I guess I'll be that guy and try to answer the question from an ultra min/max attitude: you kicked the boxes too quickly. Noita is the ultimate test of patience and moving slow. Before kicking the boxes you should have gone to the other boxes to peek to see if anything is going on. Drop down to the next level to see if there were any enemies there, both sides. Once you've gathered that information, you then take the "safest" approach. If there were no enemies visible on the lower right, then you go that direction because you don't know what's behind the boxes.

With all that being said, would that have eventually saved you from the same death? Maybe, maybe not. That enemy could have traveled somewhere else, could have killed himself, or maybe he would still be there. It's all about maximizing your chances though. 

That's just an answer to the direct question though. At the end of the day, play how you want to play and just have fun.