To start, my favorite character was definitely Tiller because his text is very hilariously and literally typed out. I think that if you do opt to add a translation of his text to the game, then it should be toggle-able since I found it really enjoyable to take a moment to translate it myself on the harder parts. And yes, I'd enjoy seeing him more. :]
The textbox design is fine, I doubt anyone would complain to any extent about it. I feel like trivial things like that are for the creator to worry about stylistically and are much less noticeable from the player's pov.
Make sure not to feel obligated to pump out progress updates or find it necessary to keep a steady progress schedule. Making the best game you can is way more important than feeding fans/being consistent. :] Get well soon!