Archive for August, 2010

Imperishable Night

When I play IN, I play with either Youmu or RemiliaxSakuya. If I’m playing for fun, it’s always RemixSaku. Therefore, this stage’s boss for me 98% of the time is Reimu. This also explains the image at the bottom.

Requested by: vincent

Because of Changeability, I now view this as a Merry song as well – but well, I’ve already got enough images in this post.  ̄3 ̄

I like this kind of style for the song – so yay Masayoshi Minoshima.

As of now, I have at least one post for every day of the month, and have broken my previous record. Woo! Moving up in the world. (not really).

Now I’ll probably take a break for more (X’​_​_​_​_​_’).

Imperishable Night
Vocal: 坂上なち / Lyric: Haruka
Arranged: Masayoshi Minoshima
Original Score: 永夜の報い
Circle: Alstroemeria Records / Syrup Comfiture
Album: Double Counterpoint
Event: Reitaisai 7

今も続いてた この長い夜は
悲しみさえ暗く見えないまま
きっとこの場所 日はまだ昇らず
いつまでも闇で包んでいた

This long night continues even now
It’s so dark I can’t even see my sadness
I’m sure this place will never again see the sun rise,
Forever wrapped in darkness

もしも 日が昇るのならば
1つの罪が消えるかな
今もまだ闇 何も変わらず
光通さないまま

If perhaps the sun would rise
Would one of my sins leave me?
It is still dark even now, unchanging
No light will break through

永遠に消えない 心の痛み抱えて
このまま過ごすのはつらすぎて
消したいのに消えないままで時は過ぎてく
この終わらない夜に

I carried this pain in my heart, forever unyielding
It’s too hard to keep going like this..
I want it to go away but it just won’t.. time passes by
Over this imperishable night

いつまでも続く この闇の中で
罪を犯した者だけ残った
今も変わらず 夜は続いてた
日を見れないままのこの場所で

In this darkness that continues on forever
There were left only ones with sin
Nothing has changed, and the night only continues
Here in this place that will never see the sun

いつか 許される日が来る
その時明けると信じた
今はまだ闇 そうこのままで
それが報いとしても

I believed if one day I was forgiven
Light would come, but
Now it is still dark, always dark..
Is this my punishment?

永遠に消えない 心の痛み抱えて
そのまま過ごすのはつらすぎて
消したいのに消えないままで時は過ぎてく
この終わらない夜に

I carried this pain in my heart, forever unyielding
It’s too hard to keep going like this..
I want it to go away but it just won’t.. time passes by
Over this imperishable night


Dream bottom

God I love strong drumbeats.
Probably my second favorite song on the album.

Also, probably the most appropriate song for me to translate after watching Inception. ← Which is the best movie I’ve seen in years.

There’s a lot of beautiful Shinki fan-art – I was surprised o.o;

Dream bottom
世界の果て ~ World’s End
[東方怪綺談 ~ Mystic Square]
Arranged – Syrufit
Lyric / Vocal – 綾倉 盟
Circle: Syrup Comfiture
Album: Where is Love
Event: C78

廻り巡り行けば
始めに辿り着く
ここはメビウスの輪
終わらない ”終末”

Wandering around and about,
I reach my beginning
Here on this Moebius strip,
A never-ending “end”

私は生かされた
望みは満たされた
枯れゆく景色さえ
鮮やかで

I was revived
My wishes fulfilled
Even the withering landscape
Was brilliant…

零れた溜め息数えたら
全てを忘れて眠ろう

Counting my sighs
I forget everything and fall into sleep

何を捜しているの
答えは出ているはず
醒めない夢の中は
居心地がいいの

What am I searching for?
The answer should appear!
In this unwaking dream
I find my place

この手で創りだした
宝物抱きしめて
いつか目覚めるのなら
自ら落ちよう

I embraced the treasures
I made with my own hands
If I ever wake up
I’ll fall into myself

何を求めているの
答えは闇に消えた
醒めない夢の外の
居場所はここだけ

What am I seeking?
The answer disappeared into darkness
Outside of this unwaking dream
The only place I have is here

この手で創りだした
宝物も幻想
いつか終わらせるなら
ソラへと落ちよう

All these treasures and illusions
I made with my own hands
If one day everything ends
I’ll fall into the sky

廻り巡り行けば
始めに辿り着く
ここはメビウスの輪
終わらない ”終末”

Wandering around and about,
I reach my beginning
Here on this Moebius strip,
A never-ending “end”

変わらない運命
抗えないのなら
最高の笑顔で
紅く染めて

If I can’t fight against
Unchanging fate
With the brightest smile
I’ll dye everything scarlet

崩れて失うその前に
涙は扉を閉ざした

Before everything falls to pieces
My tears closed the gate

何を捜しているの
答えは出ているはず
醒めない夢の中は
居心地がいいの

What am I searching for?
The answer should appear!
In this unwaking dream
I find my place

この手で創りだした
宝物抱きしめて
いつか目覚めるのなら
自ら落ちよう

I embraced the treasures
I made with my own hands
If I ever wake up
I’ll fall into myself

もうすぐ

Soon…

Selection

Just the idea of making a song out of a selection theme makes me ‘w’ a bit.

If you heard before, I was dumb and translated it alongside アモリタチテカミトミユ, and somehow it sort of worked; knowing now it wasn’t some crazy double layered song, I’m a little disappointed… but what can you do >.>;


Selection
Selection
[東方夢時空 ~ Phantasmagoria of a Dim.Dream]

Arranged – Syrufit
Lyric / Vocal – SHIKI
Circle: Syrup Comfiture (Syrufit)
Album: Where is Love
Event: C78

言葉を知らないこの心繋いで
届かぬ距離さえ愛しい
重なる吐息甘く欲を融かして
此処にいる意味求めてた

Though it knows no words, my heart connects to yours
I love even out over those distances beyond my reach
My overlapping sighs and desire melt together,
Then I sought out why I existed.

