That's weird. Sounds like a corrupted boot file if you were able to boot to command prompt. Glad it's fixed!

Glad to see it's fixed! What ended up being the problem?

Only thing I have left without screenshots or pictures is make sure Windows Boot Manager is first in the boot device priority (assuming you use Windows). Next would be checking to make sure power/data cables are firmly seated, then swap your data cable with a different one.

Assuming both SSDs are 2.5" drives, when you unplug the new drive, does your PC find the boot drive again?

Yes, only the M.2 connects directly to the motherboard instead of using a SATA cable. Here's a visual.

I've also encountered Windows refusing to boot until I set Windows Boot Manager as the first object in the boot order. I have no explanation for that one, it just worked.

If you installed an M.2 drive, certain models of motherboards will disable some of the SATA ports. If this is the case, just plug it into a different SATA port.

Moreso than that, realizing, by design, you can never truly "beat" the game. You can never meaningfully impact the world the game takes place in. All of the enemies must still exist, so a story ending with "the evil has been defeated" and nothing about the world is meaningfully different also drags.

Honestly, when the storyline of an MMO is how you are "The Chosen/Special One". Then the cutscene ends and you are standing at the front of the line of a hundred other people waiting to be told they are the same thing. Immediately drags me out of the story.

Absolutely fantastic work! It was a pleasure working with you and I will definitely be looking to you for future works.