itch.io

Wow, I stumbled across this game accidentally, and I got intrigued by the concept, trying to understand a different experience as a cis woman. I'm getting hooked real quick! It feels slow paced, but in a good way, you're giving breathing room to self-exploration and relationships alike. You're able to make me empathize with side characters as well, there's a depth and humanity to them. I really like the way you write dialogues, the back and forth with Lily, with Luke and Sam, etc. There's so many witty lines, and sometimes profound ones too. 

I really admire the effort you put into that elaborate stat raising system, and the dressup aspect as well! And the amount of choice there is, to choose a club, this or that activity, so many branches to explore, makes me want to replay the game. 

My one complaint might be some occasional overwriting or repetitiveness. For example, Madame Serena and the mall are described in detail multiple times. I've noticed several times the first paragraph on a new page sometimes just paraphrases the last on the previous (that could be intentional if that's where a previous update cut off, but I guess a little unnecessary when there's the button to go back?). I did run into small inconsistencies, like on the branch where I went shopping with Sam, and then after returning home, mom referred back to a conversation that I didn't remember happening (or I could have overlooked something), but I suppose those are bound to happen with a branching narrative. 

Overall, you're doing amazing, I admire how you're juggling such a huge project, and it's a really engaging story! I'm truly excited to read more of it.

Oh, I think I haven't come back to talk about Chain's route. (Gotta admit, I'm still partial to Roya though, haha.) But I enjoyed learning more about Chain and empathizing with him, learning about the hunters and this whole other aspect of your fictional world. I was proud of myself because I managed to explore most by myself, there was one bad ending and its achievement I needed a guide for. Odaz and Zuri were so lovely and they deserved better ;; Also liked the insight we got into Rasumi's backstory, I find such "meta-narratives" interesting! 

Btw, I think I might have seen something about it somewhere... don't know if you talked about such plans, or other players suggested, but do you plan on updating the original game with the new art? Would make replays even more enjoyable. IMO Junoru and Ikuya had the biggest glow-ups!

Soo, managed to finish the route and get all endings without a guide! 

When we moved to "stage 2", I was surprised. Although in hindsight, it was such a Chekhov's gun, I should have seen that coming from the beginning! Also because "stage 1" was quite easy, I should have known that couldn't just be it. But I was too happy in my ignorance and so, missed the elephant in the room lol. 

Frederique is the best boy ever ^^ I just adore him so much. They spoil each other so much with MC!

When they talked about "addition to the family", I nearly freaked out... then laughed so hard when they meant pets! 

It's been a while since I played the prologue in the demo, but if I recall correctly, originally Duchess di Parisi didn't straight up disown them, and gave them the tasks? Or maybe the outher routes got too much into my head lol. But I quite enjoyed how for once, the Duchess wasn't the one assigning the tasks and leads to follow!

Of the paths in "stage 2", I liked Penelope's the most. Even if it's to the end of runing her family, I feel like we're actually helping her follow her dreams and gain her freedom! Funnily enough, I already began in "stage 1" to stoke her rebellion and told her she could be the first noblewoman in theatre, lol. So just had to pursue that avenue first! After trying the others... it also turned out to be the most fun and lighthearted path. 

The bad endings are painful ;; Frederique dearest deserves better!

I think I explored most paths, there's one thing bugging me - when trying to help Lord Lamont's cause and chose the approach to convince Guillaume and Charlotte. I could not convince Charlotte :/  Will have to check with the guide (once it comes out) if that's a doomed venture from the start since Charlotte is so unwilling, or I just couldn't find the good choices. 

Also, just a curious observation, I feel Frederique's route has similar vibes to Leopold's. From both men being such lover boys, the 2 stage structure and the real secrets coming out and action going down in stage 2, also Belvais mirroring Francelli as the unwilling ally if you choose a specific path, and similar struggles of the LI in the bad/middling endings. Don't know if that was intentional, and it's most definitely not a bad thing, noticing parallels just makes me feel smart and gets me excited, haha. 

Okay that's enough of my incoherent rambling, thank you so much again for your hard work and gifting us with this experience!

I'm late to the hype, but I really like the demo! Such a cute and sweet and fun game! On first play, all the boys seem just lovely, and I have a hard time picking favorites. As a neurodivergent person, Kai and Vince feel like representation, whether that's intentional or not, I really appreciate it! MC's personality is really refreshing too! The customization is fun, though it's a little strange that MC doesn't emote with their face (or I just didn't pay enough attention haha). And the art is so gorgeous!

Since I missed the Kickstarter, I thought I'd chip in here on Itch, but I keep getting a "Failed to create Paypal payment (422)" error. I could pay just fine for another game today, could you please check things on your end? Thank you ^^

I'm late to the hype, but I really loved the demo, and very excited for this game to be released! It is very well written, I was completely immersed and hooked by the story! The art is great, the worldbuilding is iteresting, I love how the MC has a strong personality and backstories of their own. I love the LIs, they are very different and interesting! So far, I'm gravitating most towards Leander and Minh, what can I say, I love charistmatic ones and tsunderes. Excited to romance them!

