It had been ten years since the capital of the Sizat Empire had been attacked. In all that time, the Sizat Empire had been attacked three more times. The Empire had successfully repelled two of these attacks, but because one of the attacks had taken place in a remote part of the Empire, the Empire had been unable to send reinforcements. During this time, the Empire had acquired a large amount of Stones of Light, which it used to strengthen its soldiers. At first, the Empire kept it a secret that they could obtain Light Stones from demon corpses. The Empire taught other countries that were attacked how to fight demons and announced that it would provide support in the event of a demon attack. In return, they wanted to buy demon corpses. At first, the countries in chaos did not think much of this situation, but they soon realised that they could obtain the Stone of Light from demon corpses. Although this caused diplomatic crises at first, the threat of attack from the Demons did not allow the crises to deepen.
Even though the countries were prepared against Demon threats, it was not possible to protect every corner of their countries. Despite all the researches, it was not possible to understand where the Demons came from. Since the demons did not retreat without killing all the people in the area they attacked, it was also impossible to understand where they went. Therefore, all countries were on edge.
During this whole process, a kingdom in the west of the continent began to shine. The name of this kingdom was Rhazgord. This kingdom had been living at the foot of Mount Rhaz for centuries. This mountain was the highest mountain on the continent and was covered with red rocks. Behind the mountain were impassable mountain ranges. What lay beyond the mountains was a mystery to everyone. In short, the people of Rhazgord had built their country on the western border of the continent.
These people were considered barbaric and wild by other countries. This was because of the culture of the Rhazgords. The Rhazgord people were moulded by the cruel rules of the wilderness. Power determined the most basic rights. Disputes were settled by duels under the supervision of arbitrators, often ending in death. This bloody tradition formed the basis of the Rhazgords' sense of justice.
The Rhazgord economy was based on two pillars: animal husbandry and mercenary labour. Every member of Rhazgord society was also a warrior. The king was the leader of these warriors, just like a general. This structure was one of the features that made the Rhazgords different from other nations. The Rhazgords were physically very strong even without the power of the Stones of Light. For this reason, many weak nations hired Rhazgords for their wars and used them on the front lines.
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The reason why this savage and undeveloped people lived free for centuries was their large population. The Rhazgords were very fertile and their growth was very rapid. This was the only reason that prevented other countries from subjugating the Rhazgords. After the appearance of the demons, the Rhazgords became valuable because small countries did not have soldiers to protect themselves. For large countries, it was impossible to control the entire country. Therefore, countries competed with each other to rent the Rhazgords.
However, after the appearance of the Demons, the Rhazgords only responded to a few countries' rental requests. This was unusual for the Rhazgords, who considered war sacred, but it soon became clear why the Rhazgords did this. Wherever the Rhazgords went, the Demons attacked. At first this was thought to be a coincidence, but it soon became clear why. Some said that the Rhazgords controlled the Demons and used them to make money, but this idea did not hold, because the Rhazgords did not seem smart enough to think that. All countries were secretly investigating how the Rhazgords knew where the Demons would attack. But one king had found the answer to the question by asking the Rhazgord King openly. The Rhazgord king, who was busy eating the steak in front of him, was surprised by the question of the king of the small country in front of him. "Of course our gods say." he said, without putting down the big steak in his hand. The king looked at the Rhazgord King, who continued to eat the steak in his hand in astonishment. He did not expect such an answer.
Rhazgord shamans had the ability to learn the next target of the demons through a mysterious ritual. However, this ritual only worked when performed at the summit of Mount Rhaz, closest to the sky. The thin air and proximity to the stars at the top of the mountain maximised the shamans' spiritual powers. The knowledge of where the demons would attack was very important to everyone on the continent and was useful in every sense. Several countries had even tried to form a coalition and attack the Rhazgords to gain control of this information. The result of the war was the destruction of their own capitals.
The Rhazgords had also experienced some changes as a result of all this. The increase of countries that wanted to establish good relations with the Rhazgords increased cultural interaction. Now, even if a little, the Rhazgords were turning to some jobs other than being a warrior. New institutions were formed for the governance of the country, and a organised army was now established in addition to mercenaries. The Rhazgords were no longer a great tribe but a state. The greatest pioneer of these changes was Corvus Tiamat, the eldest son of King Sakhaar.