There are no time limits in this game, although it might seem there are at the start, but there isn't really.Thinking about buying this game. I already have the entire Arland series (Rorona, Totori, and Meruru) but have not completed them all yet. I heard this one has new mechanics and doesn't pressure the time as much. Is that true? Even if not, is it still an OK place to start, even if I haven't finished the Arland series (or even played the Dusk series)?
You can start with Sophie, yes. It's the first game in Mysterious trilogy, not really related with Dusk or Arland subseries.