My goodness, I didn't expect you to reply so fast and so thoroughly too! I'm glad if my feedback can be useful and/or can make you feel good!

I actually wanted to edit my comment, because I've explored Roya's other endings in the meanwhile. The normal ending really had an impact on me, it showed that despite his doubling down at first, as time passed, the need for revenge is no more and there's only regret and loneliness ;; I realized how much of a sweetheart and just a lost boy Roya is at his core, and how fate had been unfair to him to send him down such an awful path. Makes me wanna wrap him in a blanket and cuddle him. So he really, really needs and deserves that time travel redo and nudging in the right direction ;; 

Speaking of the programming tweaks, playing the random game with Roya by the pool was a fun part! 
I don't remember many details from the original game, but I'm definitely going to replay it soon! For nostalgia's sake, and because of Junoru, I recalled some details from his route, since obviously he shares his backstory with Roya, and also recalled how much of a sweet gentleman he is and I kinda miss him. I don't even fully remember Roya's fate there... I'll deal with that emotionally once I get there in my replay. (I realize it may be worse going back too, RIP my heart.)

There's really lots of love and care and time and resources you're putting in this game to make it as gorgeous as it is!
Oh, now I'll be even more curious about those extra stories!
I think it's okay for characters to make mistakes and wrong turns before finding the right path, as long as the choice they make makes sense for them. It really depends on the type of story you want to tell. Your MC is quite the logical and straightforward person too, so a straightforward solution works well here! Misunderstandings are just so frustrating, I agree, they feel like an artificial way to create conflict. Btw, I don't think you need to worry too much about your writing, I see many people fanpersoning in your comments, you've created a much beloved world and characters and story! (Sorry if I came off as nitpicking, I just used to dabble in writing so that's what I focus on most. Also I take back the "forgiving the ace twins too easily", found the branch where it's talked out in detail. I only ever wrote linear stories, mostly fanfic, I imagine it's much harder to keep in mind what events and conversations happened on every single branch...)

Haha, Chain seems to take cold hard logic and efficiency to the extreme, from what I saw here and remember from the original game (I don't even know whose route it was, but I remember MC convincing him to come help, and he eventually did, without much of an explanation). It makes me really curious how he'll behave in a romance situation. And I imagine the story will be quite different from the police/"hunter"/non-supernatural perspetive. But that's for another day. I might come ramble about his route later!

Okay, so, I think I'm turning into a huge fan, because of this DLC. (It's quite funny to think I hesitated to buy it since while I enjoyed the base game, I didn't enjoy it as much as the DLC, but... I was tempted by Roya, haha, and now I'm really happy I gave in!) 

I've done one playthrough so far, chased Roya ofc, and got the romantic ending! (Right choice indicator was quite useful for that, haha. Thank you for implementing it!) I went through quite the rollercoaster, I was enjoying his flirty side, then the confrontation came... and in my head I was like "well, he was a bad guy in the original, what did I expect, a huge retcon?" and tried mentally preparing myself for a morally grey love interest or even like some dark romance/villain romance stuff. I also nearly cried at what you did to Junoru, that poor baby ;; I wondered if I'm going towards a bad end or something, things looked truly hopeless. But then... the time travel plot happened - a plot device I love, btw, and that part was just the sweetest, and also funny! - so you found a way to retcon without retconning and turn Roya into a genuinely good guy and also save Junoru and my heart was so so happy with it! Have to mention, I also liked Jace and Blace and the role they played in this route!

The art and music are masterful, just like before, and I'm impressed with the amount of CGs! I think your writing has improved too. Or maybe it's my tastes that changed and I'm more open to your writing style now. (There's tiny moments that feel illogical, like MC's forgiveness of the ace twins could use a bit more explanation; and the prologue could be more exciting, but these don't detract from the overall experience.) I also have a feeling you don't necessarily follow all storytelling conventions. For example, in movies, there'd have to be some failed attempts before the right solution is found, while you went straight for the right solution. I also needed some time to adjust to the "parallel" dialogue, like characters sometimes answering or reacting to two different things in the same line, which again, I'm not used to in fiction. But in a way, these may be more life-like? Both that and breaking from formulas can be a good thing, whether intentional or not. Since I noticed that these seem unique in your writing, and I found them interesting and refreshing, felt compelled to talk about it.

I've got the "tried to be a hero" bad end and a couple of achievements along the way, now I'm excited to go back and explore more of the DLC. I'm really loving it so far, and will be looking forward to the updates as well!

At first, I was on the fence about the concept of magical girls (last I watched Sailor Moon was when I was like 6, and now I'm 33), but the "retired magical girls reuiniting to investigate" intrigued me. Then I got totally hooked while playing the demo, can't tell if it was the characters, or the mystery itself, but had to buy the full. 

The magical girl thing ended up feeling quite grounded, actually. I liked the lore you built around it! (Though I'm confused how knowledge of those supernatural forces mashes with the characters being religious.)

