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⚠️SPOILERS⚠️

You're right, everything here is just speculation, but Alon does explicitly state that humans are in a constant cycle of reincarnation. They just shatter and return as one of the six races, over and over. Luke could easily have gone through multiple cycles already:

"No matter how many Humans claw their way back into reincarnation, they always end up shattering themselves back into the six under the vastness of that power."
"There have been many Humans through history. Each of them, a World-changer. Each of them, shattered and forgotten once again."
"You were careful with your power. Respected and avoided it, like you should. And yet even you had weakened and almost perished from it when pushed against the wall."

And I really want to know more about Dawn. It's a feminine name, which would actually make her the first female character in the story. The Observer seems to had a complicated history with her, based on his tone, she seems to have been a serious obstacle to him at some point:

"You... I know you. You are Dawn's brother, aren't you?"
"It makes sense why you would try to fuck with me. You were always on their side, right?"

I'd love to learn more about Luke's family in general. The main story feels locked into the loop of the Skies Ablaze day, so maybe a spinoff could give us a look at Sansun and his father Tharros, or at least have them appear in one of Luke's memories. Though honestly, part of me just wants to see them show up at Shelter someday. Imagine his dad walking in, looking around, and going "look at you, taming all these dogs and having them worship your cock, I'm so proud of you, son" ... okay I'll stop there.

On a more serious note, I'd love to see more of the other races too. The "Reincarnation" ending already hints at how interesting it could be to follow Luke outside of Shelter, him living in the Saurian kingdom (Also, Luke says that is a beautiful place) for a while sounds like it'd be a great story on its own.

Lastly, yes, Alon's route isn't replayable, which is why I went through the game's files, collected all the scripts and merged them into a single file (it's not clean, since the scripts are sorted alphabetically and not by chapter order). I just feed it to Claude to scan for specific lines I remember. It makes it a lot easier to revisit the parts I want to explore more deeply.

⚠️SPOILERS⚠️

Let's start with the short part: Cooper. In the crossover with "Demons Within", Thistle talks about Cooper with Resnick. Later, Cooper pulls out what looks like a bible or religious book and starts talking about Mother Earth, but since it's Resnick's POV, he gets lost in his own thoughts and stops listening. By the way, you need to play the first chapter of "Demons Within" to get the code for chapter two.

Now, the dream scene between "Luke?" and "Max?" is weird, but there's this line that stands out:

"Well, it's been like a thousand freaking years and I've been dying for one of those herbal coffees."

He seems to at least remember his life before the world broke. And since Luke can loop through time, what feels like a couple of years for the dogs could be hundreds of years for him, kind of like what the Observer tells Gunner after Alon's vision:

"To you it felt like no time passed at all… but to me… FUCK!!"

So when Luke says "a thousand years", it's genuinely unclear whether that's an expression, literal, or just his skewed perception of time.

There's also Alon's theory that humans shatter when they overuse their powers. According to him, Luke has been unusually careful, and maybe that's exactly why he lost his memories: as a way to protect himself from breaking apart.

In Alon's route, when he describes his vision of a future Luke:

"You talked about yourself. About the nature of our realm. About the Humans, the Monsters and us. How everything came to be. At least as much as you knew yourself."
"You were there when everything started and, as fate would have it, you were there to see the end too."

Luke never explicitly says he's thousands of years old, but the context makes it pretty clear he's been around longer than anyone else.

One last thing, the Observer recognizes Luke immediately and says:

"You... I know you. You are Dawn's brother, aren't you?"

And we're definitely not talking about his lion brother Sansun.

Thanks for your reply! ❤️

I understand that the story is in early stages, but still, a story needs some minor details just so the reader knows where the characters stand. I don't think it would overwhelm the reader. You just need to add some vague comments from the characters about the world from time to time, or internal monologues, so the reader slowly builds an image of the world as the story progresses. Just don't do an info dump.

I understand that you don't want to throw too much information at the player; in Hollow Knight or Blasphemous, the lore exists, but only for those who want to dig into it. However, those games have gameplay, so stopping the player to read lore can cut the immersion. But in a visual novel, the reading IS the gameplay.

I think the lack of worldbuilding is even more noticeable because of the way you are telling the story. In other visual novels you only see one paragraph at a time, just the character talking at the moment. But in your story I feel like I'm reading a book; many paragraphs at a time, and the way you describe what the characters are doing and saying feels very literary. This isn't bad, I actually like it, but it also made me expect the same level of detail as a book. Complementing that with the memorandum doesn't feel natural or organic given your storytelling style.

I'm not saying you have to rewrite the whole world from scratch. Some stories don't need deep worldbuilding, but sadly, yours does, and here's why: Resnick is a soldier, so just give me basic details about his position, his duties, the Order, what it means to be part of it. I'm not asking for complex politics or mysteries, just enough description to know where Resnick stands. Let me put it with an example from another visual novel.

