Fanart by J.A. (me!)
(LastName-FirstName order)
Name: Hyung Han Shan
Ethnicity: Lin Kuei, Chinese and Korean descent
Age: 53
Bi Han and Kuai Liangs's father and *Tomas's step-uncle/father.
Canon-divergent down below!
Han here is a strict, no-nonsense, practical man who rules Lin Kuei with Machiavellian-like intelligence and cunning; he can bring forth a modern era for Lin Kuei. The Grandmaster believes such interaction with other realms must be handled with the Lin Kuei at the front, center, and in shadow.
Han does love his children, but he's not emotionally available when it comes to being a father, and he feels he doesn't need to since his wife is there with them. He's not a fan of her constant mothering towards their children, especially Bi Han. He feels he's too grown to be at his mother's hip.
(He never wanted to have children in the first place, sometimes he still feels that)
*One of Grandmaster Han's cousins was instantly smitten upon seeing Tomas's mother when she and her small family accidentally crossed Lin Kuei's hunting territory in Prague, which he guards ruthlessly. A few months later, a horrible, gruesome assault on the Vrbada family by a dangerous cult. The Lin Kuei took the only survivors, the single mother and her twins, to Artika for protection. The cousin married the mother and raised the twins as his own children. Raising and training Tomas to be the right-hand man to Bi-Han and Kuai Liang when either and/or both become the next Grandmasters. Also, the Grandmaster bestowed Tomas an honorary blood oath to be his third son and a brother to Bi Han and Kuei Liang.
(Basically, Tomas ended up having two fathers, two mothers, and additional siblings alongside his sister)
Only after the death of his wife did his relationship with his sons quickly deteriorate; between Han Shan and Bi Han is acrimonious--at best. At worst--downright hostile!
A horrible situation of an invasion and assassination attempts caused the death of his wife, but it was kept under wraps to not expose certain clans and those from other realms who were involved in the to keep the peace. Han Shan was the one who counseled that.
When Bi Han got older and discovered what his father had done and those involved, he went berserk and went after the Shirai Ryu for revenge.
Before Bi Han left, both father and son brutally fought about the situation. Nasty things were said, and blame was thrown around. Both blame and accuse the other harshly.
Han Shan is a phenomenal Grandmaster.
As father, though..ummm?
(I prefer to change the Canon a bit; Tomas being raised by the people who murdered his family, even by accident, is a little bit icky and problematic and very troubling as It's more believable that Tomas would be the villain than Bi-Han at this point)
(Han Shan is still Grandmaster)