I really enjoyed the story, the sense of sisterhood with all the magical girl side characters, the love and devotion between the wives. It was super well written, and  I found the switching POVs interesting as well. I was able to guess who the "villain" was going to be, although I was hoping I was wrong, but I couldn't guess the developments beyond, I was hooked all throughout, and the second twist was another gutpunch. I also love how you are able to get the good ending and save the "villain" if you make the right choices and embody what a magical girl should be! Got the good ending first, and I found it easy enough to guess how to get the others. 

The art is simply gorgeous, and I also enjoyed how you switched between the more visual "dialogue mode" and the "paragraph mode". 

Oh, got to mention that I loved the bi and trans representation, on top of the promised lesbian wives!

The one complain I got,  there's a possible bug I found: 
even though I got all 4 endings, and my game says 99% completion, the gallery only shows the first 3 CGs :( Do I maybe need 100% completion to unlock all, or is it maybe a programming error?
Attaching a screenshot below. 

Anyways, thank you for your great work, and sharing this game!

The Gallery screenshot:

You totally can! Just gather enough support from the Houses. You can still make an alliance and friendship with a love interest, without romancing the person, for the extra backing. You can also ally with and romance Mathys or Vesela and become queen while they be a secret lover lol. If you struggle to get all endings, there are guides on Blackcross&Taylor's own website, actually! https://blackcross-taylor.com/game-guides/

I have a question! Did you use AI in creating these images?

Hi, I have some questions!

Did you use AI in creating these images?

Is it okay to use them in commercial projects?

Should credit be given?

Completed my first playthrough last night! TLDR: slow start, but it was a phenomenal route, and I really enjoyed 

I first felt the route started off pretty slow, but in hindsight, I suspect that was intentional, to actually get through the sense of boredom and frustration MC is feeling, and then the plot twist came and there was actually a goal to pursue! And then the slow start makes even more sense considering this route is longer in in-game time as well. So, it was a slow build, but definitely well worth it in the end,  when leads to pursue kept piling up to the point we had to actually choose and prioritize. I was a little worried about having to choose between them, but I think it's good to have that kind of challenge. Though, I don't know if I missed it in the chaos, or it was never stated in-game on the path I was taking, the outings with Sir Aurele seem to have stopped without any discussion as to why.

Oh, I also enjoyed how there were callbacks to many other routes -- Leipzel, speedrun of the Rouaine tasks, and another entry to point to discover Leopold's deepest, darkest secret. And I might discover even more crossover in the coming playthoughs, excited to discover those! But was so glad for some of the differences from Guillaume's love route, especially how Frederique stuck around, and MC actually had an entourage! At least she has some friends(ish). Speaking of them, found it interesting how the route was more or less built around the entourage and their families (for better or for worse, for some of the ladies). And finally, we got to work with Mariette!

And still on the topic of character dynamics, was interesting to have a more antagonistic dynamic with Leopold. Didn't always enjoy the cutting words, I have a soft spot for him and I'm just a big softie ooc, but was exciting to see MC being able to (out)match him in wit and cunning and manipulation. And just, how astute she is, reading and judging everyone from afar. And speaking of cutting words, never thought I'd say this, there were scenes I was actually grateful for Francesca's sharp tongue!

Okay, time to speak of the path I took, spoilers ahead. When I began, I intended to romance Guillaume, the original intrigue the loveless route held for me was the "finding love in an arranged marriage" trope. But then with his behavior and MC's ambitions, I decided to keep manipulating him and go for tyrant queen instead (I think I've played the game enough by now to know in advance that's what you'd call the ending!). Also chose to get close to Vesela, hoping to discover the thing that I can hold over Leopold's head. After playing the previous routes, it didn't feel too hard to pursue some other leads and gather up plenty of support. Also managed to get Guillaume to love MC and even when she was asking for divorce, he was all apologetic, letting her have her own house with no complaints and even offering her to keep a dowager princess title. I felt kind of sorry for him at the time, but his reaction to the betrayal... yeah that's exactly why I'm having MC be queen in her own right, not as his wife. It was a sweeping victory, with three small regrets: throwing Albertine and Francesca under the bus and only making friends with Vesela. Then I quick replayed to actually romance her and save my ladies-in-waiting. :) Was very, very happy with that outcome!

Now time to explore more paths and endings, I'll see how many I can collect without the guide. For one, I'm interested in seeing how it changes character dynamics if I actually pick a jilted lover. Might try to see next if I can properly domesticate Guillaume in the 3 in-game weeks, haha. And I'll probably try to save romancing Leo for last, I still look forward to his path. :)

Okay sorry for the ramble! Thank you so much, this route is amazing so far and I'm excited to explore even more!

So excited! Thank you for the update, and best of luck with your coming work!

I'm sitting on pins and needles, so excited for this! Especially after checking previous dev updates and comments and realizing who's one of the love interests! Also, I tricked myself, I misread the release date as 28 Feb... realized my mistake a couple days into March. Still, anticipation is high, and I'm passing the time with replaying the released routes now. But that sounds like a monster of a route, tipping my hat to you!

