The Cursed King

One, by one, he called the names of the lucky winners and invited them on stage to receive their presents. There were some colleagues who won brand new home appliances in their home that were of the latest technology, a smart fridge or television.

Some came up and received the most up-to-date laptops and computers perfect for both work and home use.

There were even people who received a gift card similar to what Elise received.

Loriel only watched in silence and applauded whenever it was needed. The people at the table thought he was handsomely cold and attractive this way and thought it matched with Elise\'s sweet and warm personality.

Loriel was waiting for the MC to have Elise come on stage.

It was once again another way for Elise to come into a chance to afford new outfits and possibly even more.

"For another winner of an all-exclusive Bloomingrose Gift Card worth 20k gift card, please join us on stage…"The MC took out a name on a piece of paper from the first glass bowl. He opened it and read the name with a big smile on his face. "Elise York from the Marketing Department!"

"Elise, that\'s you, right?!" Her friends gushed and shook her shoulders excitedly. "Come and get the prize. Whoaa... you just won another gift card for shopping!!"

Elise blinked in surprise. She didn\'t think that she\'d win anything at all. This was a really nice surprise! She rose to her feet and walked on stage. 

Marc Sanderman was waiting for her on stage to distribute the prize himself.

"Congratulations, Miss Elise." 

"Thank you so much."

The two of them shook hands and Elise returned back to her seat with her friends and Loriel. A small smile was on her face as she sat back beside Loriel and she couldn\'t help but look at the prize in her hands.

"This is quite a lot isn\'t it?" Elise said quietly under her breath.

"You could fill the entire wardrobe you have back at home with brand new clothes," Loriel said with a smirk. "I think that\'s only fair."

But right before Elise could fully settle down, her name was called again.

"Oh, someone seems to have been blessed by Lady Fortune tonight, can we have Miss Elise from the Marketing Department again? Claim your all-expense paid ticket for two to Japan here!"

Elise furrowed her brows. Before she even had a chance to sit down, the MC already called her for another gift?

Ah.. maybe she misheard.

"Elise, it\'s your name again," Sarah whispered from across the table.

"You are very lucky tonight," said the others with an envious expression. They couldn\'t believe someone could be so lucky as Elise. Not only did she have a really handsome and rich-looking boyfriend, now she also won two raffles in one go?

"Maybe you should try your luck in Vegas," another one commented with a wink.

Loriel immediately threw that man a murderous glare.

Who was this lowly human? How dare he try to corrupt Elise with gambling addiction? Steven, the man who spoke earlier, suddenly felt chills down his spine.

He didn\'t know what happened, but he just felt so uncomfortable. Did someone turn up the AC?

"Go ahead, get your second reward," said Loriel with a smile. He was satisfied by how the raffle turned out. He was the one who chose the all-expenses-paid trip to Japan for Elise and made his want known to Marc.

He remembered how much Elise enjoyed eating ramen in Haruka ramen shop and he thought it would be nice if Elise could taste the real ramen in its origin country.

Japan was a really beautiful country to visit. They also had such rich culture. Loriel had visited the country so many times already and he couldn\'t wait to show it to his wife.

Finally, after Loriel convinced her that she didn\'t mishear the MC, Elise got up from her chair and went back to the stage.

"Th-thank you…" she said sheepishly as she accepted the gift card as the symbolic reward. After the event, she could redeem the cards to the event organizer to get the tickets and hotel bookings.

"This is your second raffle for the night," the MC gave her the microphone to ask her opinion. "How do you feel?"

"I am really happy and grateful…" Elise bowed down toward Marc Sanderman who was sitting leisurely at the table of honor with the top brass.

The man coughed when he saw her showing her gratitude in such a manner. He waved nonchalantly and smiled as if showing her that it was nothing.

"Well.. thanks to our boss\'s generosity, this year we have so much more rewards provided for the raffle," the MC said. "Please give a big round of applause to our boss, Mr. Marc Sanderman."

Everyone who attended the event gave a big round of applause for their charming boss.

Marc Sanderman smiled and waved at everyone. He had ensured that Elise\'s winnings that night didn\'t seem so suspicious by making her win only the second or third prize. Never did Elise win the grand prize, a brand new car, or anything like that.

"My uncle can buy those if he really wanted to," Marc said to himself as he sat back at his chair in the guest of honor seats. 

Either way, all of Elise\'s friends were so surprised and happy for her.

"You should try joining the lottery, Elise," Sarah said, laughing. "Imagine if with your luck, you won the grand amount of money then you\'d be so rich and you won\'t even have to lift a single finger your entire life anymore." 

"Well, I think Elise already seems quite lucky even now. You don\'t need that much money as long as you have a handsome boyfriend, don\'t you guys agree?" 

Elise felt her face heat up.

She knew her colleagues loved to gossip. So, she already expected they would make such comments in front of Loriel. Elise didn\'t know how to feel and wondered if Loriel would feel upset or offended by comments like that.

But instead, Loriel just wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled Elise close.