The Kingdom of Nod
The Kingdom of Nod is a relic of the First Age, it is a city carved out of a literal mountain by hand. In the First Age it was a magnificent palace for one of the Anathema, who was slaughtered in the palace during The Usurpation. When she died the mountain shifted into chaos and the series of tunnels, rooms, and chambers shifted into a maze with the people still inside. Fortunately, for those trapped inside the opulence of the palace provided them with enough resources to survive. Pockets of civilization formed in complete isolation over years before eventually those inside mapped out the labyrinth enough to link their societies and discover the outside world again. What they did not realize is that those people were spared the wrath of The Contagion and the Fae invasion by the powerful magic of it's creation.
Ever since The Kingdom of Nod has been expanding and exploring within the mountain of it's creation, still finding new ruins and relics and occasionally even pockets of people who have lived for hundreds of years within the labyrinth with no contact with the outside world. The main society that interacts with The Hundred Kingdom at large lives within the lower portions of the mountain and closely restricts access to the mountain by outsiders. They are generally isolationist in nature and protective of their mountain as a enviable resource and relic. The Kingdom is ruled by a family that traces its lineage to The Dragon Blooded that murdered the Anathema inside during The Usurpation and still sees Dragon Blooded Exalts emerge with enough frequency to lend them great power.
The Kingdom of Nod is located on the northern banks of The Yellow River approximately in the center of The Kingdoms East-to-West. It has been made wealthy due to their access to First Age relics with the palace labyrinth giving them an oversized influence on the region for their population.
Sultan Balin Asadhi is an Earth-Aspected Dragon-Blood from House Balin, a storied Dragon-Blooded family line with an unbroken stream of Exaltations each generation since the Usurpation. A precocious child with a keen intellect and early Exaltation, Asadhi was groomed for the Sultanate from a young age. When House Balin elected him to the position he had always been told was rightfully his, he settled into his position easily, though he brought a few of his own quirks to the throne. Most notably, Asadhi is a capable sorcerer, having learned the arcane arts from spirits and texts found throughout Nod's ancient catacombs. He spends a great deal of time attempting to engage with entities that have lived through Nod's history, the better to understand it. Intrigued by the awakening of the Entropy Devouring Maiden, Asadhi realizes that Nod still hides many secrets, even a millennium later, and is motivated to uncover them. Although he fulfills his expected duties capably and he publicly maintains Nod's isolationist policies, he privately wonders if opening Nod's doors to the supernatural champions of the Hundred Kingdoms would get him closer to discovering Nod's secrets. Still, because Nod's governmental system permits any Dragon-Blood older than Asadhi to call for a vote of no-confidence at any time, Asadhi is guarded about divulging his thoughts on the matter.