Oh, all of that sounds interesting! I have been intrigued by the loveless route as well. It's quite funny and interesting how the writing can take unexpected turns. You have been doing amazing work with it so far, so I'm excited to see wherever creativity takes you! Also appreciate all the love and effort you've been putting into this game, it's like 8 games in 1 at this point, very grand scale. It is okay to take your time with it, we'll patienty wait for the updates!

I'm excited for this! Also congrats, and thank you for your hard work!

I came back to replay this game. Partially because I heard the song Karma Chameleon and I thought of Karma :D Partially because I remembered we received Evermore as a Chritmas gift. This is still one of my favorite otomes <3 Everything about it is wonderful, the art, the story, the music, the writing. (The right choice indicator is a godsend because the logic behind the right choice is quite backwards sometimes x.x more so in some routes than others.)

But my favorite part are the characters and relationships. I appreciate how in each route we not only get close to the LI, but one or more side characters as well. Also appreciate how each LI is so different, yet they all work so well with Lucette. They all need her in their life and it makes me sad that they can't all have their happily afters at once. ;; I just adore them all and want them to be happy. Still, I can see why Waltz is the true route, with everything coming full circle. And I may or may not be partial to him too. :)

Also have to say, I cried so much. Especially Fritz's route is just so sad ;; Waltz's route also made me cry a few times, but at least that was a mix of sad and moved tears. Fritz... was just pure sadness, so much tragedy in his route. And he himself is so tragic too. Not sure if I can give him the most tragic character title because Rod is a strong contender as well... I really just want to hug all these boys and keep them safe and happy. ;;

Look at me, I'm just rambling. I just have so much emotions about this story, it really means a lot to me. Don't know if you guys are still looking at comments even... but if you do, once more, thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for blessing us all with this masterpiece <3

Oh! I was hoping we'll get Leo's route for Christmas, but this is even better! Thank you for your hard work! I'm excited for this~

I'm late to the party with playing this game for the first time just now, and I'm not yet fully done (missing a bad ending and the secret LI), but after crying at it for the umpteenth time, I thought it's time I come rave about it. Literally, I've cried like... 3 times per route? Sometimes in happiness, sometimes in sadness. Maybe it's because I'm binging this while I'm sick, but I've been so touched, feeling for all the boys. I love all of them, so so much! I'd had clear faves in Halloween and Valentines otome, but I really can't pick one boy here, not on first glance, and neither after finishing their routes. They are all just so sweet ;; and deserving of love. Also, Maia is the most relatable to me out of the heroines, as much as I loved playing as all three of them. I was about to type how much I love the LI's respective family members, and that made me realized how all of them have one as another focal relationship. That's what them makes so sweet, doesn't it? Dangerous for my heart, as Maia would say. Gosh, I love this game so much. The whole series, to be fair. Thank you guys for sharing such amazing stories with us, I'll be sure to stay tuned for whatever else you do in the future! (If you choose to, of course! But as other commenters said, it'd be nice to see a game starring Osiria! Or even Rayner :D Though I'd imagine his story to be... more queer?)

I was also speculating if you had headcanons for Ems's and Mira's partners when writing about them here? With Ems, there's still the choice of course. But with Mira, I can't imagine her able to drag his dutiful/workaholic LIs for two months of a second honeymoon, especially full of parties, I can only imagine Zane :D Though, Annabelle still appearing single seems to suggest otherwise... but maybe Maia's just not so observant. Or maybe I'm thinking too much on that, ahah. I just love the lore and cross-references so I was reading closely. Also couldn't help noticing a parallel among Kiron and Liam, in their attitude towards kids at least. Such sweet guys!

Sorry for that ramble, I really went off fangirling. My point is still, thank you for this game <3

This was really, really funny! Also cute. But mostly funny, love how the game didn't try to take itself too seriously, and the meta-commentary such as the plot convenience banana peels. :D But I really loved that certain touch about Haruka, that was a nice heartfelt moment/convo! Great job on the writing, and the art was really pretty too!

This was such a beautiful story, meaning both the storytelling and the visuals! Also, the choices are very thoughtfully built. (While I couldn't figure them out myself, after reading the guide in the artbook, I am impressed.) I enjoyed the little verses at the beginning of every day, was a nice little touch. And you did a great job with the foreshadowing of who Elowen is. I only wish there was more of the game, if we could have read more of the conversation between the two ladies in the seven days. I really enjoyed this game, you all did an amazing job, thank you for making it!

A little late to the party, but would love to thank you guys for this! Really enjoyed reading through all the extra scenes! Fabulous and entertaining work as always!

I've finally gotten around to playing Bastien and Sofia's routes, and holy moly, why did I wait this long to play this masterpice? I love it. Love how we can actively participate in the politics, and love how there's conflict around the romances too, and the option to change :D

The stakes are so much higher than in TRoS with the politicking. It was already great in Bastien's route, but Sofia's route seemed like a step up from even there, you guys keep outdoing yourselves. 

