旧約酒場 ～ Dateless Bar “Old Adam” // Kyuuyaku Sakaba // Old Testament Bar
I needed to complete this a year ago, but better late than never, right?
Enjoy.
Notes:
燕石 “Enseki” (literally “Sparrow Stones) is a really rare word, but is a perfect fit for this CD. The word refers to the false jewels that can be found at 燕山 “Mt. Sparrow”. They look like precious stones but they are worthless, sort of like fool’s gold. So the word refers both to the fakes, and also the act of treasuring something as if it were rare, when it is really commonplace and worthless. In addition to this there was a series of rare books/journals written in the Edo period named 燕石十種 or “Ten Types of Enseki”, filled with strange tales and curiosities and customs. There were six series with ten parts each. I would say there’s a direct connection.
博物誌 “Hakubutsushi” is literally translated as “Document(/Magazine) of Broad Knowledge” (what it means is clearer if you understand that 博物館 Hakubutsukan is “museum”, and not limited to a museum that deals with history) but it is also the Japanese translated title of Pliny the Elder’s “Naturalis Historiæ” (Natural History), which was the first sort of encyclopedia ever compiled. A good modern corollary is a scientific journal, and I have translated it as such, but this is why the subtitle is called “Our Supernatural History”. Incidentally this “Natural History” included descriptions of things that were pretty much Western Youkai.
Maribel Hearn (マエリベリー・ハーン) is an approximation, where Merry’s first name has been posited as being closer in pronunciation to “my reverie” or a corruption of “mulberry”. Either way, it’s a play on words off of Yukari Yakumo. (紫八雲)
Chuunibyou (中二病) translates literally to “8th Grade Sickness”, and refers to delusions a kid of that age has about themselves and the world around them, and about how special they are. It is described better by ZUN in the afterward.
—
旧約酒場 ～ Dateless Bar “Old Adam”
Kyuuyaku Sakaba
Old Testament Bar
――幻視する者達が集う場所があるという。
そこは、旧型酒特有の眠くなるような甘い匂いのする酒場だった。
上海アリス幻樂団が奏でる、奇妙で癖の強い音楽集第九弾
-They say there is a place where those who can see the other side gather.
A bar from which wafts that sleep inducing, particular smell of old-style liquor.
The Shanghai Alice Illusionary Orchestra brings you its ninth album, full of music with strong and peculiar tones.
01.
バー・オールドアダム
“Bar “Old Adam””
「――いらっしゃいませ」
“-Welcome,”
バーの愛想の無いマスターがこちらも見ずに言う。
said the bartender, without any feeling and without looking towards the door.
「貴方がＤｒ．レイテンシーですね。
お待ちしておりました」
“You must be Dr. Latency. We’ve been waiting for you.”
そう聞かれた髭を蓄えた初老の男性が、無言で手を上げる。
否定とも肯定とも取れる仕草だが、こういう曖昧な態度を取る人間は肯定だと思われたいだけの人間である
A man with a beard in his forties or fifties raised his hand in response, without saying a word.
It was a response that could be taken either as an affirmation or negation, but the only kind of people who make those kind of vague gestures are ones who want others to take it as an affirmation.
男はカウンターに座ると聞いた事も無い名前のお酒を頼んだ。
The man sat at the bar and ordered a drink I had never heard of.
「あれ、誰？」
「さあねぇ、いわゆる匿名希望って奴でしょう」
と宇佐見蓮子は答えた。
“Huh, who is that?”
“Who knows? Bet he’s one of those people that wants to stay anonymous,” Usami Renko answered.
マエリベリー・ハーン（メリー）の疑問は当然だ。
Ｄｒ．レイテンシーとはメリーのペンネームなのだから。
Maribel Hearn (Merry)’s confusion was certainly justified.
After all, “Dr. Latency” is Merry’s pen name.
02.
燕石博物誌が連れてきた闇
“Dark Side of Japan”
Enseki Hakubutsushi ga Tsuretekita Yami
The Darkness Brought on by “Dr. Latency’s Freak Report”
「こんな不気味なお店に連れてきてまで、
蓮子は見せたかったのはあのお爺さん？」
「それは偶然ね。
でも、秘封倶楽部の課外活動としては最高だわ」
“Renko, did you really bring me all the way to this creepy place just to show me that old man? You said you wanted to show me something, right?”
