[Warning: This may contain spoilers for future chapters of the novel. Please skip if you wish to avoid them.]
Coming from the novel The Droopy Rose, a widely known classic published on December 31, 1980, and written by Davina Xander, this story rose to fame in the 1980s. Even today, it remains popular, so popular that it reached the 2020s and was adapted into a movie, comics, dramas, and even an otome game.
However, since it's considered an old novel for the older generation, the otome game has been modernized so that today's generation can enjoy the story through gameplay.
Allow me to introduce you to the otome game: The Droopy Rose Ikemen Game, which has five modes.
✬[Mode 1: VERY EASY MODE]✬
This mode follows Aurelia's perspective, the original protagonist of the novel. It's the easiest mode because, as the main character, it's natural for the male leads to fall in love with her, provided the player chooses the correct options. Fortunately, these options are based on the novel itself.
The game begins when Aurelia gets lost at a festival at the age of five. Players will endure bullying, as written in the novel, and must follow the original choices to survive and raise each male lead's affection to 100%. Don't forget to protect yourself from the villainess!
✿You will see the affection score above the male lead's head. Negative score means death is awaiting you. Even 0% is better than a negative percent. You have to make every male leads affection scores up to 100% or else, if you miss a percent, FAILURE MEANS DEATH.✿
✭[Mode 2: EASY MODE]✭
This mode follows Eldena's perspective. While Eldena is not the main character, the novel does include chapters about her.
One of the male leads is her brother, but you don't need to make him fall for you. Your job is to deepen his love as a brother so that he'll protect Eldena from harm, especially from the villainess.
The game begins when Eldena and her brother are still beggars, before Aurelia got lost. Before Eldena become the fake Aurelia. As a bonus, you start with 60% affection from her brother. All you have to do is raise it to 100%. Not just her brother but to the other male leads as well. In this perspective, Eldena is the protagonist, so forget about Aurelia and survive your own route!
✦[Mode 3: NORMAL MODE]✦
This mode is from Louisa Kalem's perspective, the granddaughter of a baron. Like Aurelia, she was bullied, and although she wasn't the protagonist, her life was described across many chapters.
The game starts when Louisa is 12 years old, during her older sister's debutante ball hosted by their grandfather. The family is poor, and Louisa's dress is ripped in contrast to her sister's elegance.
Louisa later becomes Aurelia's lady-in-waiting after meeting her at the villainess's debut. Players must endure bullying as it's part of her story, if not, you'll reach a bad ending. Worst of all, the male leads may hate you or not even appear in this route.
One wrong move = FAILURE = DEATH. Choose wisely. But don't worry, you can still reset for free.
✧[Mode 4: HARD MODE] ✧
This route follows Genevieve, Aurelia's personal maid. Her story was only mentioned briefly in the novel, making this route challenging.
Genevieve was born a commoner in a village later destroyed by the House of Archiz. She survived, became a slave, and was eventually gifted to the Agnesus family. She served both the fake and real Aurelia.
Unlike previous modes, there are no multiple-choice options, you must type your actions, speech, and decisions. You must win the affection of all male leads before the villainess's coming-of-age ceremony.
This mode begins during Genevieve's peaceful days in her village. If you fail, you'll have to wait 10 days before you can reset.
Make all affection scores 100% or face death.
𖤓[Mode 5: VERY HARD MODE]𖤓
This final mode is from Elyza's perspective the villainess of the story. It starts at her coming-of-age ceremony, hosted by the Duke of Archiz, and it's more extravagant than a Christmas tree.
But here's the twist: this mode has been hacked and bugged. The affection scores from the male leads start at -80% or lower instead of the intended -20%. The hacker's goal? To stop anyone from winning the $10 million real-life prize offered to any player who clears this mode.
Yes, you read that right, winning this mode earns you 10 million dollars.
But to reset after failure, you have to pay $1,000 each time. There's no free reset. That's why most players do their best not to lose, but it's nearly impossible.
To win, you must raise every male lead's affection score to 100%, despite starting from a negative base. The male leads hate Elyza because of the past crimes of her family, the Duchy of Archiz, a key supporter of the empire's foundation.
The royal family is bound by oath to respect Archiz, despite everything. The game begins immediately after Elyza attempts to kill Aurelia, making things exponentially harder.
It's like trying to fix all her problems from that point onward...frustrating is an understatement.
So, are you ready?
Remember the rules: DO NOT DIE. MAKE THE MALE LEADS FALL FOR YOU. FAILURE MEANS DEATH.
Clear VERY HARD MODE and win 10 million dollars!
Happy gaming!