I really appreciate how the morals are explicitly questioned in universe, yet we are allowed to do questionable things, in both politics and romance! That poly, my heart, that's everything I needed ;; From the first option leaning there, I was getting overexcited for it! Thank you so much for inlcuding that!

Game mechanics wise, I am amazed by the amount of branches there are, I have yet to explore all of them. Not even talking about the custom personality of the MC and how that must affect dialogue and choices. Tipping my imaginary hat for you!

I really can't believe Duchess di Parisi and her double dealings and intricate web of lies. I wanted to hate her, but I do get where she is coming from. She is so well-written. My favorite character is still Frederique though, he is just so loveable! Also his disguises :D He had me laughing more than once.

I'm excited for the routes to come! Thank you for your hard work in bringing us this game, because it is amazing!

This is super exciting news! Can't wait to see MC as the princess, and I already can't wait for Leo's route either. Thank you for your hard work!

I'm also curious about the loveless marriage route, but everything in its own time, good to have something left to anticipate. I've missed out on the kickstarter so I can't vote, but hoping to see Charlotte's route soon, I imagine it would be a whole Juliet and Juliet story with the rivarly between their houses!

Finally played the demo, and already in love with the characters!

My favorite has to be the MC, don't think I ever played as someone who's such a mystery, and I love it. Among the LIs, I can't choose between the boys, I instantly gravitated towards Emrys because who doesn't love a bad boy, but Darryl is such a sweetheart you can't not love him either. Just reading the profiles, I thought you're going for similar tropes as in Royal Alchemist, but I see you've remixed them quite thoroughly, and I'm very much enchanted by them all.

Also love how you switched up the game mechanics, added the personality traits and social events! I'm still trying to understand if the personality will affect the romance routes. Also wonder what the chosen Council faction does.

Did I mention I love the easter eggs and the worldbuilding? Seeing Neri and Beringer, and mentions of Senior Alchemist Rosenkreuz, and how much you're expading the world with magical creatures and all the new countries and the Sval language and their runic magic, I'm awestruck. 

On another note, wanted to let you guys know that in v0.2, I still got an exception in week 10 on Iris's route.

And a question, there is no event popping up for me on week 7, the game goes straight from previous week's lecture or mission to the save/train/mission/etc screen. I first thought I'm missing prerequisite missions or romance points, and I've been experimenting with it, but still nothing. Is it maybe a bug, or intentionally empty, or I'm still missing the conditions?

I really can't wait to see more of this game and world! You guys are awesome. 

So, I'm playing through the game (the old version still). I haven't finished all the routes yet, but gotta say, I'm growing to love it more and more with each playthrough, as I get to know each of the characters. Really love their depth! 

Some general observations that I am super duper happy about. I love the diversity! Different genders and races too. I love that all relationships are healthy, but still have very different dynamics! Also, I love that there are side couples, even including love interests you choose to not romance, because heck yes, they are people and deserve to live their lives and be happy, rather than be a harem and wait around for the protagonist. (Heard some people have that opinion... or complain about having non-male love interests just because they are not interested in them, and... I'm just so happy you decided to go the unapologetically queer route and let the haters stew in their hate. Also want you to know, that yes, there is an audience for what you do, I really appreciate it!)

I really loved the mystery plot, the many threads that eventually all came together. The villain was a surprise, not gonna spoil it here, just gonna say, excellent choice and message sent there!

I must say, I'm really a sucker for the romance aspect, haha. I've played all routes except August, because one's gotta leave an intriguing route for last! And I really can't pick favorites anymore. I am very partial to the throuple routes! But also Finn's and Piper's routes, they are... let's be honest, I found their dynamics with the Hunter really hot. And getting to know Omen was such a great surprise, I came to respect him immensely. Ezra is a sweetheart, as expected, and Alkar... maybe he was a little easy to crack, but cute still! Oh, and even the non-romance route... I appreciate having that unwinding scene (in chapter 7 I think?) with August and Piper, as a sort of paralleling the throuple routes! 

One thing you could improve in the new version is, just a bit of programming nitpicking, there's entire scenes that are the same on all routes (unless you're romancing that person/those people), but they are still not skippable. I'm not certain if you're doing a rehaul of the art as well, the CGs weren't fully consistent, but they didn't take away from the overall enjoyment. I loved the sprites, the backgrounds and the music! And the writing is really great (although, could use a fine-combing, some variations of routes/choices don't read as smooth as others in some later sections, e.g. Piper's scene in chapter 8 I think, and the scene with Alkar and Omen in chapter 5 or 6 perhaps).

To sum it up... a hell of a good game! It's really growing on me and becoming one of my favorite VNs of all time. Very excited to finish August's route, read the side stories, and see how you'll make it even more amazing!

If anyone's wondering if it's worth to buy it... YES. You don't wanna miss out, believe me! 

Ooh, sounding interesting! Do you have any predictions? 

Thanks for the reply! 

