"Ekat, light an order of invigorating Divine Smoke. Don't add any messy herbs. And bring some vanilla pastries, and brew a cup of grassy cocoa tea!"
"Yes, family head!"
The bright moon hung high, and the royal tent was heavily guarded. Xolotl pinched the letter paper, turned his head, and gave an instruction to the axe-bearing captain of the guards standing watch. Then he closed his eyes, rubbed the space between his brows, and waited patiently.
Before long, wisps of tobacco scent rose from the purple-clay incense burner and spread through the ventilated great tent. These whole tobacco leaves came from Maya city-states and were of very high quality. When they burned, faint oils seeped from the surface of the air-dried leaves, making the tobacco fragrance especially mellow.
Xolotl drew in a deep breath, feeling the floral aroma in the smoke and that faint sweetness, and his spirits immediately lifted. He had served as a high-ranking priest for many years and often held ceremonial rites, so he had gained some direct experience and feeling for the quality of Divine Smoke.
"Mm, it should be Tabasco tobacco. After simple fermentation, it has less astringency and bitterness. Oh! It carries a bit of almond and raisin flavor, which means it was aged for several more years. Not bad. It's matured very thoroughly, and it's even developed some floral fragrance!"
Xolotl closed his eyes and held a mouthful of rich smoke. He held his breath, savoring it properly for a while, then exhaled the smoke. The scent of this tobacco was completely different from the paper cigarettes of shredded tobacco in later generations. Xolotl found it hard to describe, but intuitively speaking, perhaps it was more like the cigars he had heard of, burned by the box here.
After a brief relaxation, Xolotl's