あなたが傍にいるただそれだけで
知らない明日教えてくれたから

Just by being here by my side,
You taught me of an unknown tomorrow

飛び立つあなたは白い翼で夜を切り裂いてく
消せない孤独を癒してくれた
微笑んでまたね、と
逃げ出す弱さを捨てられなくて何度傷つけたの
それでも願うの魔法のように
「私だけ選んで」

Taking off, your white wings cut through the night
You healed my unerasable loneliness,
Then smiled at me and said, “I’ll see you again.”
Unable to throw away my weakness to fly in fear, I was hurt countless times
And yet still I wish, as if it were magic,
“Select only me!”

指切り交わした約束は色褪せ
思い出が擦り切れていく
瞳をとじて心を呼び覚ますの
あなたの声だけきこえた

The color fades from the promise we exchanged
As memories wear against one another
Still, closing my eyes I call my heart awake
Then I heard just your voice.

繋いだ指解けぬように強く
お願いあなたとひとつになりたい

Firmly I linked our fingers together so they would never come undone
Please! I want to be one with you!

飛び立つあなたは白い翼で心切り裂いてく
本当の私を愛してくれた
そして今、さよなら
逃げない強さを手に入れたからまた傍で笑って
何度も何度も叫んだ言葉
「ふたりまた、生きたい」

Taking off, your white wings cut through the night
You truly did love me,
But now again comes goodbye
Since I’ve gained the strength to keep from flying in fear, again I smiled beside you
Then called out over and over again
“I want to be together with you again!”

^This just makes me happy. :D

アモリタチテカミトミユ // 天降り立ちて神と見ゆ // AmoritachiteKamiToMiyu // Descending from the Skies She Appears as a Goddess

I’ve been waiting to translate this ever since I heard the cross-fade. I love this song.
Shibayan at his best, 3L at hers. Also, awesome lyrics by Yamazaki Sayaka.

A lot of the lyrics are in classical Japanese, so it was really fun to translate.

Notes:
“Countless clouds” = Yakumo: Yukari’s surname.

[Update 2011-06-12] I painstakingly went through and added romaji (many of the words are different); I also fine tuned the lyrics accordingly.

まだ is pronounced めで “mede” due to a vowel shift. normally it would be “mada”


アモリタチテカミトミユ
 天降り立ちて神と見ゆ
 AmoritachiteKamiToMiyu
 Descending from the Skies She Appears as a Goddess

ネクロファンタジア // Necrofantasia
[東方妖々夢 ~ Perfect Cherry Blossom]

Arranged – Shibayan
Lyric – やまざきさやか
Vocal – 3L
Circle: Syrup Comfiture (Syrufit)
Album: Where is Love
Event: C78

無もなかりし 有もなかりし
夜もなかりし 日もなかりし
空も界も天もなし
隙間に見た世界の種子

Mu mo nakarishi, U mo nakarishi
Yo mo nakarishi, Hi mo nakarishi
Sora mo Kai mo Ten mo nashi
Sukima ni mita Sekai no shushi

There was neither nothing, nor was there anything
There was neither night, nor was there day
No sky, No world, No heavens
Only the tiny seed of a world to be seen in a crevice

無もなかりし 有もなかりし
夜もなかりし 日もなかりし
離れずなる 陰陽はひとつ
獨神は身を隠しつ

Mu mo nakarishi, U mo nakarishi
Yo mo nakarishi, Hi mo nakarishi
Wakarezunaru Meo wa hitotsu
Hitorikami wa Mi wo kakushitsu

There was neither nothing, nor was there anything
There was neither night, nor was there day
Not yet separated, both yin and yang were coupled as one
Where beside a lonely goddess had hidden herself

最後に生まるる
たづたづしき心はまだ
柔なる繭玉
うつしみも知らぬまま今日今日と
咲くのは万代
今はただ漂うはぬばたま
その日が来たら ここに
八雲立て八雲垣立てる郷ごみには

Itonochi umaruru
Tadzutadzushiki kokoro wa mede
Yawa naru mayudama
Utsushimi mo shiranu mama kefu kefu to
Saku no wa yorozuyo
Ima wa tada tadayou wa nubatama
Sono hi ga kitara /koko ni/
Yakumo tate yakumo kaki tateru sato gomi ni wa

Waking unto life at the end of the very last thread
Her hopeless, helpless heart was yet
A soft silk cocoon.
Not knowing even her own self nor body, day after day passed by
Blossoming upon tens of thousands of generations
Now she simply floats through the pitch darkness
But when that day comes,
Countless clouds will rise,
 Countless clouds will raise a fence around this land’s filth

無もなかりし 有もなかりし
夜もなかりし 日もなかりし
空も界も天もなし
隙間に見た世界の種子

Mu mo nakarishi, U mo nakarishi
Yo mo nakarishi, Hi mo nakarishi
Sora mo Kai mo Ten mo nashi
Sukima ni mita Sekai no shushi

There was neither nothing, nor was there anything
There was neither night, nor was there day
No sky, No world, No heavens
Only the tiny seed of a world to be seen in a crevice

無もなかりし 有もなかりし
夜もなかりし 日もなかりし
離れずなる 陰陽はひとつ
獨神は身を隠しつ

Mu mo nakarishi, U mo nakarishi
Yo mo nakarishi, Hi mo nakarishi
Wakarezunaru Meo wa hitotsu
Hitorikami wa Mi wo kakushitsu

There was neither nothing, nor was there anything
There was neither night, nor was there day
Not yet separated, both yin and yang were one surrogate mother
Where beside a lonely goddess had hidden herself