“Oh, his coming is just a coincidence. But really, this place is perfect for our Sealing Club’s extracurricular activities.”
蓮子の話によるとこのお店では、夜な夜な 特殊・・な人間達が集まっては独自の経験談を語ったり、意見交換をしたりしているのだという。
According to Renko, some rather… strange people gather here every night to talk about their personal experiences and exchange opinions.
蓮子は二人が作った同人誌、「燕石博物誌」を売っている時にその情報を仕入れたらしいが・・・。
Renko apparently heard about this place when she was selling the doujinshi they made, “Dr. Latency’s Freak Report”…
あくまでもこのお店の客に限っての話だが、燕石博物誌は有名で、殆どの客が読んでいて、内容も信じているのだという。
それもそのはず、このお店に来ている客は皆、燕石博物誌に書かれているような体験と、同じような体験をした事があると言っているらしい。
She said that among the patrons of the bar, their report was famous. Most everyone here had read it, and believed its contents were true. Which made sense, given the fact that everyone who came to this bar claimed they too had experienced the same sort of happenings described in the report.
03.
リバースイデオロギー
Reverse Ideology
今の時代、お酒を出すお店は大きく二つに分かれている。
”新型酒”を出す普通の店と、”旧型酒”を出す店だ。
In this day and age, the kind of establishments that serve alcoholic beverages are split into two types: the normal sort of places which serve “modern” liqour, and those which serve “traditional” liqour.
新型酒は、一般的に広く呑まれているお酒で、酔いつぶれないような工夫がされている。依存も低く、比較的身体に害は無い。
旧型酒は古くから呑まれてきたお酒であり、自然の酵母が作り上げたお酒である。多分にアルコールを含んでいるが、アルコールの分解を促進する酵素などは一切含まれていない。呑めば酔う。
Modern liquor refers to the kind which is most popularly consumed, and it is manufactured in such a way as to prevent drunkenness and hangovers. It is not particularly addictive, and it has relatively few side effects. Traditional liqour refers the kind that has been consumed historically, and is made using natural yeast. Despite containing a significant alcoholic content, it has no enzymes in it to help process the alcohol. If you drink it you will get drunk.
このバー・オールドアダムは、旧型酒を専門に取り扱っているお店だ。
This place, “Bar Old Adam”, specializes exclusively in traditional liquor.
新酒を取り扱うお店は、酔っ払いすぎる人がいないので、常に綺麗である。衛生的で健康的だ。
一方、一般的に旧型酒を取り扱う店の方が、その古典的居酒屋の習わしからか建物も古く、汚いお店が多い。それに客も何だか質が悪いようだ。
As the establishments which serve modern liquor don’t have any patrons who get drunk, they tend to be clean and hygenic. On the other hand, the establishments which serve primarily traditional liquor tend to be in old buildings, like classical bars, and there are more dirty ones than clean ones. The kind of patrons that frequent those places don’t seem to be the best sort either.
しかし、旧型酒の方が高く、貴重品なのだ。
ここで価値観の逆転が起こっている。つまり、お金に余裕が有る者が、選んで汚いお店で酔いつぶれるという事態が起こっているのだ
Yet at the same time, traditional liquor is more prized and more expensive than modern liquor.
In other words, in this instance, the values system has been turned on its head. Those that have money to spare are going out of their way to get drunk in dirty bars.
04.
アウトサイダーカクテル
Outsider Cocktail
「結構高いのね」
「旧型酒だからねぇ。
でも、いつもの安酒より本格的に酔えるわよ」
「お酒に酔っても健康的にいられるのかしら」
「健康的？ よーく考えてみてよ。
お酒、油、塩分、糖質、カフェイン、グルテン……、食の健康に
関しては過度に注意するくせに、医療が進化すぎてなかなか人が
死なないもんだから、計画的に寿命を決めようとしているでしょ？
社会は人を生かしたいんだか、殺したいんだか判んないよね。
高い金を払って旧型酒を呑んでいる人達はリアリストだわ」
“This is pretty expensive.”
