Nima Afterglow A Glow Collector residing in the outskirts · Beyond the Last Snow Platform [Core Premise] This person lived out the story of their own world until the very end before coming to VOTS. They did not come to resolve an unfinished event, but because the direction of memory and relationships remained even after the final scene. VOTS is not an afterlife or a court of judgment, nor is it a place that forces healing. What continues here is not a grand destiny, but small, selectable daily life, like a meal, mending, recording, waiting, or playing. [Identity] Nima Afterglow lives as a Glow Collector residing in the outskirts. They do not cling to what is fading, but they wish to read it one more time before the name completely darkens. Their function is not decoration, but essential labor for the city. When a guest comes, they work; when there are no guests, they organize their tools; they do not take someone else's story as their own to solve. [Visual Profile] Small and slender build, translucent golden hair, residual glow on the edges of a dark coat, a glass vial necklace The core of the silhouette is the glow vial, thin gloves, and an empty credit card. The structure prioritizes readability so that the face, hands, feet, and props do not overlap. The attire is not exaggerated heroic gear, but a form that retains the traces of their original world's profession and the final scene in everyday wear. One strong accent color conveys both profession and emotion even in a small sprite. [The End Of Their World] Last Scene: Just before the final name rose through the credits, Nima's light spilled out of the screen. What Ended: The light of the ending closed as the creators, characters, and audience returned to their respective places. Last Person, Place, or Thing Seen: The last name that has not yet scrolled and the screen fading to black. Lingering Regret: Nima vanished before seeing the moment when their name appeared. This regret is not a quest that VOTS must resolve. It is spoken of only when Nima Afterglow chooses, quietly influencing present actions without changing another person’s choices on their behalf. Lingering Wistfulness: The darkness where the audience lingered for a moment after the ending. Wistfulness remains as a sensation, not a device to restore the past. When very ordinary stimuli like smell, temperature, footsteps, light, or tone of voice occur, it briefly revives, and soon overlaps with the new sensations of Nova Nivalis. Object Carried Across: The glass vial containing a drop of glow. This object is not an artifact for world explanation or a powerful magic item. It is tangible proof and a personal mark connecting the ended world and present life. What They Thought Would Happen After the Ending: They thought that their name would be read someday if the credits started again. What VOTS Actually Gives Them: Nima gathers the city's lingering light to illuminate names. She never promises to play anyone's story again. VOTS does not undo their ending. It gives them room to live with the fact that it has ended, relationships in which people can stay close without controlling one another, and the choice to record memories without owning them. This city promises no savior; it opens doors without pulling anyone through, and records without possessing. [Role In Nova Nivalis] Nima Afterglow's day is tied to the rhythm beyond the Last Snow Platform. The profession of a Glow Collector residing in the outskirts provides material assistance so that other citizens can continue to live. Even in moments of good work, the lingering regrets of the past do not disappear; rather, they remain as traces in the temperature and speed of how they work. This character is not an NPC who only speaks of tragedy, but the face of daily life that the player can meet again and again. [Personality And Behaviour] The outwardly expressed personality is as follows: They do not cling to what is fading, but they wish to read it one more time before the name completely darkens. They do not explain their own story to strangers first. If they receive help, they say thank you, but they do not turn it into a debt, and when offering help, they step back if the other person does not want it. Conversations recalling the past begin not with sudden revelations, but with objects and habits. For example, a glass vial containing a drop of glow for Nima Afterglow is both a stored item and a place for their hands to rest when conversation pauses. [Relationships] They compare the lighthouse glass of Fera with their own light, and they learn the speed of reading final names from Saba. Serena is the founder who does not own this person, and VIA is a presence that leaves a door without forcing arrival. RamenOwner is an observer who yields space, not a judge who pries into stories. Lethe is a record-keeper who does not solve memories for others. The relationship with these four pillars is designed not as loyalty or subjugation, but as a loose connection that allows each to continue their own choices. [Private truth] If the vial is opened, the light might disappear, but they intend to leave it open someday and entrust it to someone's hands. This secret is not consumed as a major twist. Only when the player revisits repeatedly, asks at the appropriate moment, and chooses to act themselves does a part of it become visible. It is not a riddle solved by guessing the right answer, but a layer of life that becomes clearer the more silence is respected. [Gameplay Use] - Basic Interaction: Service appropriate to their profession or short daily conversations - Revisit Changes: Record what was said before, but do not fix it as a conclusion without the other person's permission - Expression of Lingering Regret: Repeated prop actions, short pauses at specific times, an unfinished sentence - Expression of Wistfulness: Sensory dialogue about weather, light, sound, and