澄みは空にたなびき
泥は巻き息吹を産み
長き夢の始まりの様に
この世界と同じ

Sumi wa sora ni tanabiki
Dei wa maki ibuki wo umi
Nagaki yume no hajimari no you ni
Kono sekai to onaji

Serenity lingers above in the skies
Impurity gives birth to swirling breaths
This world is just like
The beginning of a long dream

想い想え 詠い詠え
忘れ迷い欺き眠れ

Omoi Omoe Utai Utae
Wasure mayoi azamuki nemure

Feel thy thought, Sing thy lyrics
Be lost in forgetfulness, Sleep in deception
 [x4]

天降りたと 讃え
天降りたと 伝え
天降りたと 讃え
天降りたと 畏れて

Amorita to, Amorita to Tatae
Amorita to, Amorita to Tsutae
Amorita to, Amorita to Tatae
Amorita to, Amorita to Osorete

Sing praises of her heavenly descent!
Spread the word of her heavenly descent!
Sing praises of her heavenly descent!
All be in awe of her heavenly descent!

想いみせ 詠い詠え
桜花黄葉に誘われさきくませ
想いみせ 詠い詠え
忘れ迷い眠と知って

Omoi Mise Utai Utae
Sakurabana momiji-wa ni sasoware sakikumase
Omoi Mise Utai Utae
Wasure mayoi nemu to shitte

Release thy thought, Sing thy lyrics
Be lured by the cherry blossoms, and the fall colored leaves; burst into life
Release thy thought, Sing thy lyrics
Be lost in forgetfulness, Know true sleep

最後に生まるる
たづたづしき心はまだ
柔なる繭玉
うつしみも知らぬまま今日今日と
咲くのは万代
今は唯唯 漂ってるぬばたま
その日が来たら ここに
八雲立て八雲垣立てる郷ごみには

Hitonochi umaruru
Tadzutadzushiki kokoro wa mede
Yawa naru mayudama
Utsushimi mo shiranu mama kefu kefu to
Saku no wa yorozuyo
Ima wa tadatada tadayotteru nubatama
Sono hi ga kitara /koko ni/
Yakumo tate yakumo kaki tateru sato gomi ni wa

Waking unto life at the end of the very last of humanity
Her hopeless, helpless heart was yet
A soft silk cocoon.
Not knowing even her own self nor body, day after day passed by
Blossoming upon tens of thousands of generations
Now simply she floats through the pitch darkness
But when that day comes
Countless clouds will rise,
 Countless clouds will raise a fence around this land’s filth

夢違科学世紀 ~ Changeability of Strange Dream.

Renko and that other girl. You do learn about Merry quite a bit more in this episode though. ^_^

Notes:
A circle is a club. I didn’t feel like changing it. o.o

Added a short paragraph that was missing to the end of part five. (2012/10/13)

夢違科学世紀 ~ Changeability of Strange Dream.
 Yume-tagae Kagaku Seiki ~ Changeability of Strange Dream.
 The Century of Science Mistaking Dreams ~ Changeability of a Strange Dream.

1.童祭 (Children’s Festival)
  Innocent Treasures

夢違え、幻の朝靄の世界の記憶を
現し世は、崩れ行く砂の上に
空夢の、古の幽玄の世界の歴史を
白日は、沈みゆく街に

In order to counter dreams, the memories of a world in phantom morning mist,
The waking world sets upon a crumbling foundation of sand.
Histories of an ancient mystic world sprung from imagined dreams,
The waking light thrusts into sinking alleys.

(夜が明ける。幻の朝靄の中で夜が明ける。
 私は幻想の世界で子供達と一緒に遊んでいたわ。
 子供達はみんな楽しそうだった。みんな笑っていた)

(Day is breaking. In the middle of this phantom morning mist, day is breaking.
I was playing together with children in a land of fantasy.
All of the children were so happy. Everyone was laughing.)

幻か、砂上の楼閣なのか
夜明け迄、この夢、胡蝶の夢

Is it an illusion, or a tower built upon the sand?
Until day breaks, this dream – a butterfly’s dream.

(……こんなに笑っている子供を最後に見たのは一体いつだろう。
 聴いた事もない不思議な唄、不思議な踊り。どうやら今日は祭りらしい。
 私も、いつかはこんな子供達の笑顔がある国に住みたいと思ったわ)

(… I wonder when was the last time I saw a child laughing this much?
Then I listened to a strange song before, and there was a strange dance. Today must be a festival.
I thought that one day I too wanted to live in a country that had such children’s smiles.)

夢違え、幻の紅の屋敷の異彩を
現し世は、血の気無い石の上に
空夢の、古の美しき都のお伽を
白日は、穢れゆく街に

In order to counter dreams, the stark colors of a phantom scarlet mansion,
The waking world sets upon a bloodless foundation of stone.
Fairy tales of an ancient beautiful capitol, sprung from imagined dreams,
The waking light thrusts down degrading alleys.

2.華胥の夢 (Paradisiacal Dream)
  Paradisiacal Daydream

「――そうそう、それでね。昨日はこんな夢を見たのよ」
「……って、また夢の話なのぉ?」
「だって、今日は夢の話をする為に貴方を呼んだのよ」

“So as I was saying, last night I had this sort of dream..”
“…Wait, you mean you want to talk about your dreams again?”
“Well, I called you over today to talk about dreams actually..”

 私の名前はマエリベリー・ハーン。この冥い街でオカルトサークルをや
っているわ。普通のオカルトサークルとは違って、私達のサークルはまと
もな霊能活動を行っていない、所謂不良サークルなんだけど……。それに
サークルって言っても、サークルメンバーは二人だけだけどね。

 My name is Maribel Hearn. Here, in the middle of this dark street, I’m participating in an occult circle. It’s different from your ordinary occult circle; our circle doesn’t really do any “spiritual” activities, so we’re sort of considered a delinquent group, but… Well I call it a circle, but we are the only two members.