Yes indeed, it turns out, I had both unpacked on my computer, and the game's folder had the title shortened, so I overlooked that, and opened the wrong folder... :')

Is it also because of the revamp that even the previously downloaded full game refuses to go beyond chapter one now? I wanted to pick up the game again today after a long break, and it was jarring to see my save files unable to load and a bunch of renpy errors. I would have appreciated an in-game warning and being redirected to the menu. Just, for future reference ^^"

Anyways, I'm gonna be patient and wait for the new release, I'm sure it's going to be awesome! I've been enjoying the game so far (got a little beyond romance route selection on my first playthrough before), intrigued by the mystery and enchanted by Ezra (pun fully intented). Keep up the good work! :)

...btw, is it possible to request that you add a default name for the MC? Apparently I have a very similar taste in names as one of you, because my first two name choices (Aya and Raven) turned out to be shared with NPCs ^^" that kind of thing bothers and confuses me, so I had to go and start a new game just to change the name. Ngl, it's kind of hilarious that it happened TWICE. But I'd much rather go with a default! 

Definitely recommend, must-play if you enjoy historic otomes! The MC has LOTS of personality that you even get to choose (some options are pretty wild and fun! do not be scared to be wild and wreak havoc!), the story is entertaining, and the art is pretty! Oh, and the love interests all have layers/secrets to discover!
Expect to see the skeleton of the story to be the same on all routes, but depending on your route, you will see many alternate scenes, so it doesn't get boring! Or just skip (and it's super fast, not bogged down by transitions and such!). 
Some love interests/routes that stood out to me:
Leopold caught my interest first, he seemed polite and charming (and shallow of me, but his sprite is so pretty haha). His route was also full of unexpected intrigue, good job on the slow build and foreshadowing! I am most excited for his sequel! 
I was pleasantly surprised some of the ladies were love interests too! 
Sofia caught my eye quick, and I really enjoyed her connection with the MC and the dramatic turns~
With Charlotte, I didn't have very high expectations, but I was pleasantly surprised, her route was sooo wholesome!
The prince, getting to know him better, he was a little unexpected, and I came to appreciate him. Also looking forward to his sequel for the plot~
Bastion... don't know why, but I didn't appreciate the slow burn in this as much as I should have. 
And the secret route. Ugh. Right in the feels. (Spoilers ahead, don't read the crossed out text!) I thought there was going to be a kiss in the play... Then again they got in trouble even without... Also, even outside the game I went on a whole emotional rollercoaster because of him haha, first thinking it's a pity the prettiest boy is the brother, then realizing he's still a love interest... I was both happy and worried. But seeing his devotion to MC from the beginning, I was looking forward to him, and he delivered!
Maybe some advice for future games. The font was a little hard to read, especially in italics, which was used in narration, that took some getting used to. 
Personally, I had some technical difficulties though. Once, Steam did not register me closing the game from within, and I had to restart my computer for it to be fixed so I can launch it again. And I had some difficulty unlocking the secret route, but I managed, and was worth the trouble! 

Aaah I understand very little French, but this sounds so nice. I love KPop, and I love otome games! Are you planning to make an English version, in the future? (Or I might be forced to study French again to play...)

Possibly silly question, but since the game is also on Steam, would it be possible to provide a Steam key with the purchase? 

Finally gotten the chance to play this game, and enjoying it so far! I've only played through Sachiro's route yet. 

The strongest point of this game is obviously the visuals. It is gorgeous! The opening is such high quality, on par with anime and big copany VNs! Plus so many sprite variations and backgrounds, and the sheer amount of CGs, especially how the routes are shorter than in other VNs. Oh, and the menus too, so creative and pretty! 

It's clear the developer's strong suit is art, which sadly also means writing is not. If you don't mind some constructive criticism... The ideas and plot are great, but bogged down by the prose. On my first read, the prologue seemed boring. Maybe it was intentional to show the heroine's boredom...? But a stronger opening hook would benefit the game for sure. Eventually, I was grateful I pushed through it, because Sachiro's route was nice! Loved how their lives were entangled with the heroine~ Yet to play the other routes to judge. Still, there were times I was left confused, especially about the "why"s: why the sequence of events, how one leads to the other, and why the characters are doing and saying what they do. It's okay to slow down the events to explain and reflect a little. It also felt like some of the reveals came too early? Like Sachiro's identity. I'd already guessed it, so great job for dropping the hints! But remaining in suspense longer would have been fun. All in all, great plot and story elements are there, I enjoyed reading, I just missed the glue to blend it together better. Keep practicing the writing and pay more attention to the internal logic and you'll get there!

On the other hand, the music is also great! It sets the atmosphere so nicely. I can see the amount of care and love put into this game, and my overall experience was great! Looking forward to playing the other routes (might come back to gush about them haha), and possibly future games from the dev~

Hi! As promised, coming at you with feedback!

I'm loving the game and the guide is being soo much useful, I got all the good endings and enjoyed them thoroughly.~ Yet to hunt for friendship ends and allll the deaths. 

