How to Run Away from Obsessed Men

Episode 86

“Find him now!”

Flute screamed, his voice echoing through the chaotic halls.

The emperor was nowhere to be seen. Without finding the emperor, he couldn’t get his hands on the imperial seal either.

He already knew his father had likely escaped through a hidden passage.

Flute shouted again, his frustration boiling over.

“Just find the entrance! If we find it, we can catch him!”

It was then that a frantic voice called out.

“We found it!”

Flute spun around.

The knight pointed to a spot that appeared hastily concealed, revealing the hidden entrance.

Relief washed over Flute’s face.

“Finally.”

If he could just enter that passage, he could capture the emperor.

Memories of all the indignities he had endured flashed through his mind.

The humiliations inflicted by Rebecca. The scornful looks from his father.

His entire life, he had been compared to her—always falling short in their eyes.

But now, it would all end.

It didn’t matter if the world called him a parricide or condemned him.

“This world is mine now.”

As a satisfied smile spread across his face, a voice he shouldn’t have heard here reached his ears.

“What makes you think this is your world?”

Flute’s head turned slowly toward the voice. His face twisted in shock.

“Kenyan Radian?”

“Yes, it’s me,” Kenyan said calmly.

Flute felt his body tremble—a primal fear he couldn’t suppress.

But then he remembered his position and let out a mocking laugh.

He hadn’t come here alone. The number of transcendents he’d brought with him was no small force.

“You’ve made it this far, somehow.”

It seemed Kenyan had fought his way through those countless transcendents to reach this place.

‘A monster of a man.’

Crain had assured him that Azhet was already on their side, which meant Kenyan had defied Azhet and come here anyway.

‘I never imagined he’d be stronger than Azhet.’

With a tense expression, Flute glared at Kenyan.

‘How did he even make it here? And what’s with the forces behind him?’

Flute tried to steady his nerves as he spoke.

“Do you even know where you are? Did you come here to find a place to die?”

Kenyan didn’t reply.

Covered in blood, exhaustion visible on his face, he simply stared at Flute.

“You’ve always had a problem with me, haven’t you?” Flute sneered.

“……”

“Because of that filthy blood—”

Before Flute could finish his sentence, Kenyan’s sword moved.

Flute felt his breath catch in his throat. Blood splattered across his face.

The neck of a transcendent standing beside him was severed cleanly, their blood staining Flute’s face.

Flute froze in horror. His trembling hands rose to wipe the blood from his face.

Kenyan’s voice was low, cold as ice.

“Say that again. I dare you.”

Flute could feel the anger radiating off Kenyan. It wasn’t just his presence that was unsettling—it was the sheer disgust in his gaze.

Kenyan’s expression hardened further. It was only natural that he didn’t find Flute’s face pleasant to look at.

But what enraged him more than anything else was Flute daring to bring up Lindsey.

“I’ve never liked you, you know,” Kenyan said, his voice steady despite the fury beneath it. “In fact, I’m almost grateful you started this rebellion. You’ve made it easier to deal with you.”

At Kenyan’s words, the knights behind him gasped in shock, their eyes wide with disbelief.

But Kenyan, having said his piece, remained as composed as ever.

Kenyan realized he had been waiting for this moment for a long time.

A faint smile spread across his bloodied face.

“I’ve always thought about it. The punishment you got for what you did to Lindsey was far too lenient.”

Flute stumbled back, fear taking hold of him.

Kenyan, drenched in blood, advancing toward him, looked almost otherworldly. Flute still had many transcendents at his side, ready to protect him.

Yet, dread filled his heart.

“S-stay back!” Flute stammered. “Don’t come any closer! Kill him, now!”

At his command, the transcendents by his side charged toward Kenyan.

Kenyan swung his sword as he advanced, his mind replaying Flute’s mocking words from the past—the ones he had uttered after putting Lindsey’s life in danger.

“That woman? She can’t do anything anyway. She’s just dirty blood, after all. She’s nothing compared to someone as noble as me.”

“I won’t have to pay for anything.”

One by one, the transcendents from the Eastern Empire fell to Kenyan’s blade.

Kenyan frowned in irritation. “Where did you even find so many transcendents?”