I recently read In Finite Space, a novel well known for its detailed worldbuilding, but I'll focus only on the beginning; literally the first paragraphs, which introduce the main conflict, the threat of the plague, and the origin of the Union. Just that. With those few details I already have the foundation to start building my image of the world and place Corvan within it. And here's the thing, Corvan is also a soldier, just like Resnick. Yet from the very start I knew what he was fighting for, who he was fighting under, and what the world around him looked like. Then other details, like elements of the world or the characters' motives, flow naturally, complemented by Corvan's internal monologues.

I'll stop here. I hope your novel gets more attention. I know you'll find a way to integrate the world into the main plot naturally.

Oh yeah, I already replayed Alon’s route. English isn’t my native language, so there were some things that escaped me the first time I read it, but I still didn’t notice anything too major.

Aside from Luke, ever since the Third Howl I expected that he knew them in certain timelines or past lives, because he says he has lived for thousands of years. He also said Alon was important to him, but that he traded his memories of him for the power of Ablaze. At the same time, Moon seems to have met one of Alon’s past lives too, based on what Doom Moon says when he sees puppy Alon: “I forgive you.” That made me expect that Alon’s past self and Moon had some kind of connection at some point, but with Luke... isn't totally clear for me.

I know the dogs are dumb, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be curious, those things aren’t mutually exclusive. Aside from Luke and the Observer (and Alon, who learns things from Luke’s other timelines after tasting his blood), there doesn’t seem to be anyone else interested in the world itself. Like you said, they’re more focused on their own problems than on bigger questions.

I just don’t want everything in one big info dump explaining the whole world (but I also don’t want a vague ending like Soulcreek, where many things stay a mystery), especially since there’s only one Howl left: the final Fifth Howl. At the very least, I’d like complementary side stories that expand the lore a bit. Like the crossover with "Demons Within", in chapter two Cooper saying he is Mother Earth’s shepherd, which I found funny because “shepherd” translates to pastor in Spanish, and pastor can also mean a religious leader.

And about the music, I know there are some tracks that are really good. "Sic ’Em" and "White Wolf " definitely have a place in my playlist. I just meant that most of the soundtrack works very well in context, but it isn’t the kind of music that gets stuck in your head.

Like this? he post this image on his twitter the past year, 

I started working on a redesign of Gunner as the Grey Wolp, for those who were curious about his canon look. This is how I imagine him at the age during Alon's tragic barkstory, but with his own weapon 🐺 Gonna work more on the details, and add some shine to the metal...

They cut relationship with the composer, so they remove their music, even from their youtube channel... I don't know whappened, people say that he was a horrible person.

Didn't expect this novel to be so interesting. The characters are very funny, the mystery around the demon is great, I can't wait to see how Resnick's friends will react when they find out about it...

But there are somethings that bother me... Where is the worldbuilding? (v13)

We have the Order, the city, The Capital, The Outskirts... just that? If there is a capital, there must be a country or a kingdom. What is the name of that country?

Right now, the novel only focuses on the characters. The world just exists, but the characters don't feel like they're part of it. If the plot took place in modern times, we could fill the gaps with things we already know, but the story takes place in a medieval setting. I'll go part by part:

1. If it's medieval, that means there should be a religion. It's hard to imagine a civilization without some kind of god or deity in a setting like that. I'll use Shelter as an example, since you have a crossover with that novel. In Shelter, they believe in mother earth, they have the belief that they are part of something bigger, that they are born from the flesh of the earth. In this novel they have honor and duty, but those values don't come from nowhere.
2. Is the Dawnbreak Order the actual government or the total authority in that place? Is it some kind of military theocracy? At the moment, the novel doesn't mention any kind of authority other than the Lord Commander, who is currently the highest authority shown.
   Edit___ The memorandum actually answers part of this: the Dawnbreak Order is the government. The Grand Marshall is the highest authority, and high-ranking soldiers are assigned as territorial rulers, Commander Arlington governs Heirdall on the Order's behalf. So yes, it is effectively a military theocracy. It would be nice if the novel made this clearer without having to dig into the memorandum.
3. Is the Order the actual police or army? Or was it created solely to fight the Red-eyes? They do patrols, but they seem mostly focused on chasing Red-eyes. It's not very clear what their actual purpose is. Are they the police, the judge, and the executor all at once? It kind of feels like just a witch hunt.
   Edit_____ The memorandum clarifies that the Red-eyes are not just a cult, but organized savage tribes that were pushed back to the western marshes. That's actual geopolitics! But again, none of this comes through in the story itself.
4. Is there anything beyond the Outskirts apart of the marshes? The game doesn't mention any other country, as if the whole world is united, or as if nothing else exists. Why would they have an army if the only real threat is a group of cultists? Are they on a small continent or an island? A map with the most important locations would be greatly appreciated.
5. The people in the novel are anthros, but they act... too human, or very similar to each other. I mean, they have physical differences, but they don't seem to have behaviors or mannerisms characteristic of their species. The only characters that show some level of mannerisms are the canines, they twitch their ears or wag their tails in response to emotions. Or at least Resnick does, because the other canines are too stoic (which fits their character roles, but makes them less expressive). I'll just quote the Overlord master of Shelter, Luke:

"What is the point of having different species in the story if everyone is human where it counts the most?!"

