I finished my first playthrough and you were right dear author, the ending was worth the stress! I cried so much... (happy tears!) What a JOURNEY.
SPOILERS BELOW AND LONG REVIEW (1 route)!!!
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I GOT THE HAPPY ENDING WITH LEO! 😭💕 I started crying when he said he loved her and keept crying till the credits rolled! I could barely read haha. It was such a relief, not only to go from "I could never love a woman like you" to "I already worship you" LIKE I know MC was pretending to be someone she's not and manipualting him like a pro, so obviously he wouldn't love the persona she created BUT I WAS SO WORRIED I HAD MESSED SOMETHING UP. But no!!! And at the very end, when MC says she feels peace... my ugly sobbing, ugh... I love our protagonist so much, always, but some routes make her go through so, so much hardship and pain and have people treat her so horrendously, that when she's finally free and happy it hits different. She deserves the world, truly my favorite character, I'd argue the BEST character objectively.
I still have to get her an ending where she goes through with being the Queen, but Leo gives her all the power, freedom, validation and respect she wanted AND ALSO a wonderful marriage and equal! HIS ENDINGS ARE ALWAYS SO SATISFYING! Is there as husband out there who admires and respects his wife more than him?! I DOUBT IT!
But even before Leo's route, before any romance, our protagonist was incredible and the plot and machinations! She's such a schemer, always 10 steps ahead, and I was so moved by how she could manipulate the entire court without sacrificing anyone... but herself. She breaks my heart in the best way. She's willing to get assaulted, to fall into the icy river, to endure all sorts of humilliations... but (in my playthrough) refused to ever be cruel to someone else. Especially her ladies. Albertine, Francesca, Charlotte, de la Tour... she helped them and never chose the easy, cruel path. I JUST LOVE HER SO MUCH! I'm always rooting for her, in awe of her and depending on the route, pitying her. But she always rises above her circumstances. Truly a Queen.
Now... Guillaume. Oh, oh boy. Do we open that can of worms? I'm curious, in a masochistic way, about his route in Loveless. I'll do it. But what a bastard. I thought his normal romance route was already hard to stomach because of how he treated MC, and I remember saying after playing it I understood Francesca a lot more, because if that's how he treated the woman he loves, how would he treat a wife he doesn´t? NOW I KNOW. I commend you, though, because his writing and his relationship with MC is so realistic and well-written. Very compelling, in a horror kind of way. I'm always a bit scared for MC when she gets a happy ending with him, because I always wonder... how long will this last? But the concept of MC trying to love him in Loveless is too interesting for me not to try it! Your writing, especially for MC and her emotional journey is always top notch and I need to read what would happen!
I'll be back when I finish Guillaume and Mathys' routes! But already 10/10, you ALWAYS deliver. I used to write years ago and what I wanted most was for readers to feel deeply, whatever it was, when they read my stories. You manage that. Every time. Next time I'll play I'll have tissues ready!