The Real Heiress Is Coming Back (Hannah Carter) novel Chapter 257

Chapter 257 Bring It On

Chapter 257 Bring It On

“You okay?” Arthur and Dorian pushed through the crowd and made their way over to Lucian.

Lucian felt a wave of warmth wash over him when he saw them!

He reached back to rub his still-aching back, and Arthur lifted his shirt to check. A huge bruise was already forming, showing just how hard he’d been pushed.

“Apologize,” Arthur said coldly, fixing his gaze on the arrogant kid across from them.

Even though the brothers usually couldn’t stand each other, when it came down to it, they always had each other’s backs.

But the kid just kept his chin up, looking all cocky and defiant.

The sleazy guy behind him just sneered, like Arthur’s demand was the funniest thing he’d heard all day.

“Who do you think you are, you vulgar nobody? How dare you accuse my son of cheating and drag the Nelson family’s name through the mud?

And you expect us to apologize?” A plump, imposing woman swaggered over and stood her ground beside them, pushing through the crowd.

Dorian recognized her right away, Mrs. Aurora Nelson from one of Kinswood’s top ten families, and her son, Hayes Nelson. The Nelson family was the family of the Thole Group CEO’s wife. Thanks to their business with the Thole family, they’d gone from a tiny factory a decade ago to Cathayria’s biggest electronics supplier. That’s how they clawed their way into Kinswood’s top ten families.

With the Scott family’s current standing, it was best not to cross them. Aurora was infamous in Kinswood for being a total battleaxe.

When Hayes saw his mom show up, he straightened up even more, pointing at Lucian with a self-righteous tone. “That’s him! He’s the one who accused me and my cousin of cheating!”

“Ridiculous! Kaelin is ranked 99th on the global hacker list! Why would he need to cheat at some stupid game? You’re just trying to smear the Nelson family’s name!” Aurora immediately accused them of slander.

Then she called over a waiter. “Waiter, who let these nobodies in here? They don’t belong at the Xenith Systems Group anniversary party! Get them out of here!”

“Mrs. Nelson, it’s just a misunderstanding. The kids are just having a spat, no need to blow things out of proportion,” Dorian jumped in, eager to keep the peace. The last thing he wanted was to get on the Nelson family’s bad side.

Aurora turned to look at Dorian and Arthur and said, “Well, if it isn’t the Scott family, the ones who went bankrupt last year and only managed to grovel their way back thanks to Xenith Systems Group’s money. What a bunch of pathetic lapdogs!”

Dorian hated the idea of crossing the Nelson family, but his pride took a serious hit being humiliated like that in front of

everyone.

He was furious, but with so many eyes on him, all he could do was grit his teeth and hold it in.

Arthur stepped forward, blocking them with his body. “Whether he Scott family is Xenith Systems Group’s lapdog or not, that’s still up for debate. But you? Parading your son around, snapping at everyone like a real mutt!”

“You! You’re the mutt! Your whole family’s nothing but mutts!” Aurora screeched, her face flushed with fury. “How dare you smear the Nelson family’s name? The Scott family better apologize right now, or don’t think I won’t bankrupt you by tomorrow!”

“So, what kind of apology are you looking for?” Arthur shot back

Aurora mistook his silence for fear and gave a cold laugh. “On your knees, all three of you! Beg for forgiveness. And that brat will kowtow three times to my son. Do that, and we might just let you crawl away with your dignity.”

Hayes and his cousin Kaelin Nelson stood there, arms crossed and chins up, grinning like they were about to get worshipped.

Lucian thought, ‘A real man doesn’t just kneel for anyone. No way in hell I’d bow to these clowns.’

He was already pissed off, he hadn’t done a thing wrong, got shaved, and his back was still killing him.

There was no way he was going to get down on his knees and apologize.

He yelled, “They cheated, I saw it myself! So wl Successfully unlocked! lobal hacker list? Here, he’s basically scraping

the bottom!

“Cheating and still can’t win at a dumb claw machine, and now you’re saying I’m the liar? If you’re so legit, do it again right here in front of everyone! Go on, prove I’m not calling you out for nothing!”

“You think we’ll just play the claw machine just because you say so? That’d be a total loss of face for us!” Hayes shouted,

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Chapter 256 Dont Get Close To Han

she looked absolutely stunning in that black dress that hugged her curves, exuding a captivating charm

But the moment he saw her coming out of the room with Spencer, his smile vanished instantly, and his chiseled features turned icy cold.

He strode over, shrugged off his suit jacket, and draped it over Hannah’s shoulders. Then, he slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her firmly away from Spencer, claiming her for himself.

“Don’t go out dressed like this again,” Barnaby said, his tone firm and possessive

Hannah was caught off guard and felt a bit sheepish. She let him drape the jacket over her and even button it up, wishing she could just hide away.

“Barnaby, you’re such a control freak. That’s how the dress is meant to be. You totally killed the vibe, Spencer said, clicking his tongue in mock annoyance.

Barnaby shot him a frosty glare. “Only single losers and creeps like you want every woman to dress like that.”

With that, he pulled Hannah away like he was escaping a plague

Spencer thought, ‘You’re the real creep, and your whole family top!’

Once they reached a quiet corner of the banquet hall, Barnaby stopped and fixed Hannah with a frosty stare. “Don’t get that close to him ever again. And don’t you dare be alone with him. And stop wearing stuff that shows so much skin.”

Seeing he was mad, Hannah rushed to reassure him. “Alright, alright, don’t be jealous, okay? I only like you.”

Barnaby finally relaxed a little, then tapped his lips. “What else?”

