How to Run Away from Obsessed Men

Episode 93. Side Story

It was the day of Crain’s execution.

Lindsey wore a black dress and draped a black veil over her head.
Rain poured down from the sky.

Lindsey looked up at the gloomy heavens.

“A day fitting for Crain’s end,” she thought.

She turned her gaze toward the person who had carefully taken her hand. Mikhail was looking at her with a worried expression.

Lindsey gave him a faint smile.

Since she had awakened, Mikhail had not left her side even once.
That fact felt even more significant today.

She felt the warmth of Mikhail’s hand holding hers.

Through the cold air, his body heat reached her. Mikhail stirred his mana to warm her body.

Lindsey shook her head.

She wanted to remember this day as it was.

She saw the massive crowd gathered to witness Crain’s death. As she observed their faces full of anger, she felt a strange mix of emotions.

“Betraying the nation!”

Crain, held tightly by the soldiers, no longer resembled the person she once knew.

His sunken cheeks and bloodshot red eyes. Even the anger that had once burned in his gaze was nowhere to be found.

The soldier dragging Crain forced him to his knees.
The blade of the soldier’s sword hovered over Crain’s neck.

In that moment, Lindsey’s eyes met Crain’s.

Crain’s eyes widened as though he wanted to say something.
What was the emotion lingering in his gaze? Regret? Or hatred?

Without hesitation, Lindsey turned away.
“Let’s go, Mikhail.”

It was a day filled with people she needed to meet.

* * *

Even inside the carriage, Mikhail’s gaze never left Lindsey.
Lindsey had her eyes closed, and seeing her like that stirred a small sense of worry within him.

Today must have been a profoundly significant day for Lindsey in many ways.

After all, it was the execution of Crain, the man who had ruined her life.

Mikhail found himself uneasy about it, but he couldn’t tell Lindsey not to go.

There were things Lindsey needed to confront and resolve on her own.

Witnessing Crain’s final moments was something she had chosen to do.

Mikhail respected her decision, yet he couldn’t entirely shake his anxiety.

Kenyan had feelings for Lindsey.

It was obvious, even though they hadn’t met many times. The way Kenyan looked at her, the intensity in his eyes—it all said one thing.
He was doing his utmost to love her.

“Mikhail, I have something to say,” Lindsey suddenly spoke, pulling Mikhail out of his thoughts.

As her gaze settled on him, Mikhail’s face flushed red.

Since Lindsey had regained consciousness, Mikhail hadn’t left her side, not even once.

In truth, he had been by her side even before she woke up, though Lindsey was unaware of this.

Lindsey still thought he couldn’t survive without her. Of course, in the beginning, that had been true.

But ever since she woke and continuously shared her divine power with him, he no longer needed her presence to stay alive.

He hadn’t told her that.

Someday, he would have to, but for now, he wanted to keep living this way.

Because without Lindsey, I’m as good as dead.

Even if his body could go on living, his spirit wouldn’t survive without her. It wasn’t an excuse; it was his truth.

“Lindsey, I…”

Lindsey playfully tapped Mikhail on the shoulder.
He looked at her, startled.

In that moment, he realized something: he had never defined what kind of relationship they had.

The same had been true when he was Baek Ji-hyuk. While he liked Han Ji-yoo, on the surface, their connection was limited to that of a guide and an esper—a bond of mutual trust and dependence.
He had never gone beyond that to define their relationship.

But now, he knew one thing for sure: he loved Lindsey.

Loved her so deeply that life without her felt impossible. That was why he had crossed dimensions and endured all the time apart.

Still, it was only his own one-sided feeling. Even if his heart was clear without needing to express it, as Lindsey had said, they hadn’t defined what they meant to each other.

Mikhail finally spoke the words buried deep in his heart—words that required all the courage he had.

“I love you.”

Lindsey, hearing his confession, smiled brightly.

“If we return to the Riken Duchy, shall we start courting?”

At Lindsey’s words, Mikhail’s face flushed red as if it might burst. There was no need to hesitate in his reply—he had always wanted to say this.

“If you’ll allow it, anytime.”

Mikhail carefully took Lindsey’s hand and intertwined their fingers.

Lindsey found comfort in his warmth. As she felt his heat, even the frozen parts of her heart seemed to melt away.

* * *

Lindsey arrived at the Radian estate.

Seated on the sofa in the drawing room, she looked around, taking in her surroundings.

The servants all glanced nervously at her, their eyes filled with fear.
It was a surprising change, considering the treatment she had once endured here.

None of them dared to even speak to Mikhail, who stood beside her.

‘They must be remembering what they did,’ she thought.

Not long ago, Kenyan had officially taken his position as the head of the Radian family.

One of his first actions as head was to punish every servant who had tormented Lindsey.

The ones who remained here had likely witnessed everything he had done.

Lindsey’s visit to the estate was due to Kenyan’s request to meet her just once.

Mikhail, standing close by, moved even closer as if to shield her.
Sensing his protective stance, Lindsey gently took his hand, as if to reassure him not to worry.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

It was then that Kenyan appeared. His gaze never left Lindsey and Mikhail.

To be more precise, his eyes were locked on their intertwined hands.

“You’re looking much better.”

At Kenyan’s remark, Lindsey let out a dry laugh. His jealousy was so blatant it was almost amusing.

Kenyan was clearly in love with her.

Was it just that he liked her?

He had even gone so far as to oppose Azhet for her sake. Azhet, one of the masterminds behind the recent Eastern Empire attack, had been imprisoned.

By all accounts, the Radian family should have faced severe repercussions.

But it was Kenyan, standing before her now, who had subdued Azhet.

Thanks to his actions, the Radian family had been allowed to survive.

Of course, Azhet would never leave the Radian estate for the rest of his life.

Lindsey thought of her former fiancé, recalling his once-arrogant face.

Now, he was destined to live a caged existence without even the freedom to move at will.

He was in a situation not much different from his mother, Sylvia. Lindsey knew how humiliating that must have been for him.

Kenyan spoke, his expression unreadable.

“It’s different from when you were here.”

Lindsey frowned.

“Why did you call me here?”

Kenyan pressed his lips together, his bloodshot eyes betraying his emotions.

“You’re leaving forever, aren’t you?”

“Well, I might come here again someday. Who knows when that will be, though,” Lindsey replied with a shrug.

Of course, even if she did, she wouldn’t be coming to see Kenyan.

At her response, Kenyan gave a bitter smile. There was only one thing he could do now.

“I’m sorry.”

Lindsey stared at him silently, her lips pressed into a thin line.

Kenyan bowed deeply. He finally accepted that he would never see Lindsey again.

She wouldn’t come back to him, wouldn’t allow him into her life. Perhaps this was the only true atonement he could offer her.
He still loved her.

That love would never disappear. It had been seared into his heart the moment he laid eyes on her.

But this would be their last meeting. Lindsey hated him.

His love had been selfish and violent. It was a love that didn’t deserve to be called love at all.

Kenyan finally acknowledged that truth.

“Truly, I’m sorry,” he said again.

Lindsey simply looked at him with calm, unwavering eyes.

After a long moment, she finally spoke.

“I will be happy. In a place where you don’t exist.”

As her words ended, Kenyan realized that everything between them had come to an end.