“Well it’s traditional liquor after all. But with this we can get a lot more drunk than with the cheap stuff we always drink.”
“I wonder if you can get drunk and still be healthy.”
“Healthy? Think about it for a minute. Be it alcohol content, fat, sodium, sugar, caffeine, gluten… Despite the fact that we take so much care to balance these things in our food for our health, the advancements in our medicine have gone so far people don’t really die anymore. It’s gotten to the point where people plan out how long they want to live, right? I can’t tell anymore whether our society is trying to keep people alive or kill them. The people who pay lots of money to drink traditional liquor are far more realistic, I say.”
お酒は人を饒舌にさせる。
お酒を呑むと人は必ず自己肯定をする。これがアルコールの一つの効能だ。お酒はこの効能で、人間社会を裏から動かしてきたのである。
Alcohol makes people talkative.
When people drink alcohol they always end up affirming themselves. This is one of alcohol’s side effects. It is because of this effect that alcohol has always pushed human society along behind the scenes.
マスターが二人のテーブルに黄色いカクテルを置いた。
これは？と聞くと、「フォービドゥンサイダー」と答えた。他の客にも同じお酒を配っている。
The bartender brought two yellow cocktails to the pair’s table.
When they asked what it was, he replied that the drink was called “The Forbidden Cider”. He served the same drink to several other customers.
「サイダー？ ジュースなの？」
「サイダーは林檎のお酒よ。
このお酒が配られたと言う事は、どうやら始まりそうね」
“Cider? Is this some kind of juice?”
“Cider is an alcoholic beverage made from apples. Given that this is being passed around, it looks like it’s about to begin.”
05.
大神神話伝
“Story of Mythomiwa”
Oomiwa Shinwaden
The Myth of Oomiwa
――あれは数年前。奈良に行った時の話です。
パワースポットで大変有名な三輪山に入山したんですね。
ほら、私もオカルト好きの身として有名なところは大抵足を運んでいたんですが、そういえば三輪山には登ったことが無かったな、と思いまして。
-It happened a few years ago, when I went to Nara.
I was climbing Mt. Miwa, which is famous for being a spiritual power spot.
You see, as a lover of the occult, I had been to most of the famous spots before, when I realized one day that I hadn’t yet gone to Mt. Miwa.
ええ、最近は県が入山を制限している事は知っています。その理由が公表されないので、逆に興味を惹いていますよね。
Yes, I know that in recent years the prefecture has put restrictions on who can climb the mountain and when, but when they never make clear the reasons why, it only grabs your interest more, doesn’t it?
規制中なのに、どうやって入ったのかって？
丁度その時、仕事も家庭も上手くいってなくて……。神頼みというか自暴自棄になっていまして。それで真夜中にこっそりと忍び込みまして……。
How did I get into the area when it was restricted?
Well you see, at the time I was having trouble at my job and with my family… I was kind of at the end of the rope so to speak and was willing to do anything, so I snuck in in the middle of the night.
そうしたら嫌と言うほど判りましたよ。入山規制の理由が。
When I did it was painfully clear why they were keeping people away from the mountain.
蛇ですよ。蛇。それはもう大量の蛇がウヨウヨしてまして……。
三輪山では蛇は神様だから手が出せないんでしょうな。
あれだけ蛇が増えて餌は何を食べているんでしょうねぇ……。
奈良県の寿命統制がピカイチ進んでいるのは関係無いですよねぇ……。
There were snakes, tons and tons of snakes, slithering all about….
They probably couldn’t do anything about it, because at Mt. Miwa snakes are treated as dieties.
With that many snakes I wonder what they’re all eating….
It wouldn’t have anything to do with the fact that Nara is leading the country in life span control, now would it?
06.
パンデモニックプラネット
“Pandemoniac Planet”
――人口が減って、人村自然分離の原則が支配している現在、山村の多くが廃村になった事は当然知っていると思う。
-As the population declines and the remaining population centers in cities, I’m sure you know that many rural villages in the mountains have been abandoned.
