Greetings from Queen Mist and Queen Dani!

We can't believe it's been a whole month since we released chapter 3 part 2! That was such a hassle, so we're glad it's done. But that doesn't mean we've slowed our progress at all! Immediately after putting that update out, we launched into working on the next stage: chapter 4 part 1.

Conference portions always take much longer, because there are minigames to contend with - and on top of that, the most daunting step of all: the Royal Execution. So now that we're not doing that, it's been much easier to move speedily. Perhaps a bit too much so, from certain angles...

Because this part was written months in advance, we don't have to worry about that. It's all just coding, artwork, music, and testing. And even though it's only been a few weeks, the first item on that list is already almost complete! In terms of dialogue and character sprites, the coding is probably about 95% done!

Unfortunately, that doesn't mean we'll be able to rush the part out. Although we don't need much by way of music, artwork and testing will still be a process; the former, we've made decent strides with, but still have a lot more to go, and the latter we've barely started. Of course, though, we still do anticipate that this part will be finished far quicker than chapter 3 part 2! That one took six months, but if we can get a whole step entirely out of the way in one month, it's unlikely that the rest will take us terribly long. Ideally, it'll be ready by the beginning of spring, though we currently have no specific estimation in terms of release date.

Story (CONTAINS CH3P2 SPOILERS!!)

Following the events of the brutal third court scandal, everything was bound to hit a downward spiral. But the third conference's results have pushed everyone over the edge. Spending hours hunting for a murderer and then being forced to witness their gruesome execution is always horrific—but when said murderer is never identified, it's made all the worse. Not only does that mean an innocent was sentenced to death for their failed accusation; it means the killer remains among the survivors after all is said and done.

Grief-stricken and haunted by distrust, not a single member of the Court is comfortable aligning themself with those they previously saw as friends. Anyone could be the guilty one aside from the one who was accused in the first place, so to rely on anyone is to place yourself directly in danger's path. Unfortunately, this means that the distant dream of escape is reduced to an impossibility; if they cannot work together, then it's highly unlikely they'll ever find answers.

It is not just the dead who are missing from the group, however. Of all the Court members, Kostya has been hit the hardest, to the point where it's an effort to do anything at all. Even being in the presence of the people he saw all the time before tragedy struck is a drain, so working, attempting to search for an escape, is entirely out of the question. He must try to rally himself, to confront the demons of trauma and guilt which hang over his head, but how can he do this when it feels like, everywhere he goes, he just finds more and more reminders of what he's lost and what he's done wrong?

Will the Court be able to pull through? Will they overcome the great restrictions placed on them and uncover more information about their kidnapping - or better, find the killer? All this and more will be answered in the next piece of Last One Standing's story!