Eyes of the Chronicler was a strategy-based gal game with a fairly complicated storyline. There were 4 main capture targets, and just like most gal games, it started off with a common route before diverging into the independent routes of the chosen capture target in the later stages of the game.
The excessive number of events and frequent time skips in the game crammed players with an overload of information, creating a poor user experience. On top of that, the multitude of routes that led to bad ends, as well as the lack of satisfying eroticism within the game, left frustrated players dying to bang their heads against walls.
Putting all of this aside though, there were still some strengths to the game.
The illustrations of major characters were amazing, and the background and storyline of the characters were also quite detailed.
The main character of the game was a fellow named Paul Ackermann. A prince carrying the bloodline of the Austine Empire, he went missing in the streets when he was still a child. It was only when he was sixteen that the royal intelligence network managed to find him. He was swiftly brought back to the royal palace to be inaugurated as a prince of the empire.
As fantastic as being a prince of the empire might have sounded, the reality of it was much less enviable due to the two older brothers Paul had. Having grown up on the streets, his lack of knowledge and etiquette swiftly led to his ostracization by the factions led by the other two princes. Eventually, Paul was sent off to the Country of Scholars, Brolne, to study.
The common route of the game started off with the main character arriving at the Country of Scholars, Brolne. He would soon meet numerous gorgeous young ladies there, embarking on an adventurous journey of heart-throbbing romance.
Once a female capture target was selected—this was also the point when the player finally went down a specific independent route—the main character, with his knowledge, fighting skills, and the aid of his girlfriend, would return back to his country to participate in the factional wars. In the end, he would overcome his two older brothers to take the crown for himself.
To summarize, it was a 'from academy to vying for supremacy in the royal court' plotline.
Of the four capture targets that the main character would meet, one of them was Alicia Ascart.
Alicia Ascart was a spy that the Theocracy sent to Paul's side, and her route was known for being hard to clear. Due to her beautiful appearance that appealed to the aesthetics of the players, she was often ranked amongst the top three in character popularity polls. She was the billboard of the game, which was also the reason why Roel remembered her clearly.
But what he remembered even more clearly was the CG depicting how Alicia slit the neck of the villain, Roel Ascart.
Indeed, Roel Ascart was no other than the boss of the Middle School Arc in Eyes of the Chronicler!
In that arc, the main character and his harem would unravel the schemes of Roel Ascart before uniting together to lynch him to death. At the end of the battle, the main character would choose a capture target and embark on the independent route.
In the storyline, even though Alicia was the adopted sister of Roel, she hated Roel deeply due to the suffering she went through under his oppression. In the final battle, with the creed of 'An eye for an eye', she sliced off his head decisively with a single slash.
"…"
The adorable black-haired boy sat on a high Robinia wood chair and he stared at the edge of the table in front of him earnestly, contemplating a matter seriously…
Is it too late for me to change characters if I bash my head on the corner of the table right now?
Roel touched his forehead as a slight frown slowly formed on his young face. He really felt like bawling out his eyes right now!
Isn't the world just screwing with me? It's one thing for you to not transmigrate me into the position of the main character, but you even made me a villain in the common route? Can things get worse than this?
What am I supposed to do? My adopted sister has already come knocking on my door; it won't be long before she starts chasing me with a chopper in hand!
"C-calm down. It's especially at times like this that I have to calm down!"
Roel took in deep breaths as he tried to use his maturity as an adult to suppress his emotions.
One shouldn't panic in the face of trouble because panicking never works.
Repeating this quote again and again in his mind to brainwash himself, Roel finally felt his anxiety alleviating a little. He rubbed his own cheeks to wake himself up before racking his mind to find a way out of the quandary he was in.
As the saying goes, every effect comes with a cause.
Love and hatred don't just appear out of nowhere. Given so, why would Alicia Ascart, the Silverash Child, hate someone whom she had only met once thus far?
Roel began searching through his memories for the storyline of the game. He recalled that there were indeed a few conversations that revealed the reason why she hated Roel, even though they were mostly quick mentions.
After a long moment of contemplation, Roel summarized it all into three points.
First and foremost, Roel had bullied Alicia from a young age. Due to his father doting on him excessively, he had been allowed to act as he pleased, and he exploited this authority to make Alicia's life unbearable.
Secondly, prior to being adopted into the Ascart House, Alicia was the sole daughter of a baron house. That baron had died in a battle while protecting Roel's father.
Thirdly, when the Ascart House fell from grace, Roel gave Alicia away in exchange for certain benefits. While there was no additional details regarding this matter in the game, judging from Alicia's ravishing appearance…
"Tsk, there must be something wrong with Roel's head! Did his head get jammed between the cracks of a door? Isn't having a beautiful little sister to dote on something wonderful? Why in the world would he oppress her and even sell her off? Do you know how frightening she becomes later in the game? She's the Silverash Child, renowned to be invincible under the moon!"
Roel clutched his head speechlessly as he was rendered dumbfounded by the suicidal tendencies of the other Roel.
With a deep sigh, he began to assess the feasibility in resolving the issues he had listed.
The first issue was still rather easy to deal with, since all Roel really had to do was to not bully her. The second issue was impossible to deal with anymore as he couldn't change what had already happened. The third issue, however, appeared to be problematic.
"My family will fall from grace? Why?"
The little boy stared at the third issue he had written on a sheet of paper in a daze. Thinking back on the storyline, the Ascart House did appear to have declined ten years later. It was also during that period of time that Roel, despite being the son of a marquess, resorted to joining an evil cult, eventually becoming one of the major villains.
Roel raised his head to take a look around the elegant study room he was in.
A tulip tree from Gran Fiefdom, leather parchments from the Earssen Highlands, the most popular glass cupboards amongst the nobles of the Holy Capital, and an incense that was literally worth gold burning quietly in the background…
Taking a whiff of the extravagance surrounding him, Roel felt his spirits lifting back up.
For such a family to fall into decline? You must be kidding me!
However, the game wouldn't lie. The Ascart House had indeed fallen from grace in the game, so Roel had no choice but to believe it no matter how unthinkable it was to him. What he had to do now was find a way to prevent it all from happening.
The little boy seated before the study desk crossed his small arms and fell into deep thoughts. The knit on his forehead grew tighter and tighter, and he found himself falling deeper and deeper into despair.
Nothing came to mind at all!
Roel couldn't think of anything he could do to prevent the decline of his family.
In the first place, this event wasn't covered in detail in the game. Without the advantage of foresight other transmigrators had, what could he possibly do as a 10-year-old brat? He was not like Alicia! Other than his devilishly good looks, he was nothing more than an ordinary child!
What to do? Am I to await my doom just like this?
Fear encroached on Roel like a shadow, leaving him feeling utterly frightened. It was then that a crisp bell sounded in his mind.
[Ding!]
[System initializing…]