Lix

Rat-people, or as they were called in the common people, rats, or as they call themselves, Lix.

Anthropomorphic rats that live deep underground. Males have a hunched posture, unlike females, and therefore, the maximum height at the withers reaches 1m 75. Very fast and dexterous. Thorns grow on the back, and the older the Lix, the more protected his back becomes. Because of life underground, they perceive sunlight very sharply, up to blindness. They see well in the dark, have a keen sense of smell - they even smell and recognize magical energy. They cannot boast of powerful physical strength, but despite this they have very dangerous "attributes". Sharp incisors can easily bite your throat, and sharp claws can easily tear the tendons. But the Lix's most dangerous weapon is his tail. He is very long, thick and strong. Moreover, it is so strong that with its help the rat can keep itself on weight, since the light weight due to the construction of the bones allows such to indulge. A strong skin protects well from blows, because in the Lix community, it is common to arrange fights for females, and for their high position in the hierarchy.
Liks live up to 100 years old, but few live to such an old age. These are mainly females. Although they cease to give birth to old age, they, like in principle all Lixes, have a good memory, and they perfectly know all the deep paths and good places to live. Plus, they like to raise young animals. But the old males, for the most part, are slaughtered by the young and strong in order to get rid of competitors, but there are exceptions. There are old people who have already overgrown with dense lamellar skin, and impressive thorns adorn their backs - and they do not allow themselves to be taken by surprise, continuing to keep their alpha brand.
Liks have their own culture, their own way of life, their own concepts, their own language. They have no family cult. As the saying goes, the one who managed to catch the female by the tail gave offspring, and the female, in turn, lives together with her “successful” male exactly until the moment when their offspring begins to walk, after which the male leaves the female.
It is worth noting that Liks are very prolific. A female can give birth to 10 to 15 babies at a time. Liks also perfectly conceive and fertilize people. And therefore, if suddenly they manage to stumble upon the mines, then if they learn a little more, they will definitely try to kidnap people into slavery. And slavery is reduced to purely reproductive activity, but! The Liks have a special, reverent attitude towards captive people. They look after them, take care of them, provide everyone with the best housing and personal servants. And only the strongest and most revered Lix has the right to use such exotic things. Male slaves are much more fortunate, because they can give offspring to a ripe old age, but women are not. Therefore, as soon as they stop giving birth, they are quickly turned into a delicacy for the strongest liquids.
The Lixes live very secretively and cautiously. After all, they have someone to fear underground. Deep monsters, monsters and other creatures are not averse to profit from rats. And if it were not for these predators, the lyxes would have filled the entire underworld, and would begin to climb to the surface.
No one has all this information in Megartis. About leaks, no one knows anything. Only experienced miners talk about meeting people with giant rats, and how they love to steal things. But no one knows where these creatures came from. There is one assumption that should certainly be taken for the truth, based on some of the features of the leaks. Rumor has it that one magician, dabbled with a special, rare magic of "fusion" and in order to calmly engage in such a craft, went to live in the mountains, and since then no one has seen him. It is possible that one of the experiments of this magician was successful ...