yeah I think cutting the fluff would be the way to go.
Even though this is like the only story in recent memory that I actually like the filler in, we've already got a good amount of that in the beginning. On top of that I could see it becoming kind of a slog and getting weighing the vn down in the long run. So yeah go for that shit.
Though, I would be willing to wait 4 years for you to finish the vn if you go about it the way you've been doing it, which I still really like.