「ねぇ、他人の夢の話ほど、話されて迷惑な物はないわよ?」

“Don’t you think telling other people your dreams is a bit inconveniencing?”

 そんな事はどうでも良いけど、実は私には凄い能力があるのよ。うちの
家系は昔から霊感はある方だったみたいだけど……。
 私は、世界中の結界、つまり境目が見えてしまうの。サークルは結界の
切れ目を探しては、別の世界に飛び込んでみるのよ。神隠しって奴かしら?

 That aside, the truth is that I have an amazing power. I’ve heard that since long ago people in my family have had spiritual perception, but well…
 I can see magical barriers, and all their boundaries all throughout the world. Our circle searches for gaps in those boundaries and tries leaping into other worlds. I guess you’d call it being spirited away?

 ……禁止されてるんだけどね。
 ただ最近私は、色んな世界の夢を見るようになってきて……

 … It is prohibited though.
 But lately, I’ve been having dreams of various other worlds…

「お願い、貴方に夢の事を話してカウンセリングして貰わないと、
 どれが現の私なのか判らなくなってしまうそうなのよ」

 ”Please!If I don’t tell you my dreams and get counseling from you, I feel that I’ll lose sight of which one of us is the real me!”

3.上海紅茶館 (Shanghai Black Tea House)
  Chinese Tea

深い緑の向こうにあった物、それは真っ赤なお屋敷だったわ。
お屋敷の周りは、深い緑色と白く輝く湖……
なんて素敵な景観なのかしら?
こんなに赤いのに、何故か自然にとけ込んでいるわね。
この思い切った色彩は、どこか子供っぽい感じがして……私は大好きよ。

Beyond a deep thicket of green, there was a bright red mansion.
All around the mansion was that same deep green, and the shining white of a lake……
What a wonderful view…
Even though it was that red, somehow it seemed to melt into the nature around it.
Somehow I felt the coloring had a sort of childish feel to it…… I loved it.

ちょっと寄っていってみようかしら?
突然訪れても失礼じゃないかしら?
それに目の前のお屋敷は私を受け入れてくれるかしら?
って、何、夢の中で怖じ気付いているのよ。私ったら。

Should I go visit for a little while?
Would it be rude to just appear all of a sudden?
Even before that, would this mansion before me take me in?
… Wait? What am I flustering about? This is a dream.

……あら、お手伝いさんが出てきたわ。
あの人に訊いてみようかしら?
こんな素敵なお屋敷のご主人様に、挨拶がしたいって。

…… Ah, it looks like they have some hired help.
I wonder if I should go ask her?
Something like, “I would like to see the master of this lovely mansion..”

4.ヴォヤージュ 1969 (Voyage 1969)
  1969, from Cape Canaveral

どこまで行っても同じ風景だったわ。
陽も落ちてしまって、足下もよく見えない……

No matter where I go it all looks the same.
The sun’s already set and now I can’t hardly see my feet……

夜の竹林ってこんなに迷う物だったのね。
時折遠くで聞こえる不思議な鳴き声。獣なのか、それとも……。
どうしましょう?困ったわ。
このまま竹林で彷徨い続けて飢え死にしちゃうのかしら?
それとも、妖怪に喰べられちゃうのかしら?まだやり残した事色々あったんだけどなぁ。

I had gotten that lost at night in a bamboo forest.
Every now and then far away I could hear a strange calling voice. Was it some animal, or…?
What should I do? This is bad.
If I stay lost in the bamboo forest like this, I wonder if I’ll end up starving to death?
Or maybe I’ll be eaten by a youkai? I have so many things left that I want to do though…

私は、当てもなく彷徨っていたわ。
お腹がすいたら筍でも食べれば良いかなーなんて軽く思っていたし。
――そもそも夢の中だけどね。
でもね私、その時気が付いたの。天然の筍って、どういう物なのか知らなかったのよ。
合成の物しか見た事ないもの。筍は味しか知らなかったの……

I wandered aimlessly, lost.
When I get hungry I’ll probably be alright if I eat bamboo shoots or something – I figured I’d be fine with a simple solution like that.
–After all, this is a dream.
But still, I realized then that I had no idea what a natural bamboo shoot was.
I had only seen those synthesized ones – I only knew what it tasted like.

途方に暮れて空を見上げたわ。
満天の星空だった。
初めて貴方の眼が羨ましく思えたわ
貴方だったら、ここがどこだかすぐに判ったでしょうね。迷わなかったでしょうね。

At wits end I stared up at the sky.
It was filled with stars.
For the first time I grew envious of your eyes.
If it were you, you’d know immediately exactly where you were. You wouldn’t have gotten lost.

そう想った直後だったのよ、すぐ後ろで不気味な笑い声がしたのは!

As soon as I’d thought that, I heard an creepy laugh right behind me!!

5.科学世紀の少年少女 (Boy and Girl of the Century of Science)
  21th Century Boy and Girl

「これが紅いお屋敷で頂いたクッキーと、竹林で拾ってきた天然の筍よ」
「うん?夢の話じゃなかったの?メリー」
 さっきから私の夢の話を聴いて貰っているのは、宇佐見蓮子。二人しか
いないサークルメンバーのもう一人よ。サークル活動の殆どは彼女の行動
力から生み出されるわ。蓮子は、空を見るといま立っている場所と時間が
判るんだってさ。気持ち悪い。

“This is a biscuit I received at that scarlet mansion, and here’s a natural bamboo shoot I picked up in the bamboo forest.”
“Huh? I thought you said this was a dream? Merry?”
 The one that was listening to me tell my dreams is named Usami Renko. She’s the other member of our circle of only two. Most of our circle’s activities come from her ideas. When Renko looks at the sky she can tell where she is and what time it is at the moment. It’s creepy.

