Tarnished had come asking to slip in-into the queue, of course.
He got straight to the point, asking Rennala to set aside her current work and make Ranni a new body first.
Rennala was holding a cup of Glintstone Tea. At his words, she raised an eyebrow, took an elegant sip, and only then asked at her leisure:
"Why?"
Tarnished puffed out his chest. "Because Ranni is my wife, obviously!"
He declared it with such ringing conviction that his self-assurance bordered on shamelessness.
Rennala burst out laughing, almost spilling the Glintstone Tea in her cup. She set it down and studied the utterly unabashed young man with an appreciative gaze. The longer she looked, the more she felt-yes, this son-in-law was growing on her.
Still, she could not resist teasing him:
"I thought the great king of Stormveil would offer a more high-minded reason."
Tarnished showed no embarrassment at being called out. Instead, he began counting on his fingers in complete earnest:
"A Living Doll's body can't unleash Ranni's full combat strength; as our strongest fighter, Ranni has to stay at her peak to handle any emergency; whatever strung Marika up is no pushover, and there should be powerful enemies inside the Erdtree. Ranni's condition has a direct bearing on this war to end the old era. We can't afford any mistakes-"
He paused here.
"I have plenty of impressive-sounding reasons, but the most important one is..."
Tarnished looked earnestly at Rennala and said, each word clear:
"Ranni is my wife. I want her to enjoy delicious food and feel the warmth of a spring breeze."
Rennala listened quietly, the smile at her lips deepening.
Her gaze was full of affection and approval as she looked at Tarnished-she was very satisfied with that answer.
But she still shook her head.