Chapter 194: My Woman, Not Your Savior

Leo’s POV

Shina’s suggestion about using my Ivy hit me like a fist. My chair rasped against the floor when I stood…both of them stared as if I’d lost my mind, as if I had betrayed them by my sudden refusal.

“Your majesty,” Shina said, voice tight with certainty. “It’s the only way to finally free the kingdom from Dina’s darkness…she’s terrified of what your mate could become. She’s terrified of what being bound to you has already turned her into.”

The room shrank to the hollow of my throat. Ivy’s face pushed into my head…small, brave, whole in that fragile way she always was after the worst. The idea of bending her into drills and battle plans, of forcing her to practice violence for a war she never asked for, made the air thin and metallic.

We will beat Dina. We have to. But not like this. Not by turning the woman I love into someone else’s weapon.

Make Ivy endure more trauma? No. Not for anything.

The denial ripped out of me like a roar. My chair screeched against the stone floor as I surged to my feet, the crack of wood echoing in the chamber. Shina flinched but stood her ground, her gaze burning with conviction.

“Your majesty,” she pressed, her tone sharpened by urgency. “There is no other way. The Luna’s wolf is not ordinary…she is the reincarnation of Nyxara herself. Only she carries the strength to end Dina once and for all. If you refuse, you are not just condemning your mate, you are condemning us all.”

Her words thundered in my head, but I slammed my fists against the table so hard the wood splintered. “No,” I snarled. “Reincarnation or not, I will not throw my mate into battle against some bitter, broken woman whose only purpose is chaos. Ivy is mine to protect, not to sacrifice. I will not allow it.”

The room went still, the silence vibrating with my fury. Then Ezra’s voice cut in, quiet but edged.

“With all due respect, your majesty… I don’t know the Luna well enough. But in the little time I’ve seen her, she is not someone who breaks easily. Do you really believe she is as fragile as you claim?” His tired eyes searched mine, steady. “Do you think you know her better than herself?”

A growl rumbled low in my chest, but he didn’t stop. “She’s a fighter. You have to let her do this. We all know that Dina is not an ordinary person. If she was, you would have killed her a long time ago. Your queen is a fighter, your majesty,” he concluded and I felt the anger coiling through my veins.

“My mate, Ivy Blackwood, is a flower…fragile, rare, and far too easily broken. Do you understand what happens when a flower is cast into the wind? It withers. It’s torn apart. I failed to shield her once, and I’d be a damned fool to let history repeat itself.” I said, my voice cold, unyielding.

“She is a flower, yes,” Ezra cut in, his voice softer now, almost thoughtful. “But flowers aren’t all weak. Some grow through stone, some survive storms. She’s not your regular flower, Alpha.”

“None of you understand what I’m trying to say. All her life, the Blackwoods pampered and sheltered her. What do you expect me to tell her father? That instead of protecting his daughter, instead of caring for her as my Luna, I am sending her to war the moment I make her mine?”

Their suggestion stabbed at me. Thinking about what Ivy’s father would say if something goes wrong and Ivy’s fragility. The weight of what was being asked of me sat like iron across my shoulders.

Shina’s voice broke through. “This is bigger than you. Bigger than me. Bigger than the Luna herself.” Her eyes blazed with a hard, ancient certainty. “If Dina succeeds, you won’t even live to guard your precious flower. None of us will. The kingdom you swore to protect will burn, and you won’t even have the chance to shield her from it. Listen to us, your majesty. You must listen.”

My fangs flashed as the growl tore free. “No!” My voice shook the room, eyes glowing red, the beast in me answering their challenge. “You will not make my mate into your savior. I said no!”

The tension snapped as a knock rattled the heavy door. It creaked open, and a familiar grin slid into view.

“Mr. Ash…ah, forgive me, your majesty,” Daniel said with a careful bow, stepping in like he owns a part of the war room. “If I may… Ivy Blackwood is no longer the helpless flower you think she is. We’ve been training. And I can assure you, she is more than capable. A worthy opponent, even.”

My blood surged hot. “What are you doing here, Daniel?” My voice dropped into a dangerous growl. “I gave you a direct order. You were not to set foot in this realm until we uncovered what happened to your clan. I told you to live quietly among the humans. And you did. Until now. So how dare you defy me?”

Daniel’s smile faltered. He flicked a glance at Ezra, who cleared his throat before stepping forward.

“Your majesty,” Ezra said carefully, “we had no choice. It was the only way to bring the Luna here safely. Her father insisted Daniel accompany her. Without him, she would not have come.”

I dragged a hand through my hair, frustration clawing at me. The walls felt too close, the air too thin.

He’s not supposed to be here. He shouldn’t be here.

“Then now that you’ve delivered her,” I snapped, “go back to the city. Leave.”

But Daniel dropped to one knee. His voice trembled, but his words cut deep. “I swore to Mr. Richard never to leave the Luna’s side, your majesty. Please… don’t force me to break my word.”

Shina seized the opening. “Your majesty,” she pressed again, relentlessly, “it is a blessing she is already trained in combat. Dina will not expect us to strike so soon. We must move while the enemy is blind to us.”

“No,” I growled again, pacing the room, the fury boiling too hot to contain. “No. No. No! My mate will not be dragged into a war she never asked for!” My claws scraped against the wood of the table, shredding it as the beast pressed harder inside me.

And then…

“And what if I want to?”

Her voice cleaved through the mindlink, sharp and steady, silencing all my thoughts. The door swung open, and there she stood…My Ivy…her chin lifted, eyes bright with defiance as she stepped into the room.

Everything inside me went still.

She wants to go? No. Hell no. I’ll chain her to the bed and bolt the door before I let her step onto that battlefield. I refuse to watch her throw herself at them like some invincible hero.

She’s my woman…not their fucking savior.