Happy to help! Thanks for playing, and for sharing your thoughts on the game!
As for the question of branching paths, that's a slightly difficult question to answer without saying too much. I think the best way I can put it without saying too much is that I want every player to experience the core story of the game, no matter how they play. But I also want the game to respond to the player's efforts, including reflecting them in the story.
To say a little more...
(No story spoilers, but structural hints below)
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In addition to having optional lore and interactions tucked away wherever I can sneak them in, there are also actions in gameplay that change aspects of the story, while still generally following the same plot in the broader strokes. These actions take the form of optional objectives in each non-flashback chapter that can have knock-on effects as the game progresses.
Sorry if that's still pretty vague. It's kind of hard to say concisely, especially without getting into specifics, but I hope I was able to put it in a way that made at least some sense, lol.