I went for Serin first, because he's such a charming gentleman from the first moment~ He was sweet through and through, as expected, and fun to tease, although not much surprises. But week 55! That was cruel. :( 

I played Aurelius next. He made a bad first impression on me because of Week 2 :D But he was loyal to Serin and started to pick my interest. Getting to know him was a very positive surprise! I think the build-up of his romance route was my favorite. Loved week 39 ;) Also with the extra hints in his route... I see why you guys recommend to play him first, maybe I could have had a guess on the villain. Oh well. 

With Nazir, his plot twist genuinely blew my mind. Glad I played his route last because once that scene started, I recognized the signs! Two days later, I'm still thinking on it. Would have enjoyed an epilogue where they visit Alexis's father and get more answers on how his father makes him a special case! And, tbh, his confession seemed very sudden to me, for most of the time I felt like they were just becoming close friends (okay, except week 37, unless I messed up and missed more action), and I even questioned if Nazir likes Ishbell (at week 42). 

I'm having one problem/question: I cannot unlock the scene for Aurelius's second CG. I figured from the artbook that there should be a CG scene between week 2 and week 25, and I'm positive I've been following the guide correctly. Definitely passed the stat checks, but I didn't manage to get that scene on my second try either. :(
EDIT: nevermind, I realized the guide never said to craft an item for week 11, which I did... I think I got lots of exploring to do with how things can go right and wrong that week! 

Hi! Thank you for the quick reply even during the holidays! Picked up both the game and guidebook, will make sure to leave a comment/review once I get to playing it! Happy Holidays! 

So I finished all routes and I love this game as much as CP! Well worth the prize, especially considering the original is free AND amazing. 
I used the opportunity to also replay each prequel route before its happily ever after~ Embarrassing for me to say, I did all this in like 3 days. But that's how good and addictive these games are! The art is really pretty but what captivated me originally and still captivates me most is the writing and the depth of characters, all of them having flashed out personalities and backstories, including the bad guys, even if not all was shown in CP. I really enjoyed the additional family stories in several routes in Evermore! And you made me cry a couple of times when old deaths were mentioned ;; Also loved how there was always additional conflict, someimtes more, sometimes less, besides the romance development, but we also got updates on how the side characters and other love interests were doing! 

Play order recommendation: 
I played Klaude's route first, and after that, all the Brugantia references became funny, so I recommend you do that!
Also, while there's no "true route" this time, I still recommend leaving Waltz for last, especially his good/normal end, it gives such a nice wrap-up of the game! (For this reason, I might have enjoyed the good ending more than the best ending in his case!)

Slightly spoilered fangirling time!
Personally, I feel like the person who most needed a sequel was Fritz, because I didn't see the depth of his character in CP, with his "good" and "bad" sides separated. Seeing him as one complex person made me like him a lot more. I loved seeing his cheeky and seductive side as part of him now. His route was among my faves! I've now also seeing a parallel between Waltz's and Fritz's stories, the guilt they deal with, and their relationship to Lucette. I feel so bad for Fritz, since his route in CP goes so much worse ;; 
Also, Rod! Such a mature young man! I also loved seeing him older, he's become really attractive! I was curious how the obstacle of being step-siblings would be cleared, and I was so proud of how he resolved and handled things! I really enjoyed his route, and came to love his character more than before. But I laughed how he went from commoner to prince to commoner again then crown prince. :D

Hi! I've had my eyes on Royal Alchemist for a while but I'm so bad at stat raising, I was scared to buy the game without the guide, and now I'm getting excited about the 2020 winter bundle (thank you for offering that, btw)! But I'm wondering about what version is included in the bundle. I'm guessing it includes the artbook without the guide, or does the bundle have tiers too? To make sure I get the guidebook, would it be easier to make individual purchases? (I saw in the comments that you guys offer upgrades, and you're awesome, but my anxiety says rather not complicate things for either of us ^^") Thank you for the answer in advance! 

Ah, I'm happy for this new demo! I played the NaNo version a few months back, though I forgot to leave a review. Sorry about that, but I guess, at this point, I'll talk about the new demo instead.~ I can see how the script is being reworked, and is flowing much better. The time pressure was visible in the original one, but now it's on par with the gorgeous art and music that I had fallen in love with! I also see that there are sometimes three choices, I'm curious if this means there will be three endings per route?~

From the original three, my favorite is Snow, but Zel is close second. (Honestly I just cannot forgive Mer, but probably I'll understand him better in the new version.) I wonder if the new routes will sway me, since I love both shy characters like Ellis and childhood best friends like Nicholl.~

Cheers for your team, and keep up the good work! I will be looking forward to the full release.~

Thank you so much for making this game, it really was amazing! The art is just gorgeous, and I really liked all the stories. Also thanks for recommending the playing order, I'm glad I decided to stick to it more or less.

