Chapter 170 Proving One Can Do Magic

In fact, both of them were fully aware of each other's motives. The reason Elena was willing to let him push the boundaries was clearly because she saw Saint's formidable economic strength, influence, and divine authority.

Compared to the Trump family, who were battered on all fronts and constantly facing retroactive reckoning, with their economic development efforts repeatedly suffering setbacks, regaining their vitality and returning to the pinnacle was their primary objective.

Forget about empty promises of a three-year pact; the confidence to participate in political campaigns came from having money, followed by connections—and in this regard, Saint did far better than them!

However, the reason Elena did not let him have his way completely was simply because he hadn't yet offered a price that could truly move her heart!

Saint had indeed flexed his muscles, displaying a rare and unmatched might.

Yet she was not the type of woman to get excited upon seeing a sports car, hop in, and proclaim how much she loved men who could drive a Ferrari with one hand... Such foolishness would never allow one to survive in the vanity fair.

She needed to see tangible realities before she would start acting upon them, though she didn't mind radiating a bit of ambiguity to maintain their unique and close relationship. After all, Saint was truly a giant crocodile.

Saint could anticipate this, but he did not easily propose conditions—or rather, he would not make the first move. He needed her to ask him for it personally before he would put forward his own terms.

The sequence of these two actions mattered, and behind it all was still the issue of holding the initiative.

When playing with such intelligent socialites and heiresses, Saint kept firmly in mind that he must strictly enforce his own rules and never let himself be led by the nose.

Therefore, after this lingering kiss, Saint did not get handsy with her. Instead, with a deadpan expression, he steered the conversation toward business planning: "It seems you intend to maintain your political influence while expanding into commerce?"

Elena was very candid: "To put it bluntly, nothing is possible without money, and making a comeback requires people."

Saint said, "Makes sense, but I feel like you are still repeating your family's old path. Not that it's bad, just that it feels like you're repeatedly wading through the mud without ever breaking away from that familiar battlefield."

She nodded: "I know, but if I want to carve out a new world in a completely unfamiliar field, I won't just look at the successful people while ignoring the piles of bones beneath my feet."

"You are quite smart," Saint remarked casually, and after a moment of silent consideration, he added, "Given our recent cooperation, you might want to look for new directions."

This was a loosening signal, and Elena willingly took the bait: "I would be more than happy to study the points where our interests align and where we can achieve mutual development."

After all, within Saint's empire, the Saint Group alone ranked among the Fortune Global 500, not to mention their various venture funds, energy ventures, and medical enterprises. Altogether, their strength was immense and multifaceted.

Having reached this point, both parties understood without needing further elaboration. Saint stopped while he was ahead: "Then, if there are any fields you wish to explore in depth, contact me."

"Thank you," Elena looked at him, paused for a moment, and continued, "I know some things... well, give me a bit more time to think. I have a family, I hope you understand."

"Of course."

"Thank you," Elena said, before taking the initiative to throw herself into his arms and hug him. "It feels really good to have your companionship, even if it has to be kept secret."

Saint was certain she was flirting with him, so he cupped her face and delivered another deep, breathless kiss... Afterward, he said his goodbyes: "I'll take this way out; you can stay and enjoy the scenery a bit longer."

Elena knew this was to avoid suspicion, so she smiled and nodded in understanding.

Saint descended via another staircase to continue acting as his glamorous, highly revered Holy Father. A moment later, Elena also emerged from a different exit. The two exchanged a natural, polite smile before parting ways to resume their respective social engagements.

The rest of the evening held nothing particularly special. He slept until the next morning, got up for breakfast, and went for a stroll.

Dog Mike was once again training the silly puppy Messiah to fetch slippers.

Saint remained baffled by his dog's peculiar hobby. Fortunately, he had plenty of slippers at home, and they were enchanted with runes, though this seemed to have the side effect of training the dog's bite force to become increasingly formidable.

He was forced to improve his rune-crafting skills, constantly upgrading them to cope with Dog Mike's destructive chewing... Raising a husky truly wasn't easy!

After idling away another two days—specifically crafting a buff-enhancing necklace for Messiah that would increase his religious debuff aura by 50% so that Sterl could recruit members into the cult even more smoothly—he took his darling nuns on a shopping spree on Fifth Avenue. After properly rewarding them for their stellar team performance last time, he retreated back home.

Judy had been busy preparing for the UK tour recently. At the same time, to maintain Saint's momentum in the spotlight, she arranged for him to appear on a wildly popular talk show—The Ellen Show!

Saint walked onto the stage wearing pajamas.

It gave the host, Ellen, quite a start.

Her show didn't have rehearsals; the great magician showed up whenever he pleased, but the contrasting outfits of the two instantly amused the audience: Ellen was dressed in a sharp suit with polished, gleaming leather shoes, while Saint wore a pair of pajamas complete with panda-head slippers.

As they met, they stared at each other in mutual astonishment. Saint looked her up and down seriously, then spoke up: "Who on earth told me that The Ellen Show was very casual?"

The audience burst into laughter, and Ellen smiled, inviting him to take a seat: "Actually, I love this—a great magician in pajamas. Come, please sit!"

"I find this quite comfortable," Saint said, pulling a black cloth out of his pajama pocket. "But if you all mind, should I change my clothes?"

The audience below naturally erupted into cheers. Performing magic anytime, anywhere—this was definitely Saint's signature move!

"Pick this up and help me shield it."

"No peeking," he added.

"Got it!"

Ellen laughed as she held up the black cloth to block him, turning her gaze toward the audience to count down. When she pulled the black cloth away, Saint had already transformed into a tailored suit with gleaming leather shoes, and even his slicked-back hair was neatly styled!

"Whoa!"

The live audience let out another wave of cheers.

Amidst this whimsical and humorous atmosphere, the talk show officially began. The topics were naturally casual, free-flowing, and relaxed.

However, the host remained most curious about one thing: "Do you really possess magic?"

"Why is that phrased as a question?" Saint countered.

"Is it real?" She was trying to dig for juicy details.

"That's the second question," Saint kept count for her.

"No, no, no, I mean that kind of... truly miraculous—"

"Am not I miraculous?" Saint asked, turning to the audience.

Naturally, the cheers of the audience answered everything.

"I mean witchcraft!" She slapped her own palm, trying to escape the rhythm he was dragging her into.

Saint crossed his legs and leaned back into a tactical recline: "That depends on how you define witchcraft. Summoning things out of thin air, for example—look?"

Saint casually reached into the empty air, and a deck of cards instantly appeared in his hand.

It was a super classic, old-school magic trick; he didn't even need actual magic to pull it off, as long as his sleight of hand was fast enough.

Ellen smiled and corrected him: "I mean the kind that can predict the future—"

"Uh-huh?" Saint cupped his hand to his ear, pretending to listen.

The cheers erupted once again—something he had already done before.

"—the kind that can turn stones into gold," Ellen insisted on emphasizing the difference between witchcraft and stage magic.

"Can anyone lend me a stone? Something small—oh please, don't be so greedy!" Saint rejected a brick some audience member had tried to hand over!

Amidst uproarious laughter, they substituted it with a thumb-sized pebble.

"Watch closely. This is a stone, and now my golden hand covers it. Open it up, and it has turned into a nugget of gold!"

Saint opened his palm. Such kindergarten-level spatial magic was entirely effortless!

Ellen picked up the piece of gold, staring in utter disbelief. She then showed it to the boiling crowd, eventually arriving at a dead-serious conclusion: "He can turn stones into gold! YES! He really does have magic!"

Nothing is more convincing than a conclusion spoken by someone else. Saint shrugged: "I'm glad you said so!"