The novel is good, but the lack of worldbuilding is hard to ignore. Also the menu doesn't help, it's very slow and you can't properly navigate it to check the memorandum.

There is not an scene with captain yet... the game is coded to fail the lust infusion on Resnick in that part. But... there is a combination of Sloth and Lust with the captain... I don't say anymore...

Something like this?

SPOILER...

Only Max, Luteus and Alon can remember Acri because they have a Luke's Ablaze cristal... Also, the shelter somehow prevent (or at least slowdown) memories from scape.

Can you be more specific? Are you asking how to get Alon route? in which part you are dying? (beware with the spoilers)

SPOILERS

Max doesn’t seem to have an ember in the first place. There’s even this line during the last battle in his route:

“Without using Arts or an Ember, Max empowers his allies by acting as the observer, the strategist, the commander, and the encourager all at once, just by the power of his expression.”

Primal Palm seems more like a physical technique than an ember. What Max really does is use music to encourage and support his allies.

Wow… I’m very impressed. This novel is peak, the story, the art, the music. The music isn’t super memorable, but it fits the story really well. I’ve never seen a novel that integrates action scenes this well, you can really feel the emotion. I really want to see how it ends.

But… there are some things that left me with questions (v0.47):

1. Why aren’t there any women?
   I only saw feminine pronouns once in the novel, and it was when referring to Mother Earth, who is kind of like a goddess. Even all background characters are male. Is there a reason for the absence of female characters? Maybe something similar to Soulcreek, with a virus that reduced the female population in this case? If there are no women, how are they born? I know it’s an MLM novel, but… you know, I expected at least some lore behind it.
   Now I’m thinking, if there aren’t women, then there aren’t hybrids either. Maybe they’re just born from Mother Earth… well, that’s just my theory.
2. Why are all the characters so horny?
   When I saw Rune’s jerk-off scene and his explanation, I thought sex would be related to mana (the power system of the novel), something like In Finite Space (where emotional bonds enhance the Aegis, and sex can reduce its damage, simple explanation, but still something).
   But no, the rest is just sex. I’m not complaining, I like it (top and bottom Rune are my favorites), and I read this kind of story for that too, but again, some lore would help, because as it is now, it feels more like a porn novel.
3. Is Alon’s route completed?
   Every main character’s route (Max, Burry, and Rune) has some kind of emotional bond with Luke… but what about Alon? In his route, he just says he finds Luke extremely hot… is that it? I hope the novel explores Alon’s feelings more deeply in future updates, because he’s one of my favorite characters.
4. How did the world shatter?
   At the moment, every character just accepts the current state of the world as it is. Nobody really questions it (like where humans came from, what those ruins are, or what the relics actually do). Burry used to be focused on seeking knowledge, but it feels like he just dropped that part of himself.
   What I’m trying to say is that there isn’t much buildup around the mystery of the world. Are we going to get a lore dump in future updates?

Kind of… but (SPOILERS):

Embers are basically manifestations of a character’s experiences, they represent who they are. If the person changes, the ember changes too (or maybe even disappears). Main characters' embers are also tied to their emotional bond with Luke.

• Burry (Amicus Dei):
  He can summon his brothers' memories as an ice wolf pack. He wants to preserve their memory and somehow bring them back. His bond with Luke is that Luke gives him a new sense of purpose. Also, Luke helped him to find his brothers.

• Rune (Howling Echoes):
  Through canine empathy, he projects Moon’s memories onto the person he sees as his savior (Luke). He wants to be saved, like a damsel in distress. His bond with Luke is pretty clear: Luke is his hero.

• Max (Primal Palm?):
  He doesn’t really have an offensive or defensive ember (honestly, I’m not even sure he has one), but his “power” is more supportive. He boosts and encourages others (when he used "primal palm" on Luke it triggered his mana vision for a moment). He just wants to keep everyone together. His bond with Luke is that Luke gave him a new life with friends.

• Alon (Dance with Wolves):
  He can move through shadows. It probably reflects his desire to be truly free and to stay hidden from the Observer. As long as the Observer exists, he’s never really free. His bond with Luke is still kinda unclear.

This also kinda ties into their final side sex scenes:

• Burry is into punishment/BDSM, probably because of guilt over what happened with his brothers (maybe even wanting to be eaten by them, like they did to Luke in the battle with Teak).
• Rune likes being submissive (weak), especially with someone stronger than him, he leans into the whole “saved by his hero” thing.
• Max is into orgies, which fits his whole “keep everyone together” mindset.
• Alon doesn’t really have a proper scene yet (the tavern one doesn’t really count).