 ちなみに蓮子は私の事をメリーと呼ぶの。この国の人には私の名前は発
音しにくいらしいわ。もう私の本名も忘れてるんじゃないかしら?

By the way, Renko calls me Merry. Apparently for the people of this country my name is fairly difficult to pronounce. I wonder if I’m going to end up forgetting my real name?

「夢の話よ。さっきからそういってるじゃないの」
「……夢の話なのに、何でその夢の中の物が現実に出てくるの?」
「だから、貴方に相談してるのよ」

“It was a dream. Haven’t you been listening to me?”
“……So if it was a dream, why did those things in your dream materialize here in reality?”
“Like I was saying, that’s why I’ve come to talk to you.”

 私には、何が現で何が夢なのか判らなくなってきたの。いつも見る夢は
大抵妖怪に追われたりして終わるわ。悪夢の言えば悪夢なんだけど……。
でも夢の中の物をいつの間にか持っていたりして、もしかしたら今こうや
って話している事が夢なのかもしれない……。

 I’ve started to lose sight of what is real and what is a dream. When I dream, it almost always ends with me being chased by youkai. I guess you would call it a nightmare… but well, you know…
Still, before I know it I’m holding the things that I’d found in my dream, so I started to wonder if what I’m doing right now isn’t a dream……

「教えてあげるよメリー。それはすでに筍じゃないわ。そこまで成長
したらもう堅くて食べられやしない」
でも、悪夢を吉夢に変えられるとしたら、今の現実より――。
「天然の筍はね、美味しい時は土の下に隠れて身を守っているのよ」

“You know Merry, That’s not a bamboo ‘shoot’ anymore. It’s already grown so much that it’s too hard to be edible.”
But, if I could somehow change this nightmare into a good dream, it would be far better than this reality…
“You see, when natural bamboo shoots are most delicious, they hide under the ground to protect themselves.”

6.永夜の報い (Retribution for an Endless Night)
  Imperishable Night

私は本気で走ったわ。夢のなかなのにね。
何だか判らないけど、さっきの笑い声が明らかに人間じゃない気配だったんだもん。
本能が『逃げろ!』って言っていたわ。

I ran as hard as I could. Even though it was in a dream.
I couldn’t really figure out why, but I knew that that laughing voice I had just heard wasn’t human.
Instinct told me, “Run!”

でも、竹林は微妙に傾斜が付いていて、私の平衡感覚を狂わせるの。
まっすぐ走っているつもりだったけど、本当はどうだったのかしら?

But the bamboo forest was strangely inclined and it threw off my sense of balance.
I tried to running straight ahead, but where did I really go?

結構走っている気がするけど、何だか見たことのある景色しか出てこない。
この竹林が無限に続いてるのか、それとも私がぐるぐると回っているのか
……どっちでも同じ事ね。

I felt that I had run a long way, but all I saw again and again were places I’d already been to.
Does this bamboo forest continue on forever? Or am I just running around in circles?
…… Whichever the case it’s still the same.

蓮子みたいな『客観的に見て明確な真実が存在する』という考え方は
いかにも前時代的だわ。

Renko’s sort of “from an objective point of view the truth can be found” way of thinking is antiquated you know.

真実は主観の中にある。
見たことのある景色しか出てこないならば――ここはそういう所なのよ。

The truth is found in a subjective view.
If all I see are the places I’ve already been to, then within these the true place lies.

だから、私は走っているの。
だって、夢というのは現の反意語なんかじゃない。
最近の常識では同意語なのよ。
夢の中だろうと、得体の知れない物からは逃げなきゃいけないの。それが真実だから。

So, that’s why I’m running.
After all, a dream isn’t an antonym of reality.
According to common sense nowadays it’s a synonym.
Even if I am in a dream, I should run away from things that could be dangerous. That is truth.

そんな私の専攻は相対性精神学。
蓮子は超統一物理学だったわよね。最近はひもの研究、順調かしら?

Going along with that line of thought, I’m majoring in relative psychiatry.
By the way, Renko’s majoring in super unified physics. Lately there’s been that string theory research… I wonder if that’s going along well?

7.夜が降りてくる (The Night Comes Falling)
  Evening Star

でも……不思議ね。
貴方みたいな全時代的な人は、夢と現を正反対な物として考える人が多いけど、
もっともっと果てしなく昔の人は、夢と現を区別していなかったと言うわ。

But it’s strange…
There are many people like you with an antiquated way of thinking that consider dreams and reality to be exact opposites, but if you look a lot farther into the past, people didn’t distinguish any difference between dreams and reality.

そして今は、夢と現は区別はするけど同じ物。
現の現実と夢の現実、現の私と夢の私、それぞれが存在するわ。

Nowadays, we do differentiate between them, but consider them both the same.
The reality of reality and the reality of dreams, the real me and the dream me, both exist.

夜の胡蝶が自分か、昼間の人間が自分か……。
今の常識では、両方自分なのよ。

Is the nighttime butterfly me? Is the daytime human me?
Common sense today says both are.

随分と逃げてきた気がしたけど、全く疲れは無かったわ。
まるで空を飛んでいる様に移動していたから?私は胡蝶になっていたのかしら?

I felt like I had run far far away, but I didn’t feel tired at all.
Was it because I had moved as if I were flying in the sky? Did I become a butterfly or something?

でも、そんな夜のとびっくらもついにゴールのテープが見えて……

But I had found the goal line of my sprint….

