and held a short funeral for them.
However, since they were in a dangerous territory, they had no choice but to quickly head to the nearest town for safety.
"The tribe used to be bigger, but as they traveled across the land, they met similar dangers along the way," Leo said sadly. "With every battle, many lives were lost, and with each heartbreak, hope started to disappear from everyone’s hearts."
Back then, the leader of the group decided that someone needed to stand at the front lines to show everyone that hope was still not lost.
The leader of the group wasn’t anyone special.
No. He was just an average Catkin without any talents.
He wasn’t good with the sword or any other type of weapon. Nor was he good with magic.
The people only elected him as the leader because no one else wanted to lead them.
And so, he carried this burden and decided that even someone as untalented as him could do something for the sake of his people.
The scenery changed, and the old man and the young man both appeared inside of a smithy.
"I’m not here for a weapon. I’m here for a shield. The strongest and sturdiest shield you can give me."
"The strongest shield?" the Dwarf laughed. "I make weapons, not shields. But... why not? I need a break anyway. I’ve been racking my brain trying to make the strongest weapon in history, but I’m stuck."
The old Catkin smiled faintly as he looked at the arrogant Dwarf.
"Little did the leader of the tribe know that the Dwarf he had commissioned to make the strongest and sturdiest shield would one day become a legendary blacksmith. The Dwarf’s name was Marcus and, oh boy, he sure was one very annoying prick."
Although Leo sounded like he was insulting the Dwarf, there was a hint of respect, recognition, and gratefulness in his voice.
The scene changed once again, and Alex saw Marcus adding some runes on a round gray shield that was at least a foot bigger than Svalinn.
He then placed a claw-like design at the center of the shield.
When that was done, he put the finishing touch by adding more runes under the claw.
The last runes that Marcus had engraved onto the shield was its name.
Although this was the first time he was crafting a shield, he did so to the best of his abilities at that time.
He sincerely wished that the shield would be able to protect its wielder, as well as those whom its owner wished to protect.
"Everguard was a fine shield," the old Catkin said. "It might not have been as strong as the legendary shields crafted by the elusive blacksmiths in the continent, but it was made with great passion that wouldn’t lose to any of those masters."
The scene changed once more, and Alex found himself in a battlefield.
There, the leader of the tribe stood in front of everyone with Everguard, hoping that it would allow him to protect his people.
In front of him was a giant Troll, wielding an entire tree as a weapon.
"A shield is meant to protect," the Old Catkin went on. "But a shield is just a shield. The one wielding it should also have the strength to endure the aftershock of the blows he would receive from his enemies. Unfortunately, a shield and a heart filled with determination weren’t enough to overcome the disparity in strength."
With a single blow from a Troll holding a wooden club, the Catkin was sent flying, and tragedy struck once more.
That day, he didn’t just lose that fight.
He also lost someone very dear to him, and it almost broke his heart completely.