"The loser has to take off their top as punishment." Jules was the first to raise her hand excitedly in agreement.
"This isn't right. This is really wrong. What's gotten into you guys? You're never like this." Martin was still muttering to himself.
"Tell me more about those top-secret recipes for your homemade cigarettes." Walking at the back, Nick slung an arm around his shoulders, pretending to light the way for him. His other hand swept casually behind him, slipping the music box he had picked out earlier into his Pocket Dimension.
He knew he had barely been affected by certain gases, and that was most likely thanks to this body's Grimm bloodline. Clearly, the Grimms of old had not terrified Wesen creatures through slaughter alone.
People who could awaken a Grimm bloodline probably had something special about their constitutions, too. It just wasn't very obvious, hadn't received much attention, or had been kept secret as a trump card, leaving each individual to discover it for themselves.
The chances of encountering another Grimm in a film-and-television instance world were slim, so Nick guessed that Martin's ability to remain clearheaded most likely had something to do with his constant smoking.
"Besides mint, borneol, and orange peel, I added some grass roots, rosemary, and sage." Martin had no idea why Nick had suddenly asked, but he still shared his little secret recipe.
The grass roots had fairly potent calming and anti-anxiety effects. Rosemary supposedly helped improve memory and concentration. As for sage, Native American cultures regarded it as a cleansing herb that could drive away "negative energy."
Nick didn't know exactly which ingredient was responsible. He could only patiently memorize the proportions and ask exactly which varieties of herbs Martin had used.
Only then did he offer a quiet, oblique reminder. "I'd