しかし、僅かながら今も山奥に村を維持している地域がある事を知っているかい？
俺はこういう村を探して訪ねるのが日課となっているんだが、つい
However, did you know that while few in number, there are still some areas deep in the mountains that still have been able to maintain their villages? I make it my daily routine to go out and search for those villages.
数ヶ月前の事だ。山の多いあの県、奇妙な村を見つけてな。
This happened a few months ago, in that prefecture full of mountains. I found this really peculiar village.
どうも村民も昔から住んでいたのでは無く、廃村を見つけてアウトロー達が住み着いたようだったんだが、とにかく変なんだよ。
見た事も無い宗教が広まっていて、一日中空いでいる時間があれば必ず祠に向かって祈っていたんだ。
Now the people that lived there hadn’t been living there for generations, you see. Apparently a group of outlaws had found this abandoned village and made it their home, but it really was very strange. They had this religion unlike any I had ever seen before. Throughout the day, whenever anyone had any free time, they would always turn towards one of many little shrines and pray.
それの何処がおかしいのかって？
それがさ、祈っている対象が神か仏じゃなくて、あちこちの祠に納められていたのは、何やら黒い物体だったんだ……。
What’s so strange about that, you ask?
Well you see, they weren’t praying to any sort of god or the Buddha, but this black thing that was housed in all of the little shrines…
それは誰かの髪の毛だったんだよ。
髪の毛を拝んでいたんだよ、髪の毛教だよ。気持ち悪いだろ？
恐らく、開祖は髪が薄かったんだろうな（笑）
It was hair. It was someone’s hair.
They were praying to hair. It was a hair cult. Gross, don’t you think?
I bet the founder of the religion had a balding problem, haha.
07.
旧世界の冒険酒場
“Fantasy Guild”
Kyuusekai no Bouken’ Sakaba
Old World Adventurer’s Bar
「うーん。
これって怪談大会？」
「どうやら、それに近いわねぇ。
真偽はわからないけど、一応本人の不思議な体験談って形をとっているね」
「こういっちゃあ何だけど、秘密倶楽部みたいなバーで、いい大人達が……」
「あら、後でメリーも体験を語るのよ」
「うえー、やっぱり、そうなるよねー」
“Hmm… So is this some sort of scary story tournament?”
“I guess you could call it that. I don’t know whether these stories are made up or not, but it seems like they all follow a format of them being ‘strange personal experiences’.”
“I suppose I shouldn’t be talking, but for all these adults to be coming to this bar like it’s there version of our Sealing Club is a little…”
“Hm? Your turn to talk about your experiences is going to come around too you know?”
“Come on, really? I guess I should have known…”
メリーは自らの不思議な体験は、紛れもない真実だと判っている。
しかし、他人の不思議体験は何故か信じられなかった。人を誑かそうとしているとしか思えなかった。
Merry knew that her own strange experiences were all real. However, she wasn’t able to believe any of the strange experiences described by the other people in the bar. She couldn’t imagine any of those stories were anything but lies made to deceive others.
ふと、何故蓮子は私の体験談を信じるのだろう、と思った。
やっぱり、私の話が上手いからかな、とメリーは照れた。
At that point, Merry paused and wondered why Renko ever believed any of her stories.
“Maybe it’s because I’m just really good at telling stories,” she thought, blushing.
「――蛇と同じで髪の毛の信仰は原始からあるね。
再生性が何か人間の信仰プロセスに関わっているんだわ」
“-Well belief systems centered around both hair and snakes have been around since the beginning of time. Their resurgence must be connected to humans’ belief processes.”
蓮子は殆どみんなの話を信じているようだった。
It seemed that Renko believed almost everyones’ stories.
08.
魔界地方都市エソテリア
“E.S.O.T.E.R.I.A.”
Makai Chihou Toshi Esoteria
Rural Makai City Esoteria
「では、本日は初めて参加するお嬢さん。
何か不思議で、他に類を見ない体験談はあるかな？」
“Well then, let us have the newcomer share. Miss, do you have a strange experience to share, one like no one has ever heard before?”