――私は走るのをやめた。
だって、少し先の方の竹林が、紅く光っていたんだもん。
その光は禍々しい色で、現実的な光では無かったわ。
そう貴方に判りやすく言えば……
ルビジウムの炎色反応の色が一番近いかしら?

–I stopped running.
Just ahead in the bamboo, there was something giving off a deep red light.
The light was an ominous color, not something you’d find in reality.
Putting it into words you’d understand…
Perhaps it was closest to the glow given off by a rubidium flame?

とてもじゃないけど、光る竹、なんていう代物じゃなかったわ。
私は後ろを気にしながら、そうっと光っている方を覗き見たの。

I know it doesn’t exist, but it wasn’t the shining bamboo from that one story.
Still being cautious about what might be behind me, I looked over in the direction of that light.

8.人形裁判 ~ 人の形弄びし少女
   (Dolls’ Judgement ~ The Girl Who Played With People’s Shapes)
  Doll Master

ああ、私はなんていう物を見てしまったのかしら!
今では絶滅した山犬だって河童だって、3DCGで見られる時代のに……
それでも目の前にいるあんな生き物は見た事がない。

Ah, what had I set my eyes upon!
Even though we live in an age where you can see extinct mountain wolves and kappa in 3DCG…
I hadn’t seen any creature like it before.

山犬より大きいのに、鼠のような黒い生き物。眼だけが赤く光っている
……いや、兎だったのかな? 眼が赤かったし。
でも、その眼の付き方がおかしいの。
こう……正面に二つ付いているのよ。そう貴方の眼の様にね。
人間は大抵みんなそうだけど。

It was bigger than a mountain wolf, and was black like a rat. Only its eyes were red.
…Wait, was it a rabbit? Its eyes were red after all…
But it’s look was strange…
There were two eyes on it’s face like this… just like your eyes are.
Well like all humans’ are…

顔の大きいさは人間のそれと同じくらいだったわ。
というか人間の顔だったかしら?そう言えば人間の顔だったわね。顔だったのよきっと。
人間の顔を持った大きな鼠、貴方、そんな獣知らない?

The size of its face was about the same as a humans too.
So it had a human’s face? Well now that I think of it did. It had a human face – definitely
A large rat with a human face… Do you know any sort of creature like that?

――その時、大鼠は聞き覚えのある不気味な声を発したわ。
やっぱり私を追いかけていたのはこの大鼠だったのね。
でも、今は私の方を見ていない。紅い光の方を向いている。

–At that time the large rat let out a creepy voice that I recognized.
So this rat was the one who was chasing after me!
But this time it wasn’t looking at me. It was looking in the direction of that deep red light.

そう……周りを紅く染めていたのはその大鼠の眼じゃ無かったのよ!
なんと、不気味な大鼠は紅い光に怯えていたわ。
私はその紅く光っている方に顔を向け……

It wasn’t that big rat’s eyes that was making everything glow red!
The creepy rat was actually afraid of the reddish light.
I then turned towards the light…

9.夢と現の境界 (The Boundary Between Dreams and Reality)
  Wake up Mysterious Girl

「でね、これがその大鼠と女の子が去った後に落ちていた髪切れよ」
「ねぇ、本当に夢の話なの~?」

“So anyway, This is a piece of paper that fell after the big rat and that girl disappeared.”
“Hey, are you sure this was a dream?”

 大鼠と対峙していた紅い光の正体は、なんと女の子だったわ。その女の子が
紅く光っていたの。何で紅く光っていたかと言うと、それは一目瞭然で、女の
子はね……全身が火に包まれていたの。

 The true form of the red light the big rat was facing was this incredible girl. She was glowing scarlet. Why? Well at first glance it looked as if she was entirely engulfed in flame.

 いや、それは正確な表現じゃあないわね。全身から火を出していた、という
方が的確かなぁ。女の子の体から深い紅色の炎が斜め上に広がって、まるで羽
を開いた鳥のように……。

 Well that’s not really the correct way to describe her. Rather, the fire was coming from within, and furthermore two blazes of deep crimson slanted upward out of her body, as if she were a bird with its wings outspread….

 それはね。人の顔の付いた大鼠など比べものにならないほど、禍々しかった
わ。大鼠は、その女の子が手を挙げただけで恐れをなしてか逃げていったの。

 Anyway, compared to the big rat with a face, this girl was on a completely different level of ominous. This girl had only to raise her hand for the big rat to run away in fear.

「だぁからぁ、夢と現なんて同じ物なのよ。いっつもいっつも言ってるじゃない。
 私にしてみれば、貴方と会っている今が夢の現実かもしれないし……」
「まぁまぁ、夢の世界の話でも聴いてあげるから落ち着いて、メリー。
 結局、その女の子は何者だったの? その後どうなったの?」
「知らない。その後は、大鼠が逃げていって……女の子も去っていったわ。
 私はね、ずっと大鼠にも女の子見つからないように隠れていたの。
 大鼠を追っ払って貰ったのにどうして隠れてたの、だって? まぁ……」

 ”Like-I-was-saying! Dreams and reality are the same! Haven’t you been listening at all?!
  From my perspective meeting here with you now might really be a dream…”
 ”Ok, Ok, I’m here to listen to your dreams, you know? Calm down, already – Merry.”
  So in the end, just what was that girl? What happened next?”
 ”I don’t know. After that, the big rat ran away… and the girl disappeared too.
  Then I hid myself from both the big rat and the girl for a long, long time.
  She did chase away the rat for me, so why did I hide from her too? Well…”

 その女の子の眼をまともに見てしまったわ。大鼠にも勝るとも劣らない紅い眼――
「――あれは人間じゃあ、ないから」

 I saw her eyes perfectly, they were a deep red, never failing, far surpassing that of the rat’s–
 ”She wasn’t human…”

