(Spoilers in reply)
Thanks for the kind words, Hiro! My main goal with this game was to set up a suffocating mood from which one would desperately want to escape! And yes, haha, you have no idea how much I hate Oleander! And I’m happy you found the reveals not that obvious despite getting spoiled by the devlog, haha!
If I definitely wouldn’t call it a feel-good game, I have to agree with you: everyone isn’t lucky enough to be saved by their stronger twin. The first VN I wrote for (La Vie en Rose by the Abyss Team) is actually about domestic abuse, so I’m kinda accustomed to the harsh reality of it! And that’s actually why I didn’t go the usual Chim’ treatment (here, it would have been to have the option to poison him, although it would have been harder to explain how a normal person would own aconite; and to stay trapped in Oleander’s web), I wanted to explore new genres and to give the two options of the choice heavy and dramatic consequences! So yeah, definitely not representative of the reality!