The pain in my head throbbed as I woke up and scanned my surroundings. This was my room in my own home. At that moment, the door opened, and they entered. Fear slowly crept over me... I was scared.
“He almost killed me, amore," Lucian recounted, pointing at Aleksei beside him.
“Because you left her with Matthew," Aleksei glared angrily at Lucian.
‘I'm scared...’
Lucian sighed, “I'm sorry, amore. I promise not to leave your side from now on."
I vividly recalled what happened, no matter how hard I tried to forget, it kept replaying in my mind. 
As Lucian approached me, I suddenly shouted, “Don't! Please don't come near me! Stay away! Just stay away from me! Please!” Trembling in fear, I covered myself with my blanket and leaped off the bed, distancing myself from both of them.
“Amore…”
Aleksei took a step forward, but I screamed, “No! Go away! Stay away! Please! Leave me alone!” Tears streamed down my face as I moved to the edge of my room, haunted by memories of what had happened.
“Winter,” I could sense the anguish in Aleksei's gaze as he looked at me.
I sat on the floor, holding my knees tightly. “Don't touch me...please stop…” I could still feel his touch on my body.
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LUCIAN'S POV
My heart shattered witnessing the scene before me. My amore. If I had not left her with that person, this wouldn't have happened. I made a grave mistake. My fists clenched as I stood there, unable to approach her.
“Do something, man. We can't let her be like this.” I glanced beside me.
“If I erase her memory, it won't change the truth of what she went through,” he stated matter-of-factly, but what did it matter when the woman we both cared about was in such a state?
Frustrated, I grabbed his shirt tightly. “Do something, will you?! It's excruciating to watch her like this! It's my fault it happened, so I'm asking you to erase her memory!”
He remained composed, “It's not simple.”
I clenched my jaw, “What can we do?!”
“If I erase her memory, you and I won't exist in her life. That's not what I want.” He then turned to Winter, still huddled in a corner, crying and repeating the same words over and over. “I am a mage, and erasing memories is risky. Our only option is to help her recover from the trauma. It won't be easy, but I vowed to protect her.”
I angrily wiped my face, about to step forward when he stopped me.
“Don't. She's scared... we should keep our distance for now. Let her acclimate to our presence, but we won't force ourselves to approach her. We need to show her that she's safe with us…gradually. We won't repeat what happened to her.” This man's words struck a chord. “She wants us to leave. I’ll prepare something in the kitchen while you wait outside her room,” with that, he disappeared, leaving me bewildered once again. I still had no clue about his origins; only Winter had knowledge of his identity.
I stepped outside her room, leaving the door wide open. We spent the entire day watching over her. I couldn't help but miss Liana, seeing my sister in her, despite my attempts to convince myself otherwise. Amore was a stranger, yet there was a peculiar resemblance to Liana. I felt a profound love for her, a strong desire to protect her in place of my inability to safeguard my sister. If Liana were alive, I believed they would have been friends. To this day, I remained ignorant of the identity of the killer of my parents and sister. I had spent ten years searching, but all my efforts yielded no results. It seemed as if the crime scene had been meticulously wiped clean of any evidence.
“Can't sleep?” I glared at the person before me. I detested his sudden appearances, akin to a ghost. Despite the late hour, sleep evaded me.
“Can't you stop using your powers? It's infuriating,” I rebuked him.
“Go take a rest,” he gestured towards the living room, and before I could protest, my body complied.
“Stop manipulating me with your powers!” I shouted in frustration.
I reclined on the couch, cursing him silently. Since his return with amore the previous night, he exhibited his abilities effortlessly. Initially, I disliked him due to his smug demeanor, the predatory color of his eyes, and his stern and sometimes cold attitude when near amore.
Facing the door, I caught a faint noise outside. Stealthily, I left the couch, positioned behind the door, and approached the window to peek outside. Nothing. It was odd; I was sure I had heard something. I headed to Winter's room. Aleksei sat calmly outside her door, the room now closed. It seemed strange to watch her sleep, so we chose to shut the door after he left her with food earlier. Ichi and Dreamer were in her room. I had hoped Ichi would stay with me, but he had been avoiding me since last night. I'm not his owner but I loved that cat.
“I heard something outside,” I informed him, but he remained silent and unmoving. My brow furrowed in confusion as I probed further, “Are you listening...”
The sound of shattering glass reverberated through the house. As I turned away from the door, two silhouettes emerged, each wielding a blade in each hand. Aleksei stood next to me, unperturbed. The door behind me suddenly opened, and he gave me a disinterested look. “There’s someone at the window. Kill him, I'll handle these two,” he instructed. I raised my middle finger at him before entering Winter's room. I detested being given orders. The door closed behind me, and I witnessed her facing the intruder with her katana in hand.
“Get Ichi and Dreamer out of here,” she commanded without looking at me. I was torn between amazement and shock. She displayed no fear towards the intruder, showing no signs of trembling. “Hurry, get them!” I hastened to scoop up the cats before exiting the room.
Two headless bodies greeted me on the floor as Aleksei glanced back. “What are you doing here?”
“Amore asked me to leave with the cats–” I was cut off as he vanished from my sight.
I sighed before facing the open door of her room. “He certainly enjoys flaunting his abilities so effortlessly, doesn't he, Ichi and Dreamer?” I addressed the two cats in my arms.
“Meow~”
“Meow~”
I sat on a chair at the entrance of the room, cradling the two cats. “Let's witness a live assassination then.”
“Meow~”
“Meow~”
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Author's note: My intention was to conclude this story at chapter 30, but it seems that won't be the case. There are still unresolved elements in this story.