As quickly as they fell, more wounds appeared on Kenyan’s body.

A sword pierced through his shoulder, but Kenyan didn’t stop.

Blood poured from his wounds, his vision blurring. Even so, his mind grew sharper with each passing moment.

Lindsey’s face lingered in his thoughts, along with the memories of what she had suffered at Flute’s hands.

‘I’m angry because of her.’

Shlak! Slash!

A deep gash appeared across Kenyan’s abdomen.

Despite the pain, his eyes never left Flute.

Flute, who had been backing away, tripped and fell to the ground. Those watching Kenyan realized why he was covered in so much blood.

He wasn’t paying any attention to his injuries. It was as if he welcomed the pain.

Flute was paralyzed with fear.

Kenyan, along with his reinforcements, had already wiped out all of Flute’s soldiers. The battlefield was eerily silent except for the sound of Flute’s trembling breaths.

“Y-you monster!” Flute screamed.

Kenyan’s sword grazed Flute’s hair, slicing off a few strands.

Flute’s face went pale as death.

Kenyan looked down at him, his voice chilling and void of emotion.

“I’m not going to kill you easily. There’s too much I need to repay.”

With that, Kenyan drove his sword into Flute’s shoulder.

Flute screamed in agony, his cry echoing through the empty battlefield.

Kenyan stared at him with an expressionless face, unaffected by the screams.

“For all the humiliation Lindsey endured because of you.”

Kenyan slashed Flute’s other shoulder.

“Arghhh!”

“And for every injury I’ve sustained on my way here. I’ll make sure to repay it all.”

⋆★⋆

Lindsey held her breath as she gazed at the two unconscious men lying before her.

Mikhail and Raysis were completely still.

She looked down at her hands, where she clutched the Book of the Dead—an artifact Crain had valued so much. She had taken it from him after he lost consciousness.

A bitter laugh escaped her lips.

This little book had caused so much pain to the people of the Kesion Marquisate. And now, because of it, both Raysis and Mikhail lay motionless.

Beside her, Felia sat anxiously, glancing at Lindsey before carefully speaking.

“They’re not… dead, are they?”

“Not yet,” Lindsey replied, her voice steady. “Raysis should wake up soon. Crain didn’t finish him off, after all.”

“What was he even thinking? He acted like he was going to kill him.”

“Who knows? We’ll never understand the mind of someone like Crain.”

Lindsey answered absently as she focused her divine power on Mikhail.

Raysis had fainted from sheer exhaustion after pushing his body too far.

But Mikhail was different.

He was truly dying.

‘My divine power isn’t working like it should.’

Her divine energy was only barely managing to delay his body’s deterioration.

But that was all it could do—delay.

Doctors from the Marquisate had swarmed around Mikhail, desperately trying to treat him. Even the clerics of the Kesion Marquisate had poured their divine power into him. Yet, Mikhail had not opened his eyes.

Eventually, Lindsey had sent everyone else away, choosing to heal him herself.

She closed her eyes tightly.

Her chest felt heavy with frustration.

‘What were you thinking? Why didn’t you tell me the truth?’

Lindsey grasped Mikhail’s hand firmly.

‘You’re Baek Ji-hyuk. I know you are. And you knew it too, didn’t you? Somehow, you knew.’

There were so many questions she wanted to ask him—how he had managed to cross dimensions, and how he still remembered her.

But Mikhail, lying there silently, couldn’t answer any of her questions.

The moment she realized who he was, she was faced with the possibility of losing him again. All that time he had been by her side, and she hadn’t known.

Lindsey reached out and gently caressed his face.

He looked so different from the Baek Ji-hyuk she had once known.

And yet, she was certain. This man was Baek Ji-hyuk.

‘I won’t let you die.’

She had to find a way to save him.

A voice interrupted her thoughts.

“Cleric Roana, someone is here to see you.”

Lindsey turned around, startled.

“Someone wants to see me?”

“Yes, they said you’d know who they are if they mentioned the name Karen.”

“Karen?”

Why? Why was Karen here?

Karen was a transcendent who knew about dimensional magic—the very kind Lindsey had been searching for answers about.