Huh?
Her casual remark stunned everyone. The captain stared at Clara in disbelief, and even Old Man San Hao beside him could barely hide his surprise.
Clearly, even he hadn't expected such a special activity.
Burning incense?
By contrast, Fu Qian found the idea fascinating.
"How do you know? Did A Lian tell you beforehand?"
He didn't speak up right away, though, because the captain had already asked on his behalf.
He seemed to have mixed feelings about Clara, so his first reaction wasn't to question her, but to wonder if she was being treated differently.
"No. I smelled it."
Clara shook her head and pointed at her nose, her expression unchanged.
"She lives next door to me. I smelled something very distinctive when she opened and closed the door.
"That stuff isn't cheap, so it's unlikely she bought it for everyday use. It isn't even made in Lanfeilai. She must have brought it here especially."
Uh...
It was only a deduction, but it sounded well-reasoned. The captain looked somewhat disappointed.
"So what's the point of burning that stuff?"
After a moment's thought, he couldn't resist satisfying his curiosity.
"To pray for blessings."
Clara continued to share freely.
"They say it's an ancient custom that can bring you good fortune."
An ancient custom...
As expected, the moment she said that, Old Man San Hao seemed a little unsettled.
The power hidden in customs was undoubtedly one of the core ideas in Master Gregor's theories.
San Hao had probably found those materials through academic research, so it was hardly surprising that he was sensitive to concepts like this.
Perhaps he'd planned to keep going with the trip just so his behavior would seem normal.
Otherwise, the tour leader might have reported that they'd gotten lost today, just to be on