The attacker now lay face down in a submission hold on the cold marble floor. Charlie pressed down on his back with one knee, pinning the attacker's entire body weight.
No matter how hard the attacker tried to rebel, claw at the floor, or struggle to get up, his body remained completely unyielding, as though he were being crushed under a giant boulder.
On the other side, Mahiru slowly began to recover from her state of shock.
Her breath came in ragged gasps, and with her body still trembling violently, she reflexively took a few steps backward to distance herself from the danger.
Seeing his target moving away, the attacker forced his head up with a wrenching motion.
From his low, face-down position on the floor, his line of sight directed straight upward, allowing him to briefly catch a faint glimpse of Mahiru's sensitive area slightly exposed beneath the weave of her black pantyhose.
Instantly, the pair of eyes behind the now-cracked sunglasses flared with pure madness.
With the veins in his neck bulging, he began to scream hysterically, spouting delusional words typical of a stalker whose soul had been consumed by extreme jealousy.
"Why?! Why are you with another man, Mahiru-tan?! I've always been watching you! I know everything about you! I worship you every single day!" the man shrieked in a shrill, raspy voice, ignoring the pain racking his body. "But today... you actually let this damn man accompany you! You bought him clothes! You smiled so sweetly at him! Traitor! You've defiled your own purity! It's better for you to die by my hands than belong to anyone else!"
Seeing that the situation seemed to have been successfully brought under control, the shopping mall visitors who had previously scattered began to slow their pace. One by one, they gathered back around, forming a circle from a safe distance to see what was happening.
Hearing the string of delusional emotional outbursts from the man, the surrounding crowd instantly looked at Mahiru with gazes full of pity and sympathy.
After all, stalker cases were nothing new in Japan. They knew all too well how terrifying it was to become the target of obsession for someone with such an unstable mentality.
Charlie, who was still holding the man down, quickly realized that Mahiru's mental state was being violently shaken once again by those maddened vitriols.
Without wasting any time, Charlie used his right hand to grip the back of the stalker's head and slammed his face hard against the floor, forcing the man to look down so he could no longer stare at or intimidate Mahiru with his crazed gaze.
"Let me go, you bastard!" The stalker continued to curse, his voice muffled by the marble floor yet filled with a deep-seated hatred directed at Charlie. "You damn riajuu! You're just using your good looks to get close to my Angel, aren't you?! Get away from her! Scum like you only ever think about defiling her holy body! Die! Dieee!"
"Shut up." Charlie tightened his pressure on the man's head until he could only groan in pain.
A few moments later, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed as they approached.
A squad of shopping mall security staff finally arrived at the scene with tense expressions.
Seeing that Charlie had already successfully neutralized the perpetrator, the security officers moved swiftly.
Two sturdily built officers immediately took over Charlie's position, handcuffing the stalker's hands behind his back, then dragged him to his feet roughly to take him away to the security room to be handed over to the police.
Once the corridor began to settle down, the head of security approached Charlie and Mahiru with a very deep, respectful bow.
As the parties directly involved, acting as the victim and key witness, Charlie and Mahiru were asked to follow the security staff to their office to provide written statements regarding the chronology of the incident, before the two of us were finally permitted to leave and resume our activities.
◆━⊰✿✧✿⊱━◆
The horrifying incident at the shopping mall earlier had completely ruined the mood that evening.
With Mahiru's mental state still shaken and time wasted in the security office, it was impossible for them to continue their grocery shopping agenda.
On the way home, Mahiru and Charlie walked side by side in a heavy silence.
Only the howling evening wind and their own footsteps broke the quietness of the sidewalk, until suddenly Mahiru halted her steps and spoke up, breaking the silence with a trembling tone.
"That man... he is a neighbor on the same floor in my apartment building." She said softly, her eyes staring blankly at the tips of her shoes. "I don't know what his name is. All this time, I only ever greeted him politely whenever we happened to pass each other in the apartment corridor."
"I... I really never imagined that he was a stalker hiding that kind of madness inside himself."
Charlie stopped his steps as well, turning toward the girl beside him with a gentle, comforting gaze.
"Sometimes, kindness is frequently misunderstood by certain people, Shiina-san."
"Those whose souls are lonely or distorted tend to think that the friendliness you show to everyone is something special, directed exclusively at them alone."
"I suspect that man misunderstood and believed that your polite greetings all this time held a specific romantic intent."
Mahiru lowered her head even further, gently squeezing the hem of her school jacket. "I... I was only being nice and friendly because I thought it was a basic etiquette that every human being should possess."
"Why... why does something as simple as that feel so difficult and end up bringing disaster instead?"
Seeing Mahiru's shoulders trembling from frustration and guilt, Charlie let out a short sigh. He decided to unveil a single layer of truth so that the girl would not keep blaming herself.
"Listen, Shiina-san. You don't need to blame yourself. There is one thing you should know: this attack is highly likely closely related to the Parasitic-Type Abyssal Devourer that is targeting you."
Hearing that name mentioned, Mahiru suddenly startled. She looked up, staring at him with a pair of eyes that widened in disbelief through the remnants of her tears.
"Charlie-kun... you're not just saying this to comfort me or make me feel better, right?"
Charlie shook his head firmly, admitting honestly, "That is indeed one of my reasons for comforting you, I won't deny it."
"But technically, I am absolutely certain that the Abyssal Devourer is the main mastermind behind that man's reckless action. That monster used its power to manipulate the subconscious mind, amplifying his negative emotions, obsessions, and jealousy to the point of uncontrollable madness."
Mahiru was an incredibly intelligent girl. The moment she heard Charlie's explanation, the common thread in her brain instantly connected. She took a deep breath, trying to digest the fact.
"I see..." Mahiru whispered, the light in her eyes gradually sharpening even though the remnants of the trauma still lingered. "That means... my neighbor did indeed harbor malicious intent and the seeds of obsession toward me from the very start. That monster merely exploited the dark crevice inside his heart to push him into acting this far."
Charlie looked at Mahiru, who now appeared a bit calmer after managing to process the complicated situation. Slowly, he reached out his hand and patted the top of the girl's head with a very gentle motion—a soothing gesture that spontaneously caused Mahiru to be slightly startled.
"Alright, don't think about it anymore. Your task tonight is to go home, take a warm bath, and rest your mind." He said as he withdrew his hand, then offered a faint smile that felt deeply reassuring. "Leave the rest of the Abyssal Devourer matter to me. I am here to ensure that not a single one of them will ever be able to touch you again."
"..."
Mahiru was stunned for a moment, feeling an unfamiliar warmth slowly spreading through her heart, chipping away at the remaining coldness from the trauma moments ago.
She tidied up the stray hairs that were slightly messy, then nodded slowly with a faint blush that once again graced both of her cheeks.
"Thank you... Charlie-kun." She whispered sincerely, this time without any tone of tension or mask of formality in her voice.
The evening sun had now sunk completely in the west, replaced by an expanse of twilight sky in shades of orange and purple that was beginning to fade.
Beneath the glow of the city streetlights that were starting to turn on one by one, the two of them resumed their previously delayed steps.
Walking side by side along the quiet sidewalk, they strode home toward the apartment, preparing to face the invisible storm that was slowly but surely beginning to stalk their peaceful lives.
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