The Cursed King

Elise was so impressed. She nudged Loriel to explain more about Horatio. She found it fascinating.

Loriel finally told her about the prototype given to him by Rhionen Industries as he was one of their shareholders. He explained to her whatever things Horatio was capable of.

"Wow.. so, impressive."

"It is."

"How come I don\'t see many people use this technology?" she asked him.

"At the moment, only a few are lucky enough to get the prototype. These few people are able to get their hands on the latest technology and test the product. I am one of them. However, I am sure in ten years or so, all homes would already have this AI installed in them. This is the future."

"That sounds very likely," said Elise in awe. "So, how come you get the prototype in the first place? Are you involved in the development?"

Loriel shook his head. "No, but I made an investment years ago on this company that focuses their business on automation and AI. Their vision matched mine, so I wanted to be part of them."

"Ah, you seem to have a keen eye for business. You can predict what works and what doesn\'t work," Elise praised the man. "I believe you are right. This digital butler is the future and many households will get a lot of benefits from automating their daily tasks."

Loriel was happy because Elise saw what he saw too. This woman was very smart.

Ahh.. if it took Elise less than five years to speak the new language fluently and live like a regular human in the modern world, he could imagine how much she would accomplish if given more time. 

Especially now that she had Loriel by her side. The man was the only person who understood her inside and out, and he could help her learn whatever she needed to learn in this modern world.

He already imagined taking her on trips around the world, so Elise could see different places and learn from so many different cultures and people. 

But first... he needed to regain her trust and her love. Then, everything else would follow.

"Yes, I agree. As soon as we can all confirm the benefit, the company will make it available to the public," said Loriel.

Elise nodded. "I am sure it will be beneficial for so many people. If they could delegate all the household tasks, people could save time and use it for things that matter, like spending time with their family and do more productive work."

\'Yes, exactly."

After he listened to Loriel\'s lengthy explanation about Horatio and the investment he made on the initiative, Elise looked at Loriel with a confused expression.

The man quickly noticed her confusion and asked Elise what was on her mind.

"Is there anything you would like to ask me?" Loriel looked at Elise attentively. "I can see a  big question mark on your face."

Elise bit her lip. "Uhm.. I am sorry if my question will offend you, but this doesn\'t add up. You seem to have good business acumen and understanding of the market because you invest in the company that produces Horatio. So, how come you lost all your money in the stock market?"

Loriel was stunned by her sudden statement. Ah... he knew Elise was really smart, sooner or later she could see through his lies. But he already lied to her about why he lost his wealth.

So, what to do now?

Loriel was desperate yesterday when he saw Elise. He really wanted to take the train with her to Central Park and the only way to do it was to claim that he was poor. Too poor to afford a taxi.

Now, pretending to be poor was harder than it looked, because he had to find a plausible reason for his poverty.

Was he robbed? Did he have a gambling addiction? Was he scammed? Or did he just blew out all his wealth by having poor money management? Or did a gold digger leeched off of him?

Of all those available excuses, Loriel chose the first thing that came to mind. He told Elise he lost all his money in the stock market and now he was trying to get back on his feet again.

Loriel didn\'t think Elise and him would talk about his investment and this eventually made the woman see through his lies. What should he tell her now?

If he admitted to her that he was lying about losing his wealth, Elise might not trust him anymore.

Worse was, she might even think Loriel was a creep for lying to her just so they could take the train together, and Loriel could pretend to offer her accommodation at his home.

Gosh... what to do?

What excuse he could give her now?

Loriel felt like he wanted to smack himself in the head.

The man finally cleared his throat. "You are right. They don\'t add up. There is something that I cannot tell you. I am sorry. But please know that I don\'t have bad intentions. Everything I said or did is sincere."

He looked at the woman with a pleading gaze that could melt anyone\'s heart, including Elise\'s.

The girl realized that she would be really invading Loriel\'s privacy if she insisted on finding out why the man could have one successful investment but lost his wealth in another.

"I am just curious. That\'s why I asked. Please, don\'t think too much about it," said Elise with a smile. "I am sure you have your reasons and the story behind it. I will not ask again. I am just grateful that you offered me a place to stay. You are really nice."

"Thank you. I will share with you the whole story when the time comes," said Loriel. "In the meantime, I hope you don\'t mind me keeping some things to myself."

"No, of course, I don\'t mind. It\'s your life. I am just a concerned outsider."

Elise didn\'t want to prolong the issue. She rose from her seat and walked toward the library. "Can I see the library now? You make it sound so interesting, now I just want to see what books and artworks you have."

"Of course," said Loriel. "You can take as much time as you want there. The library is open for you. We can meet again in two hours to go shopping together. What do you think?"

"That sounds perfect."