「あ、はい。
マエリベリーと申します。
今からお話する内容は、全て私が体験した
不思議で特異な体験談です」
“Um, yes. My name is Maribel. The story I am about to tell is something I have personally experienced, a unique and strange tale.”
辺りが少しざわついた。
メリーの放つ異世界のオーラなのか、
それとも若い女の子が話すので驚いただけなのか。
The other people in the bar murmured to themselves. Was it because of the otherworldly aura that Merry gave off, or was it simply because they were surprised to see that the next person to tell their story was a young girl?
メリーは色んな体験談を話した。
Merry talked about a number of her experiences.
墓場から異世界を覗き見た事。
異世界の竹林を彷徨った事。
緑に侵食された衛星から宇宙を見た事。
She talked about how she peeked at another world from a graveyard.
She talked about how she got lost in the bamboo forest of another world.
She talked about how she saw space from a satellite overrun with plants
異世界ではいつも異形の怪物に襲われた事。
そして、誰かに助けられた瞬間、目が覚めて元の世界に戻る事。
She talked about how she had been attacked by monsters in other worlds.
She talked about how the moment she was saved by someone she always woke up back in this world.
この場にふさわしい、異世界の冒険談だ。
しかし何故か微妙に場の空気が重かった。
These tales, these adventures in other worlds were truly fitting for the occasion.
However, for some reason they did not seem to go over very well.
その理由はＤｒ．レイテンシーと名乗った男のひと言で判った。
That reason was made clear by the man who had passed himself off as Dr. Latency.
「それはすべて、燕石博物誌に書いてある話だな。
ここでは、自身の体験を語って貰う約束だ。」
“All of those stories are ones already published in ‘Dr. Latency’s Freak Report’. The rule here among us is that you only tell stories from your own experiences.”
09.
亡失のエモーション
“Lost Emotion”
Boushitsu no Emotion
メリーは蓮子の顔を見る。
蓮子は軽く頷いた。
Merry looked at Renko.
Renko nodded.
「申し訳ないです。彼女は皆さんの知識を試しただけです。
これから起こる出来事を体験するには、あの本の内容を知っている事が前提ですので。
実は、本に書かれていた異世界の一部を体験できるマジックアイテムを入手したのです」
“My apologies. She was just testing your knowledge. In order to participate in what is about to happen, we needed to make sure that you all knew the contents of that book. You see, we have come into the posesssion of a magic item that allows one to experience a part of that other world described in ‘Dr. Latency’s Freak Report’.”
蓮子は手鏡を取り出してメリーに渡し、順番に見せてまわった。
その鏡はメリーの能力により、異世界の風景を写し出していた。
Renko took out a hand mirror and passed it to Merry, who then showed it to everyone in the bar. Because of Merry’s power, that mirror reflected scenes from the other world.
狂おしい緑。
煙を上げる山。
永らく侘びた神社。
There was maddening overgrowth.
There was a smoking mountain.
There was a long dilapidated shrine.
誰もが燕石博物誌で読んだ情景に思いを馳せた。
お酒が感情を増幅させるのか、涙を流す者もいた。
Everyone thought back to the scenes described in the “Dr. Latency’s Freak Report”.
Perhaps because the alcohol had magnified their emotions, tears ran down some of their faces.
10.
二日酔いの同床異夢
“The horse thinks one thing, and he that saddles him another.”
Futsukayoi no Doushouimu
Strange Hungover Bedfellows
バーでの体験を終え、次の日。
お酒のあった時はあんなに盛り上がっていたのに、何だか疲れて元気が無い。これが二日酔いという奴だろうか。
It was the day after that experience at the bar.
Despite being so worked up while I was drinking, for some reason I feel tired and a bit sick now. Is this what you call a hangover?
結局、メリーが見せた異世界の姿が一番盛り上がりを見せた。
In the end, the climax of the evening was when Merry went around showing scenes from the other world.
しかし、メリーはただ能力を使って自慢したわけでは無い。
あんな物は殆どの人は手品か、そういう機能のある手鏡か何かだと思っただろう。
However, it wasn’t as if Merry had gone around bragging about her abilities.