10.幻想機械 (Illusionary Factory)
   Phantom Factory

 結局、メリーは夢の世界の話をするだけして、一人で満足して帰って行った。
 私はメリーから手渡された幾つかの品を見つつ、頭の中を整理していた。メリーは夢と現は
同じ物だと言っていたが、そんな筈がない。例え昨今の相対性精神学の常識がそうだと言って
も、それはあくまでも精神の中での話であって、夢の中の物体が現実に現れてしまっては困る。
質量保存の法則が成り立たない。エントロピーはどうなるのだろう。
 私は確信していた。メリーは気が付かないうちに、実際に結界の向こうに飛んでいる。それ
を夢だと思いこんでいる。今、結界の向こうに非常に近い位置に居るのだろう。まさかメリー
が見える能力から操る能力に……なんて事は無いと思うけど。最近、真面目にサークル活動し
過ぎたかな。
 このままでは、夢の中で妖怪に喰われてしまうかも知れない。もしくは神隠しに遭うかも知
れない。メリーの想いが色んな世界に揺らいでいる。別の世界に居るときに、本人が夢ではな
いと気が付いてしまえば、もうこっちの世界に戻れなくなるかもしれない。こっちの世界を夢
だと思いこんでしまうかも知れない。本人は気が付いていないけど、非常に危うい状態にある。

 In the end, just telling me all her dreams, Merry left satisfied.
 Looking down at the few things Merry had given me, I organized my thoughts. Merry said that dreams and reality are the same, but there’s no way that could be true. Even if that’s what the current relative psychiatric school of thought states, at its worst it only concerns dreams versus reality within the field of psychiatry. When things from dreams start materializing in reality, we’ve got a problem. It breaks the law of conservation of mass – and what about entropy?
 I was certain that while Merry didn’t realize it, she had flown beyond a world boundary. But she believed that it was only a dream. Now, that world beyond must be extremely close to her… Merry’s ability to see boundaries couldn’t have transformed into an ability to control…? No, that’s impossible – that can’t be it. I wonder if it’s because she’s been too engaged in our circle’s activities recently…
 At this rate, she could be eaten by one of the youkai in her dreams – or spirited away. Merry’s thoughts have been wandering across various worlds, so if she’s in another world and realizes that it’s not a dream, she might not be able to come back. She’ll probably end up thinking that this world is the dream. She doesn’t know, but she’s actually in an incredibly dangerous situation.

  私のカウンセリングとして考えられる手段は二つ。

  As for counseling measures, I can think of two things I can do.

  これらの品を捨てて、完全に夢、幻だった思いこませる方法。
  そうすれば二度と現実には夢の世界にいけなくなるだろう。夢と現は別物なのだ。

  I could throw away these things she’s given me and force her to believe completely that her dreams were just that – dreams, or illusions.
  If I did that, she would probably lose the ability to realistically travel to the dream world. Dreams and reality are, and should be, separate things after all.

  もう一つの方法は……

  The other thing I could do…

  夢ではなく、実際に別の世界にいる事を強く意識させて、夢から眼を覚ませる方法。
  そうすれば、夢の世界で訳も判らないうちに死んだりしない。
  ただ……この世界に帰れなくなる可能性もある。

  I could, rather than convincing her it was a dream, force her to understand that she actually was in another world, and wake her from her dreams.
  If I did that, she wouldn’t die in that dream world without knowing the truth…
  But… if I did that, she might not be able to return to this world.

  メリーにはどっちが良い?私にとってはどちらが一般解?
  ……そんなの決まってるじゃない。

  Which is better for her? Which is the right answer from my perspective?
  …It has to be that one.

11.幽玄の槭樹 (Mystic Maple Tree)
   Eternal Dream

「もう、いつも蓮子は呼び出しておいて時間に遅れるんだから」
「メリー、たったの3分15秒の遅刻じゃない、惜しいわね」
「惜しいって何? というか、今日は何の用かしら?」
「勿論サークル活動よ。せっかくサークルメンバー全員揃ったんだから」
「二人しか居ないけどね……ってまた何か入り口らしき所を見つけたの?」

“God Renko, you’re always late!”
“Merry, I’m only three minutes and fifteen seconds late – just barely missed it.”
“Huh? Well whatever – What’s it for today?”
“Circle activities of course. We’ve got the whole team together after all!”
“That’s only the two of us you know – So have you found another entrance?”

結論は一つしかなかった。メリーが言っていた夢の世界。
美しき自然とほんのチョッピリのミステリアス。

There was only one answer. Merry’s dream world.
Beautiful, natural, an just a bit mysterious.

人里離れた山奥の神社、
楽しそうにはしゃぐ子供達、
深い緑、白く輝く湖、
紅いお屋敷、木漏れ日の下でのティータイム、
迷わせるほどの広さの竹林、天然の筍、
人を狂わす満月、
人の顔を持った人ではない生き物、
そして禍々しい火の鳥――

A Shinto shrine far from civilization,
Children frolicking,
Deep green and white sparkling lakes,
A scarlet mansion and tea time under the shade of trees,
A bamboo so wide as to make you lost and natural bamboo shoots,
A creature with a human face, and
That ominous bird of flame――

……メリーだけが見ているなんてずるい!

It’s unfair for only Merry to get to see all that!!!

「勿論、別の世界の入り口だったら見つけられるわよ。
 ほらこんなに手掛かりだってあるんだからね」
「手掛かりって……これは私の夢の世界の品じゃないの、蓮子」
「だから、メリーの夢の世界を探しにいくのよ。
 ねぇ、何でこの国の子供達が楽しくなさそうに見えるのか……
 メリーに判るかしら?」

“Of course – If there’s an entrance to that other world, we’ll be able to find it.
After all, I’ve got a lead.”
“Lead? Aren’t those just the things from my dream? Renko?”
“Like I was saying, we’re going to search for your dream world.
Merry, do you know why the children of this country don’t look happy?”

