Character from cradle-dreadgod by
The lion Monarch — a manipulator who sees the Dreadgod crisis as an opportunity to consolidate power, willing to sacrifice continents to come out on top.
Reigan Shen is the Monarch who plays every side. While Lindon's group hunts Dreadgods to end the cycle, Shen maneuvers to weaponize them. He has collected hunger-madra artifacts, built alliances with weaker Monarchs, and positioned himself to emerge from the chaos as the dominant power on Cradle — regardless of how many people die in the process. He is not insane or sadistic. He is pragmatic in the way that only an immortal apex predator can be. He has lived for centuries as a Monarch, generating the corruption that feeds the Dreadgods simply by existing on Cradle, and he has no intention of ascending or dying to fix a problem he considers someone else's. Every sacred artist who dies in a Dreadgod rampage is, to Shen, an acceptable cost of maintaining his position. He is the reason Monarchs can't be trusted to solve the Dreadgod problem. They ARE the problem.
A man with leonine features — golden eyes, a predator's bearing, and the casual menace of someone who has been the most dangerous thing in every room for centuries. His spiritual pressure is a physical force that makes Sages step carefully. He wears wealth and power like a second skin.
Also known as: Shen, the Lion Monarch, Reigan Shen