I for a while considered using a different engine (Godot, in fact, so we indeed are aligned in mind), but the time I'd waste having to learn how to do it and coding a more programming-heavy engine would take me too much time, so I went with RPG Maker that, while simple in presentation, could let me focus on the content I wanted to deliver. For better or for worse, I'm more interested in having people seeing the contents of what I'm creating, than the wrapping (though I do admit that looking pretty can be a hook to get them to open the box to begin with, so it's a compromise I'm making rather than a statement of my philosophies.)
This is my second game which was published first due to the jam starting before I finished my first first game, but that first game is full on VN, and my goal is being more a writer than anything else. If this is a half VN half RPG, and my other game is a full VN, the next one I'm thinking of is probably a CRPG VN. I was thinking of being fully VN dev, but this game opened my eyes on how to make a story more interactive and engaging in some ways, so the path of my future projects probably have been altered by it.
For the library sequences I wasn't sure if I should make a full black BG or put the dithered one I used, since I don't know how easy it'd be on the eyes for everyone, so I'm glad you mentioned it did still cause fatigue, as that was a concern. I'll think and study further ways to make it easier on the eyes, as there is a lot of text to go through.
And if you don't mind me asking, was there a particular story in the library or character that you liked? Personally, while the library was a quest to complete in time, what I ended up enjoying writing the most were the Candy conversations, silly as they were (which is why I put one in the screenshots, because to me Edrillmond is too sweet).