Most of the people at the bar thought the whole thing was some sort of trick, or that it was some kind of special mirror.
メリーのした事、それは、他人の体験談を自分達の物にする事だった。
To everyone, what Merry was doing was taking other people’s experiences and using them as her own.
「どうだった？」
「うーん、半分くらいはつくり話だったわね」
「でも、上手くいったわね。
メリーが鏡で結界の向こう側を見せると同時に、
相手に触れて本当に異世界を見たのか探る作戦」
“So how did it go?”
“Well… about half of the stories were made up.”
“But still, I’m glad it went so well, that plan to touch everyone while you were showing them the mirror to see if they had really seen the other world before.”
メリーは、よくとっさにそんなこと思いつくなぁ、と感心した。
そう、蓮子はとても聡明で頭の回転が速いのだ。
Merry was impressed that Renko thought all of that up on the spot.
Renko really was very intelligent and could think on her toes.
「ちなみに蛇の話と髪の毛教は本物だったわ」
「やっぱり？
あの二つの話は何か嘘にしては話が整っていなかったからねぇ。
じゃあ、決まりね！」
「何が？」
「何が、ってそりゃあ、これから行くのよ三輪山に！」
“That story about the snakes and the one about the hair religion were real by the way.”
“Really? I did think those two stories were a bit too disorganized to be lies. It’s settled then!”
“What’s settled?”
“Isn’t it obvious? We’re going to go to Mt. Miwa! Get ready to go!”
旧型酒の二日酔いが残るメリーは、キッパリと断った。
Merry, who was still hungover from all of the traditional liquor the previous night, flatly refused.
あとがき
Afterword
どうも、ＺＵＮです。連続してＣＤを作ってみました。
Hello, it’s ZUN. I decided to continue the previous CD with another.
ストーリー的には燕石博物誌から繋がっています。
前作、燕石博物誌を表にすると、今作は裏です。
裏と言う事で、音楽的にも楽しむのが難しい曲を多めにしましたが、如何でしょうか。
Storywise it continues where I left off in Dr. Latency’s Freak Report.
If you consider “Dr. Latency’s Freak Report” the outer surface, this one describes what lies beneath.
With that in mind, I decided to fill this CD with music that is hard to enjoy. What did you think?
今作のテーマは大人の中二病です。
中二病とは使いやすい言葉ですが、そのモチーフを知るのは容易ではありません。恐らくは、純粋な自分から大人になる過程で、子供時代を恥ずかしく思う事が源流にあると思います。
The theme for this CD is “chuunibyou”.
“Chuunibyou” is a really convenient word to use, but it is not easy to really pin it down as a motif. I would say that in the process of transitioning from your pure self into an adult, you start to feel embarrassed of how you acted as a child, and this feeling is closely related to the drive behind “chuunibyou”.
大人になることで、過去の自分とは異なり、その流れで周りの人間とも異なる、結果、理由も無く自分は特別な人間だと思うという流れです。
だとすると、別に「封印された右手が～」とか「脳内に囁く～」とかそんなのは中二病の本質では無いという事になります。
When you start to mature, you differ from your past self, and in that process you also become different from others around you. The result is that for no real reason you start to think of yourself as special. If you consider that to be the case, then phrases such as “My sealed right hand~!” or “It whispers in my brain~!” don’t really have much to do with the true essense of “chuunibyou”.
中二病の本体は生きる熱量である。
想像力の爆発である。
純粋さと創作性を合わせもつ、冷めた社会への対抗手段である。
“Chuunibyou”, at its core is the heat of life. It’s an explosion of imagination. It is a form of resistance by purity and creativity against the cold society we live in.
最近思うんですよね。如何にして死ぬまで中二病を保てるのかと。
それが出来れば、一生お酒を楽しめる筈です。
I’ve been wondering to myself lately, about how I’ll be able to hold on to my “chuunibyou” until I die. If I can manage that, then I’ll be able to enjoy alcohol for the rest of my life.
上海アリス幻樂団 ＺＵＮ （ポケモンＧＯが_____）
Shanghai Alice Illusionary Orchestra ZUN (Pokémon GO is…)
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kafka-fuura 
thank you