Hannah glanced around. Everyone was busy socializing, searching for Raven, or whispering among themselves, nobody was paying them any attention. So she stood on tiptoe and planted a quick kiss on his lips.

Barnaby finally looked appeased. Pretending not to know, he asked, “So, what brings you here?”

Hannah spotted Arthur nearby, chatting with someone and holding a glass of wine. She pointed him out. “I came with my brother. Should we go say hi?”

Barnaby just stared at her, speechless.

‘She’s really playing the part; he thought to himself.

“Sure,” he said, not calling her out. He was curious to see how long she’d keep up the act.

*****

The party kicked off at seven. The host announced the anniversary bash was starting, and Oliver opened the night with a song on stage.

After his performance, Finneus, the CEO of Xenith Systems Group, came up to give a speech. The lights went down, and one could feel the drama brewing under the surface.

Everyone was on the hunt for Raven, Vulcan, or Shadow, sizing each other up and schmoozing for business deals. The place was buzzing with energy.

Meanwhile, a few hackers were quietly comparing notes and realized something weird, nobody seemed to actually have an invite for Vulcan, Shadow, or Raven.

Hannah kept a low profile, scanning the crowd. Not far away, she spotted Howard and Dustin, both looking pretty grim. They must have gotten, burned pretty badly.

After Finneus finished his speech, the floor opened up for some free time.

Suddenly, a loud bang came from one corner of the banquet hall drawing everyone’s attention.

In the lower right corner was a tech-themed play area, where the organizers had set up their products for quests to try out

At that moment, two kids were squabbling.

The taller one shoved Lucian into a claw machine. “I saw that arcade machine first! Why are you trying to take it from me?”

Lucian’s back slammed into the corner of the claw machine, and for a second, the pain made his vision blur. But he got back up, stubborn as ever, not about to let it slide.

“The arcade machine’s inside the claw machine, and the rules say three tries each, whoever grabs it, gets it.

“You guys tried to cheat and still couldn’t win, but you’re just hogging the machine so no one else gets a turn. Think you’re hot stuff just because your brother’s an invited hacker?” he said

Seeing all the guests looking over, the taller kid stuck out his chin and said, “Yeah, so what? If your brother’s so good at coding, why not call him over to help you?”

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Chapter 257 Bring It On

trying to cover up how nervous he really was.

“Mrs. Nelson, if you can’t prove my brother was lying, then don’t even think about making us apologize! In fact, your son just shoved my brother, and now his back’s all bruised up. He’s the one who should be apologizing” Arthur shot back. That really set Aurora off. ‘How dare these nobodies challenge the Nelson family?’ she fumed.

‘Just wait till I make them pay!’ she thought.

“Kaelin, play the claw machine again for everyone to see! Let’s show the whole crowd how the Scott family is just a bunch of lapdogs! I want to see those three get humiliated right here in front of everyone!” Aurora snapped, turning to Kaelin.

A flash of smugness flickered across Kaelin’s face. He hadn’t managed to grab the prize earlier, but now he was feeling pretty confident, knowing the trick behind it.

The claw machine on display looked ordinary, indistinguishable from any found in a mall, yet in reality it was the model Xenith Systems Group’s programmers used to challenge each other.

It seemed totally normal on the outside, but there was a hidden wist to it.

Inside, the claw’s grip strength could be programmed and adjusted through code; greater grip strength meant a higher chance of snagging a prize.

Kaelin had only figured this out after trying several times and finally caught on to how it worked.

Now that he’d figured out the trick, hacking the machine would be a breeze.

“Fine by me! But just us playing is lame. Let’s make it a real showdown, best two out of three rounds. Whoever wins more rounds takes it all! Loser has to kneel, apologize, and kowtow three times!” Kaelin said.

He also gave Arthur a sly grin, clearly relishing the challenge.

‘He really called me out in front of everyone for failing at a claw machine? No way I’m letting that slide. I’ve got a reputation as a top 99 hacker to protect!’ Kaelin thought.

Seeing his cousin step up, Hayes puffed out his chest and sneered, “So? You got the guts to compete or not? If you’re too scared, just admit defeat and kneel down, kowtow three times!”

Determined to clear his name, Lucian snapped, “Let’s do this! I’m not scared of you!”

Seeing Lucian take the bait, Kaelin pretended to be all nice abou” it. “Hey, just so nobody thinks I’m picking on you, you can get your brother to help if you want.”

“I don’t need my brother, I know how to code!” Lucian shot back not backing down for a second. Arthur doesn’t know squat about programming, if he tried, it’d just make me look worse.

Word spread fast that there was about to be a showdown, and a crowd of guests started gathering around, eager to watch the drama unfold. Some even started betting on who was gonna win.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the banquet hall, Hannah was being introduced to Mr. Burke from the space agency by Spencer.

Just as they finished exchanging greetings, they heard a commotion coming from the far corner of the hall.

Barnaby shot Ronin a look, and Ronin slipped away for a few minutes,

When he came back, he leaned in and whispered to Hannah, “M. Carter, your folks are clashing with Mrs. Nelson from the Nelson family. There’s a showdown going on, and people are already placing bets.”

“Mr. Burke, excuse me for a moment,” Hannah said politely.

Mr. Burke’s secretary was so shocked her jaw nearly hit the floo ‘People bend over backwards just to get a minute with Mr. Burke, and she just told him to wait?’ the secretary thought.

But Mr. Burke was a reasonable guy. Seeing the commotion on the other side, he figured it had something to do with Hannah, so he just nodded and let her go handle it.

*****

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