Messing With Her? Are You Crazy! novel Chapter 1384

Further down the hall, the reclusive Montgomery family made their entrance.

Dominic Montgomery, dressed in a flawlessly tailored pale-moonlight suit, carried himself with an effortless, untouchable aristocratic grace.

Seeing him approach, the surrounding crowds naturally parted, giving him a wide berth.

"Is that the Montgomery heir?"

"Even the hidden Montgomery family showed up?"

"The Lancasters really pulled every string for this."

Listening to the hushed whispers, Dominic's expression remained perfectly neutral. He was long used to being worshipped.

His gaze lazily swept across the massive ballroom.

He was looking for the star of the show.

One of his trusted lieutenants from the third branch scanned the room as well, lowering his voice. "Sir, I don't see Miss Lancaster yet."

Dominic smiled softly. "There's no rush. A girl who spent her life in the dirt and suddenly gets thrown into a room like this is going to be incredibly overwhelmed."

"When she finally makes her entrance, I'll go introduce myself."

He said it so casually.

As if him simply speaking to her was the greatest honor Serena could ever hope to receive.

At the exact same time.

Alaric Sinclair, head of The Global Bio-Tech Foundation, stood in a much quieter, shadowed corner of the room.

He gently ran a finger along the rim of his champagne flute. He didn't bother networking or faking smiles with the guests. He just stared coldly at the massive floral wall displaying the name 'Serena Lancaster.'

A smile was carved onto his face.

But his eyes were dead.

His assistant leaned in. "Boss, the security around the Lancaster estate tonight is airtight."

Alaric didn't blink. "The tighter the security, the more it proves how desperately they value her."

The assistant glanced nervously around the room. "But I just saw the Elyndorian team and the Marington professors—even Mr. Harrison—publicly going to war for her. If we make a move tonight..."

"Patience," Alaric murmured smoothly. "The higher the pedestal, the bigger the target."

"We aren't the only ones here tonight pretending to celebrate."

"There are plenty of wolves in this room waiting to see if the Lancaster heiress is actually worth all this hype."

His gaze darkened into something lethal.

When he realized it was just the three young masters, he silently took a step back.

Whatever.

He was used to this chaos by now.

Right on cue.

"Serena~" Jasper charged in first, completely abandoning his lethal bounty hunter persona. "Your brothers are here to escort you!"

Jerrick violently grabbed the back of his collar, his face deadpan. "Step back."

Julian walked in slowly, his voice a warm, refined melody. "Serena, it's a massive crowd tonight. I'll take you down."

All three of them spoke at the exact same time.

And then...

Their eyes landed on Serena, and the entire room plunged into absolute silence.

She was wearing a breathtaking, custom-designed masterpiece.

The base of the gown was a midnight black, the skirts cascading like liquid shadow. Under the soft lights, intricate, hidden embroidery shimmered brilliantly, making her look as if she were wrapped in a shattered galaxy.