The Bride He Hates-Chapter 108: Last Visit?

Azrael returned to Thornfield and immersed himself in the battle. He identified the Crimson Cross’s weak points and exploited them ruthlessly, making tactical decisions that saved hundreds of lives.

He fought on the walls himself. He was commanded, fought and directed his forces continuously.

"Your Majesty, the eastern wall is holding!" Adrian reported, appearing at his side during a brief pause in fighting.

"Redirect forces to the northern gate. That’s where they’ll push next."

"Already done, Your Majesty."

"Casualty count?"

"Seventy three dead, two hundred wounded. It could have been much worse without your tactics."

"Still seventy three people died under my protection. Update me when the count changes."

"Your Majesty, are you..."

"I’m fine. Focus on the battle."

But he wasn’t fine. He kept seeing Lyanna’s face. He kept hearing his own cruel words echoing in his head. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

What the hell was I thinking? Why did I say the cruelest things to her?

"Your Majesty!" Someone shouted. "They’re breaching the northern gate!"

Azrael pushed back his thoughts and started fighting like a king again. He fought for hours.

By midnight, the tide was turning. Reinforcements from the southern territories arrived, and the Crimson Cross forces began to retreat.

By dawn, it was over. Thornfield had won.

Azrael stood on the walls, watching the sun rise over his damaged city. They had won. But he felt nothing except emptiness.

"Brilliant tactical work, Your Majesty." Adrian said, approaching with a damage report. "Your leadership saved our city."

"Casualties?" Azrael asked.

"Ninety seven dead, three hundred twelve wounded. There is a significant damage to the eastern quarter and northern gate. But we won. Thanks to you."

Azrael just nodded in response.

"You should rest now. You’ve been fighting for hours."

"I don’t need rest. I’m fine."

"You’re not fine. You’ll collapse if you don’t rest."

"Then let me collapse. Right now, I need not think. And the only time I’m not thinking about her is when I’m fighting."

"She didn’t come back?"

"Why would she? I called her a coward, said the cruelest things I could think of because I was hurt. She is not coming back and to be honest, she shouldn’t."

"Your Majesty..."

"I destroyed everything again. She was ready to come back, and then the crisis happened and I immediately started giving her orders." He laughed bitterly. "And when she called me on it, when she said she was leaving, I lashed out."

He turned away from the sunrise.

"She is right. I can’t change. She deserves better."

Three days after Lyanna returned to Valdris, Roland went to meet her in the garden. She had spent those three days like a ghost. She didn’t eat or sleep probably. She wasn’t even talking to anyone.

"Lyanna, can we talk? It’s been three days already. You can’t live like this."

She nodded and he sat beside her on the bench, quiet for a moment.

"I’ve been thinking about what you told me about your meeting with Azrael."

Lyanna just stared at the flowers.

"And I have a question for you. I need you to really think before answering."

"Okay." Lyanna finally replied.

"Do you love him?"

"Of course." Lyanna replied immediately. "I love him."

"I thought so." Roland said, his voice filled with sadness and understanding. "Can I tell you what I see when I look at you?"

Lyanna nodded.

"I see someone who is trying to convince herself that she needs peace, someone who is exhausted from fighting. Someone who is choosing safety because passion almost destroyed her."

He paused.

"But Lyanna, you’re not built for simple or easy things. You’re built for intensity. For the kind of love that burns hot even when it hurts. I can give you peace, but not passion. I can give you safety, but not the intensity you crave."

"Maybe I don’t want intensity anymore. Maybe I’m tired of burning." She replied.

"Or maybe you’re just scared of getting burned again."

Lyanna looked at him. He was offering himself again, even after knowing she didn’t love him.

"I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Roland. You deserve someone who chooses you first, who doesn’t consider you as a second option. It’s all my mistake. I came here and let you fall in love with me. I’m terrible."

"No, you’re not. I knew what I was getting into. I chose to love you anyway, knowing you might not love me back. That’s on me, not you."

He stood up.

"But Lyanna, you need to make a choice. A choice about what you actually want in your life."

"I don’t know what I want."

"You do. You just don’t want to want it. You want him but then you don’t because it’s scary and painful. Think about it." He said and left.

After he left, Lyanna sat in the garden for hours, thinking.

I need to figure out what I actually want.

And she got her answer soon. She wanted a partnership where her voice mattered, where decisions were made together.

She wanted intensity. The kind of love that made her feel alive, that challenged her to grow.

Could Azrael give me that again? Could he actually change enough to give me a partnership I want? Could he value my humanity instead of resenting it?

I don’t know if he can change. But I know I can’t move on with Roland while my heart belongs to Azrael.

Clara approached her at sunset.

"Your Majesty, you’ve been out here all day. You should eat something."

"Clara, can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Do you think I’m a coward?"

Clara was taken aback by the question.

"A coward? No. Why would you think that?"

"Azrael said I run when things get difficult." She said. "Do you think he’s right?"

Clara sat beside her.

"No, Your Majesty. Not at all."

Lyanna thought for a minute.

"I think I need to go back to Thornfield."

"Back to His Majesty?"

"Not to him. But to decide what I actually want instead of reacting to what he does." She stood up. "I need to meet him once more to close this Chapter properly instead of running from it."

"Are you sure?" Clara asked.

"About this choice? No. But I’m sure I can’t move on until I’ve finished what we started. Until I’ve looked him in the eye and said what I want to say without getting influenced by anger or hurt."

She took a deep breath.

"I’m going back to Thornfield. Not to be his queen. But to say goodbye properly."

That evening, Lyanna wrote two letters. One was for Roland:

Thank you for your kindness and honesty. You deserve someone who chooses you without hesitation. I’m sorry I couldn’t be that person. I’m going back to Thornfield to finish what I started. I don’t know what will happen in the future, but please remember that your friendship meant everything to me during these difficult weeks.

The other one was for Azrael:

I’m coming to Thornfield to talk one last time. I owe us both that much. I’ll arrive in three days.