ch. 12, a long chapter featuring the sixth

• do wish gideon's snark translated better to japanese, a lot of her random descriptions/comments don't have as much bite
• "what's with the bones?" "sound effects"
• this isn't a comment on the translation: I sometimes think about what it'd be like if a big butch held my yarn while I crochet, or if I held a pretty girl's yarn while she crochets. I'm not sure which I'd enjoy more
• "turns out griddle could swing a sword after all" -> "this proves that the only thing griddle could do was swing a sword"
• SIXTH TIME.
• pretty interesting that camilla uses polite language @ pal, but pal is a lot more informal. technically yeah he's ranked higher I guess??? but given that they're speaking in private...I feel like it establishes a superior/subordinate kind of dynamic
  (she's informal when speaking with gideon)
• also "warden" is really long: 文書主任監督官
• scrying -> crystal (ball) divination, apparently
• pal: watashi
• cam: watashi
• pal has more of a...hmm...brusque? manner to his speech to gideon
• "camilla says harrowhark nonagesimus sounds like a cat with a bell when she walks"
• "I am the strongest necromancer of this generation" "don't make me laugh"

misc notes

• there's heavy use of ruby (the little text to indicate the pronunciation/reading of a word) to handle the things that don't go over well in translation
• example: cavaliers are written as 第〇王家の〇〇〇 (lit. 〇〇〇 of the 〇th royal family) with the english reading ((name) the (number)th) in katakana in the ruby, so reading it out would sound like the english pronunciation while the main text is the translation of this title
• another example: the "necrolord prime" title is translated as 最高位死霊術卿 (lit. the highest ranked necromancer lord) with "necrolord prime" in katakana in ruby. (incidentally, all other jod titles are translated into japanese, without any ruby save for actual pronunciation)
• formal epithets/non-cavalier titles are indicated with <angle brackets>
• "house" (as in "ninth house") is translated as 第〇王家 (lit. 〇th royal family)
• "cavalier" is translated as 騎士 (lit. knight). "cavalier primary" is 主席騎士 (lit. head knight). neither are written with ruby.
• "necromancer" is generally referred to as ネクロマンサー (lit. "necromancer" in katakana) but necromancy is referred to by the japanese translation, 死霊術. "adept" as a separate word is generally written interchangeably as アデプト (lit. "adept" in katakana) and 達人 (lit. expert) with アデプト in ruby.
• "lyctor" is just that in katakana - リクトル

for clarity: when I mention "translated into japanese", it means that the translated text uses natively japanese words to convey meaning, as opposed to writing the english text in katakana. technically speaking both are translations, but the latter requires that the reader know what that english text means.

(also for chapter comments, when I write e.g. muscle woman (griddle) it means the text says "muscle woman" with "griddle" in ruby, hence equating the two)

chapter 8: gideon drinks tea

• teacher: watashi
• doctor skelebone's double bones
• muscle woman (griddle)
• gideon's refusal to use the cavalier cot is phrased as simple dissatisfaction

ch. 9

• "do not talk to any person (body)" "why would I talk to a corpse (body)"
• the "sonic" is clearly translated as a cleaning device that uses sonic waves
• (eng) "keep your head down and stay out of trouble" -> "stay quiet and be a good girl"
• babs: boku
• coronabeth & ianthe: watashi
• correction: ianthe is ianshii, not iyanshii

ch. 10

• hmmm no comments in particular

ch. 11

• jeannemary: atashi
• magnus: watashi
• apparently at the reception when jeannemary was 5, magnus suggested putting cushions on the floor in case she fell, which was rude of him
• the primarried joke is in katakana

chapter 2

things get hysterically funny now that harrow has appeared

• <holy daughter>
• the first instance of "griddle" is written as "muscle woman" (direct tl) with "griddle" in the furigana FJSFDLJKFS
• harrow @ gideon: omae
• gideon @ harrow: anta
• "but I don't even remember about you most of the time" -> "but I've never forgotten about you for even a moment" interesting bc it's the exact opposite but still lands + also hits hard in htn
• the conditions harrow offers on paper are like, half rewritten completely...
• "butt-touched nun" -> "drunk nun"
• skeleton artisan (skeleton maker)
• skeleton orgy ghfdlksf
• incidentally, the text establishes gideon's position as slave (direct tl)

chapter 3

• if I had to read jod's letter a few times to understand it in english, imagine how many times I had to reread it in japanese
• ortus: watashi
• a lot of the small funny wordplay/jokes are written completely seriously (understandable, tbh). no shoving letters up asses

chapter 4

• I think the muscle woman (griddle) thing is going to show up repeatedly LOL...it doesn't substitute every griddle but here it is again
• lo! a filthy ass!
• "like spreading one's thighs with a knee" umm 😳
  • this is in reference to harrow poking her head through the opening of gideon's cell door, so make of that what you will,
• the powder is specified to be bone powder...now I understand

chapter 5

yeah I'm kind of speeding through the pre-canaan chapters. sorry a lot of these quotes are taken out of context FDSFLK

• death energy (thanergy)
• quoth gideon: "ba-ka"
• quoth harrow: "ba-ka"
• gravure magazines aren't literature

chapter 6

• I don't really have any specific comments on this chapter but the translator is rly trying their best to understand this book

chapter 7

• "I came prepared, honey"
• muscle woman (griddle)
• gideon of the ninth house (gideon the ninth)
• dulcinea (cytherea): watakushi

I've been making notes on the translation on Twitter, thought it'd be good to keep them in one place!

dramatis personae

• nonagesimus with a hard g. sorry guys
• ianthe is.....ianthi. very sorry guys
• the epithets.........are very cool. very sword and magic fantasy

chapter 1

• gideon's magazines aren't specified to be dirty magazines, just well-read (unsure if the porn is supposed to be inferred)
• frontline titties of the fifth -> 第五王家の最高のおっぱい (best titties of the fifth)
• gideon's first person pronoun is atashi
• the line where gideon was chipped, named and placed in the nursery turned into being mocked/nicknamed
• incidentally from the obi it seems like harrow's first person pronoun is atakushi