Hello again!
Just wanted to say that an updated version of the game is out now! There's a dev log in the game's page, but to make it short here's the new things: lv 1 is now a sort of tutorial and cannot be brute-forced, forcing players to understand the mechanics from the very start. That should've helped in your first run of the game! ^^
There are also new quality of life features, but most importantly a new (secret) level to try out!