「?」

“Huh?”

「貴方みたいな考えの学者の所為で、
 夢と現を同じ物として見るようになったからよ。
 夢をただの脳が見せる虚像として、現実の一生理現象に組み込んだからよ。
 主観の外に信じられる客観がある。絶対的な真実がある。
 主観が真実だって?貴方の言っている事は矛盾している。その学説は間違っている。
 その証拠に貴方は主観を認めないで夢にしちゃっているじゃない。
 夢と現実は違う。だから夢を現実に変えようと努力出来る。
 だから――子供達は笑う事が出来たの。
  さぁ、目を覚ますのよ。
  夢は現実に変わるもの。
  夢の世界を現実に変えるのよ!」

“It’s because of academics like you,
that they’ve come to see dreams and reality as the same thing.
They fall into the trap of thinking dreams are simply images shown at the back of your brain, nothing more than a scientific phenomenon.
You know, other than that subjective view, there’s an objective view that you can believe in. An absolute truth.
A subjective view holds the truth? What you’re saying is a contradiction. That theory is wrong.
Proof of that is that you, giving up your subjective view, dream.
Dreams and reality are different. Because of that, you can work to make dreams into reality.
That’s how those children could smile.
 Come on, wake up.
 We’re changing your dream into reality.
 We’re going to bring that dream world into reality!”

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あとがき
Afterword

 初めましてかもしれない、ZUNです。神主だけで結成されたバンドやってます。勿
論嘘です。博麗神社で細々とやってます。

 Nice to meet you (probably), this is ZUN. I’ve formed a band of only a Shinto priests! Of course that’s a lie. I’m just scraping by, working at the Hakurei Shrine.

 今回ひょんな事からこの様な音楽CDを出す事となりました、って既に3枚目ですね。
いやはや、色々と気持ちの悪いCDです。さあ指をクロスさせてえんがちょを。

 This time around I’ve made a CD of music with a sort of strange basis… Wait this is the third one. Wow, I’ve made a lot of creepy CDs haven’t I? Alright everyone, let’s cross our fingers and say “go away!”

 さてさて今回も、幅広く色んな過去作品から選曲してみました。でも基本的にSTGの
曲が多いので、疲れるくらいに激しいです。単体で聞くもんじゃないねって曲ばっか……
聴くもんじゃないですよ?だから別のストーリー(意味)を与えてあるわけですし。
ゲーム中はゲームのストーリーを与えられていますからね。世の中はバランスですよ。

 Anyway, this time I’ve selected from quite a broad range of previous works, though they are mostly shooting game themes at heart – enough to tire you out. The CD’s full of songs that you can’t just listen to one at a time… By the way, you shouldn’t listen to these one at a time you know? Anyway I’ve assigned a different sort of meaning/story to them here. In the games they have the stories from the games… it’s a sort of world balance.

 一曲目の『童祭』は先日行われたトークイベントでの、私の入場テーマだったんです
よね。色んなキャラのテーマを書いてきましたが、自分がテーマだともの凄くやりにく
いですね。こっぱずかしくて。
 実はこの曲は歌詞付きだったりします、って曲コメントが歌詞になっていますが。
交互に夢と現を行き来する歌、果たして何が真実なのやら。

 The first song “Children’s Festival” was my entrance theme from a talk event a few days ago. I’ve written a lot of various character themes, but making a theme for myself was really difficult – and embarrassing.
 I actually made lyrics for it, but the comments for it sort of are lyrical. It’s a song of travelling back and forth through dreams and reality, and which in the end was the truth.

 で、秘封倶楽部の二人はどこに行ってしまうのか不安でなりませんが……
 そうそう文中のメリーと蓮子の二人は、秘封倶楽部という謎のサークルを結成して、
あれやこれ等、オカルトな活動を行っています。詳しい事は一切語られていないのです
が、科学が進化すると天然の筍が食べられなくなるのでしょうか? 可哀想に。

 Anyway, I’m a bit worried about where those two from the Sealing Club ended up…
 Yes, yes, Merry and Renko from in this work made a mysterious circle called the Sealing Club, and do this and that sort of occult activities. I haven’t written anything specific about it, but as science advances, will we become unable to eat natural bamboo shoots? How depressing…

 でも、鴇の味噌汁は飲めるのかもしれない。合成で。

 But then you might be able to have crested ibis miso soup. Synthetically.

 そう考えるとなんて未来は夢で溢れているんだろう。

 Thinking of that, I’m filled with dreams of what the future might bring.

 外は何かと物騒で満足に遊べない、家の中ではネットの向こうの他人の感情を想像
しないといけない(これは大人でも難しい)し、間違ったことを正してくれる大人も
居ない、たまに叱るとすぐにキレる。今のネットでは子供には激しすぎてとてもまと
もな人と付き合う能力を育めないのかも知れない。

 Since the outside is somewhat dangerous and you can’t really play to your heart’s content, you have to imagine the emotions of other people beyond the internet (this is difficult even for adults), and there aren’t any adults who will correct your mistakes, but will sometimes scold you or worse. The net nowadays is too harsh for children, and I don’t think they’re raised to be able to hang out with adults.

 ですが、子供達の心がどんどんと狭くなる一方のこの国でも、もしかしたら街に子
供達の笑顔が溢れる日も来るのかもしれないですね。合成で。

Still, while the hearts of children are growing narrower and narrower in this country, perhaps there will come a day when children play out in the streets filled with smiles. Synthetically.

上海アリス幻樂団 ZUN(筍好き)

Shanghai Alice Illusionary Orchestra ZUN (A lover of bamboo shoots)