I went for Rod first. What I liked about his route was how the princess managed to mend what she'd done wrong with her stepfamily. The real Cinderella tale. :) Second I decided to get Mr. Casanova out of the way. While I really liked his appearance in his introduction CG, as soon as he spoke, I facedesked. But then he was a pleasant surprise, having much more to him than his flirting. :) I was debating whether to save our crossdresser for last or not, but guessed it would be better to save the locked paths for last. He really charmed me (psst, his curse was based on my favorite fairytale! I feel kind of ashamed I didn't realize what was going on with the curse, even though I had a hunch about who he is), and I really thought he'd stay my favorite till the end. His bad end really is tragic though. :( Well, that's what I thought at that moment. Fritz's route easily surpassed it. That route, as a whole, was so dark, and it made me cry three times. :( (And we didn't even get to see him a lot... btw I would have never guessed his fairytale, I was convinced he's be the white swan.) Then, Waltz... I'm really happy I played his route last, and that I played without RCI and got the bad ending first. Finishing the game with the true, "fairytale" happy ending was really satisfying :) His route still gave me some surprises, mostly about the past. And it was just so sweet, I was happy that everything went just right, and he really was so sweet as well, I came to love him a lot. Sso much that I can't choose a favorite anymore between Karma and Waltz. :)

One more thing I wanted to say, you touched on some possibly sensitive topics, romancing a step-brother and someone trapped as a child, but you handled it carefully and nicely!

So congratulations and thank you again for this great work, I really had fun reading this past week. I'm looking forward to see more VNs from you :)

Hi there! I found your company by accidentally stumbling across the Chess of Blades demo, and while waiting for it to come out, I decided to give a shot at Requiescence. Let me say, I never regretted it. :) Halfway through the demo, I already knew I was going to buy it. The mysteries and the atmosphere got me hooked properly! I really enjoyed playing throughout the past week, finishing all routes and endings. Checking out your social media sties, I can see that you were on a tight budget, and while it definitely shows in the CGs (and the sprites) (is there any chance you'll make a second version with updated art?), you definitely did a great job in bringing this game to life with an amazing soundtrack and even partial voice acting. Oh, and the animation of the fights was also nice. :)

The best part is most definitely the storytelling. Full of action, surprises and emotions that felt real, for the most part. I felt that Carrault's path could have used some more development, but then again, if I think about it, that's what their personalities imply. Maybe some insight on Carrault's side would have helped. The only critics I have about the story progress is that most of the choices didn't matter in the end, only those two that determine the route and the ending. And so I didn't have to work to woo the love interests.

As for the characters and paths. By the end of the demo, my favorite was Kaul. Still I didn't mind that I have to play his route last. I guessed his route will hold the answers, so I was looking forward to it. I went for Damian first, since he's the first one Kymil meets. I found him interesting, and contradictory. His appearance and voice suggest he is fragile, his sharp tongue soon became funny, and yet he was a vicious fighter, and carried a deep dark past. I came to like him and his most romance-y route a lot. In hindsight, I find his bad end the worst, most pointless and hopeless one. Carrault... as you led it up, I was half-expecting his central conflict to be what it was. While there wasn't much time for development, I really enjoyed those short glances at his softer side. What I didn't expect was the drama with Seere. And finally Kaul. I have to say, he turned out to be... very different from the first impression. I haven't decided yet if in a good or bad sense, and I'm still a bit confused about his path. I feel like there are a few unanswered questions, though maybe I just didn't pay enough attention and replaying will answer me. Though I feel that Kymil overreacted, when the truth was revealed to him. What I undoubtedly liked about Kaul's path was the different interactions with Sychar and Absalom, and the side romance (well, except how it ended...). I'm still wondering if Kaul's love end really is the good end? After all, the world is saved and Kymil is still happy (through crazy...) in his bad end. This brings me to the biggest question I guess, which I couldn't figure out on my own no matter what. Does breaking chalice destroy the corrupted power, or does it set it free? Is giving up on the love interest a necessary sacrifice to save the world? That really turns around the interpretation of the endings. if the power breaks free, that means the bad ends are rather the necessary sacrifice of love to save the world, and the love ends are selfish. That would make a great lesson on how there's no ultimately good solution, there's no way to get everything you want. The other way around, that would make all the bad ends just stupid mistakes, pointless and painful. I'm really curious, how did you intend that?

One more thing I wanted to point out about the R-18 version. The voice acting in the rated scenes. I'm not sure about the community's tastes, especially since this is almost the first R-18 game I played. However, listening to the sexy times, I would have enjoyed them better if it wasn't so dominantly about the high-pitched moaning. First, because I felt that Kymil appeared quite girly there, which clashed with my mental image of him as a stubborn, strong young boy, and well, this is yaoi - while he is a bottom, he is still a boy. Second, since I'm a girl, I would happily listen to some deep, manly sounds from the semes. I would guess, most girl players imagine themselves in the bottom's place, so hearing the partner too, not just themselves would improve the experience, right? In the end, maybe I'm just talking for myself or a minority here, but I think you could please everyone by adding some more lines to semes, and then the uke's voice won't be so predominant, without reducing his lines. :)

Huh, it became quite the long-winded comment... I hope you like reading... :D Anyways, thank you very much for this awesome game and the experience, and keep up the good work! :)