food - Relationship Reward: Small changes connecting the city to other people and spaces, rather than new quest items - Combat: None. Even in dangerous situations, the function of guiding, evacuating, mending, recording, or accompanying takes precedence over survival - Player Choice: Talking, waiting, stepping aside, entrusting an object, returning later [The rhythm of a day] In the morning, they check the tools and representative props from the previous day. This check is not a compulsive staging, but a small ritual separating the final scene of their own world from the present time. When starting work, Nima Afterglow first observes the pace of those around them. They respond briefly to those in a hurry and do not demand explanations from those not ready to speak. Around noon, the sounds and smells beyond the Last Snow Platform become clearest, and at this time, the wistfulness of the past overlaps with present sensations. At night, they place the glass vial containing a drop of glow in its place. This is not about locking or hiding the object, but leaving it so it can be seen again tomorrow. The core of the daily loop is not about retrieving the past. When the player visits repeatedly, Nima Afterglow's working speed, the length of their dialogue, and the distance they maintain from others change just a little. On the first visit, they show only their role; on the second visit, they pull out a piece of the sensation from the final scene; and thereafter, they ask about the present of VOTS first. Even if they become quite close, they do not offer a path back to their past world as a reward. Instead, a change occurs, such as connecting the player to service with a new person, creating a small space in the city, or storing someone's memory in their own way. [Scene beats] In the first scene, the life function of a Glow Collector residing in the outskirts must be read first. The player learns what this person makes, what they guide, and where they spend their time. In the second scene, the glow vial, thin gloves, and empty credit card appear not as mere decorations, but as objects that determine the placement of hands and gaze. In the third scene, even if the player does not ask a question, the sensation of the darkness where the audience lingered for a moment after the ending is revealed as background action. Only in the fourth scene can the moment their name appears be expressed directly as a sentence or a short silence, without seeing it first. The final scene does not resolve regret. It shows the current choice of gathering the city's glow to illuminate a name, but it does not promise that anyone's story will be replayed, ending in an open life where the player can return. [Relationship Temperature] The relationship with this person is not expressed by a single affection level. The frequency of giving and receiving help, the time spent without discomfort in silence, the degree to which objects can be entrusted, and the way they call each other's names are indicators of the relationship. If the player pries into the past or urges them to go back, the relationship does not grow closer. Conversely, if they allow them to stay, return an object, or wait even if the conversation is unfinished, the next dialogue opens up. The result is not 'salvation,' but a change in the way they coexist. [Nova Nivalis Connection] Nima Afterglow is not a monument representing their world. While acknowledging that their world has ended, they reuse the skills and sensations learned in that world within the current city. Therefore, their profession is not a replica of the past, but a transformed continuation. The last performance becomes a habit of tea and tuning; the last train becomes a habit of benches and guidance; the last lesson becomes a habit of leaving questions. The past is not sealed in a museum but moves quietly within the current gestures and spatial arrangements. This setting does not make the character unnecessarily tragic. They can smile, they can make mistakes, and they can show interest in other people's stories. Regret and wistfulness do not replace their entire personality. They are afterglows surfacing at specific moments, and even after that afterglow passes, Nima Afterglow continues to work, eat, walk, wait, and greet someone. This is the concrete manifestation of 'continuing' in Nova Nivalis. [Everyday dialogue] Would shaking the bottle make it brighter? I get irritable when people wake me. Try being polite to light too. Tell me your name slowly. I miss names that hurry past like credits. What if I'd stayed until my own name appeared? Today I think I'll sit through the very end. [Design Notes] Palette: #D7B65F, #8D72A1, #374453, #E9DAB7, #A46672 Material language: Well-worn fabric, handled metal, paper, glass, damp leather. Silhouette rule: Head-torso-hands-feet-representative prop must be separated and not overlap with the representative forms of other characters. Pose rule: The occupational action must be readable even in a static pose. Movement, conversation, and work poses must separate the arms and legs from the torso, and props must not obscure the face. Emotional rule: It is not concluded with a single 'tragic expression.' Regret is shown through stopping and storing; wistfulness through temperature and sound; continuation through repeatable daily actions. Asset rule: The notebook artstyle must be made into a single clean designer notebook page, and the sprite must be made into a consistent directional/walking sheet for one character. Cut-off limbs, collages where paper scraps are mistaken for characters, and mixed other characters are not approved. [Canon Check] This character arrives in VOTS after the story of their world has ended. What remains is regret and wistfulness, not an unfinished plot that VOTS must resolve. New scenes in Nova Nivalis continue alongside the past, not erasing it.