That’s a bit of a complicated question, but… yeah, the focus won’t stay on the romantic aspects of the characters, at least not from now on. The cast will still maintain relevancy, of course, but things will be more about dealing with their situations (Seeker’s self-sacrificial nature, Mars’ lack of belief in his ability to be a hero, Aki’s… well, spoilers there, but you get what I mean), and the overall mysteries of the world.
I’ll admit writing the romantic aspects has been rather fun, even if exhausting at times, and it has helped me get a much clearer picture of where I want the characters to be at as the story further advances, but I can confirm the main focus of the story will not be the romance. If you want… a bit of a breakdown, so to say, of what the next few chapters will consist of, this is more or less it:
5- The big battle in Naha, as well as certain plans moving forward.
6- Dealing with the fallouts of Chapter 5, as well as learning more about Nova, introduction of… a certain someone, and seeing things regarding Aki and Forlorn.
7- The final tie in to a certain point in Chapter 5, as well as an honest and very deep look into Seeker and Ignis.
8- This is where things get a bit unclear, but it’s when stuff starts to seriously break down in certain aspects.
9- Meeting someone, and having that someone throw stuff at everyone’s faces, as well as the beginning of the planet-shaking revelations that make up the climax of the story.
10- This is where the endgame hits its mid-point. This is where many, many, many events in the earlier part of the story culminate, and where a particularly attentive reader might go “Oh, fucking hell!”.
11 and 12 are the end of things, at least for now. Final preparations are made, certain arrangements are cleared up, and the fighting takes over and over and over.
So, yeah. Some of that is still up for rearrangement (it may end up one or two chapters shorter), but there’s still much to go, and ROs aren’t the main facet of most of it. From now on, besides certain scenes at times (Ignis and Aki are definitely getting special ones, at least), the largest changes you’ll see are going to be lines being different depending on who you have chosen to romance.
You’ll get to meet the cast even more, but not as romance options. You’ll meet them as people, and your relationships with them can be just as deep and as strong as those you may have with whoever your girlfriend or boyfriend may be. I’m not a fan of the idea that you need to romance a character to truly get to know them, so it’s not something you’re gonna see much of here.
If you’d like to use an example for this series, I’d recommend looking at the early Fire Emblems. You have an ensemble of characters, all with their baggage and desires, and while the events of the story aren’t about them, these events will still affect and bring to the front these baggages and desires.
In a lot of ways, this book is very much an introductory piece. It’s meant a lot more as a prologue than a part one, at least from my point of view. Its job is to make you connect or begin to care about the characters, so that the events in the following books are things you actually give thought to, or at least stick with you. Even the finale is meant more as something to whet your appetite and get you wondering about what comes next, when is it coming, and most importantly, how can you survive it.
No, the plot of the book is not self contained. It’s all meant as one big narrative that continues to build upon itself, instead of several different events that end up coalescing in the future. The events of Book 1 directly build up the events of Book 2, and same with Book 3.
Sorry if I rambled a bit here. Let me know if anything I said was a bit unclear, and I’ll try to tackle it in a different way. Likewise, if you have any more questions, feel free to bring them up.
