#A Question Of Time���は

[sisyphus-prime]

Angst for the trains guys remains verrrrry silly because they just look like

:> :<

And you're subjecting that to the horrors.

[lyrasky]

Depeche Mode【A Question Of Time】和訳 背徳と偽善 Hypocrisy and Immorality

Depeche Mode【A Question Of Time】和訳 背徳と偽善 Hypocrisy and Immorality Lyraのブログへ #DepecheMode #AQuestionOfTime #DaveGahan #MartinGore #AlanWilder #AndyFletcher #デペッシュモード #BlackCelebration #AntonCorbijn #GarethJones #DanielMiller

Lyraのブログでは、大好き過ぎて良く取り上げてしまうバンドやアーティストが幾つかある。人間なので、好き嫌いはあるから仕方がないもの。でもなるべく様々な作品を分け隔てなく載せたいものだから、最近は「好き」より「今の気分」で選ぶようにしております。 そのせいで大好きなDepeche Modeを取り上げていなかった為、私の中の本質がDepeche Modeを欲してる！(笑)。 今日はお久しブリーフのデペッシュ・モードの彼らが本質を曝け出し始めた時期の曲【Question Of The Time】を解説します。 Continue reading Depeche Mode【A Question Of Time】和訳 背徳と偽善 Hypocrisy and Immorality

[kurishiri]

9 lil things abt the way some ikevil chars speak in japanese you probably didnt know

in the jp version, even after getting into a relationship, kate actually still consistently calls elbert with his title, “lord elbert” [エルバート様] (erubāto-sama). in jp, the only ones who do not use the honorific would be victor, william, and on occasion, alfons, who seems to switch between [エル] (eru), [エルバート] (erubāto), [エル様] (eru-sama), and [エルバート様] (erubāto-sama) on a whim.

in case en doesnt localize this well or fully when it does come…there is a time when victor switches his personal pronoun from [僕] (boku) to [俺] (ore). these words mean the exact same thing (i, me, my, etc), but the latter is meant to have a more “masculine” feel. [僕] (boku) is used quite a bit by boys as well (in fact, ellis’ personal pronoun is [僕]), but it can also treated as a sorta “gender-neutral” character in songs, for example, and girls can use [僕] as well. on the other hand, you wouldnt ever see a girl using [俺].

nica has an interesting…speaking quirk, where certain words that should be written in hiragana r written in katakana. for example, he might say [イイ] (ī) as opposed to [いい] (ī), or [ホント] (honto) rather than [ほんとう] (hontō), [ワケ] (wake) over [わけ], [てアゲル] (—te ageru) over [て���げる], etc. this is likely a “personal style” thing to make him seem more flippant, cuteish, or youthful. this kind of thing is also more common in fictional characters who were raised abroad.

darius uses [ほっぺ] (hoppe) to say “cheeks”. the traditional way to say cheeks is [頬] (hoho). they mean the exact same thing, but saying [ほっぺ] (hoppe) to refer to cheeks has a childish or “innocent” air to it, partially due to the way its written entirely in hiragana. he does tend to have a childish air abt him, and this is probably one of the most direct examples of his childishness when it comes to the way he speaks.

alfons changed his way of speaking at some point after entering the greetia manor. before then, he often used more casual speech, known as [くだけた表現] (kudaketa hyōgen), but eventually he changed his way of speaking to whats known as [です・ます] (desu•masu) form, even using [敬語] (keigo), which is like very polite or humble japanese with their own set of vocabulary and conjugations. this is likely due to becoming elbert’s “attendant.” so he likely had to speak that way and it may have just become a habit or a sort of integral part of his identity, as he uses this language even after getting into a relationship with kate.

another tidbit of victor: he often — for example — ends questions with [かい] (kai). the other way to end questions in japanese would be to just use [か] (ka). but by adding [い] (i) to it, it can add emphasis or “soften” the tone. its mostly used by men, and using such a form is often associated with older men and women (40+), but younger men can use this too.

it might be more noticeable with jude bc he originally speaks in a whole different dialect [関西弁] (kansai-ben), and will switch to queens english, i.e. standard tokyo japanese, for business related reasons or if he feels its necessary to for a reason. but roger also can switch his way of speaking as well. he would mainly do this with ppl hes not well acquainted to or with well respected personages. he normally speaks pretty casually in japanese, shortening words or phrases, though not speaking in a different dialect. for example, he might say [そりゃ] (sorya) instead of [それは] (sore ha). but in certain situations, he might opt to use [それは].

william and elbert speak in the same form [だ・である] (da•dearu) due to the fact they r nobles — such a form comes off as more direct, imposing, or just strong in general — but they also do have their own “speaking quirks” as well. for example, when saying the word “but” or “however”, will often uses the word [が] (ga), while elbie opts for [けれど] (keredo). will also tends to end his sentences or remarks with [だな] (da na), something that elbie does not really do. that said, the way they both say “yes” is the same: [ああ] (ā).

kate uses honorifics with ring, specifically [くん] (—kun), when requested by ring to not be so formal with him (btw kate also uses [くん] with ellis), but when ring refers to kate by her name rather than “robin”, he doesnt use any honorific on her. on the other hand, nica continues to call her “robin” / spatzi / rotkehlchen what have you, but asks her to not use [さん] (—san) with him at all. so kate just calls him [ニカ] (nika). not using any honorifics is what’s known as [呼び捨て] (yobi-sute), and its smth that should really be done with ppl you feel v close to or with family (or otherwise its incredibly rude), but kate probably only did so with nica at that pt so she could respect his request, rather than an actual feeling of closeness.

[sourle]

Starting point

君はずるい ずるい 人だ もう

WARNINGS: minor description of injuries

Note: I wrote this for an ask but then scrapped it because it does not make sense for the ask sob

You boredly yawn, leaning against Taph as you two listen to Chance speak while he flips his coin again and again. "... Hey Chance, what if I bet it's gonna land on heads next? If I'm correct, I'll get to use your gun in the next game." Chance seems to perk up from the idea, judging from their smirking widening.

"Oh, ya wanna bet? A'ight. And if it's tail, you have to clean my room." "Bet."

Chance flipped the coin and—

Head.

"Yes! Ha!" You sat up straight and held out your hand, Taph clapped his hands beside you. Both your energy is matching in hype-ness. "Where's my price at?" You drag out the last words as Chance gives you an amused chuckle before placing his flintlock in your palm.

"You won it fair and square, Cheater." You rolled your eyes at the nickname and spun the flintlock in your hand.

"Of course I did, Gambler."

The three of you relaxed there, chatting away while waiting for the other survivors who were in a match. Suddenly a cosmic like sound came from the dining room of the main cabin followed by a bright light.

The three of you looked towards the entrance of the dining room, the first to walk out was Builderman. He looked beaten up, and the others that followed behind him didn't look any better.

You watch as Elliot starts cleaning the others' injuries, tending to them all by himself. You contemplated if you should help or not. But you need to make yourself useful in this place, you can't just be a sitting duck all the time.

You got up and went to grab a spare medkit somewhere that you hid in case of emergency and approached 007n7 first, knowing Elliot will definitely tend to him last.

He looked up confused as to why you approached him. "Heya," you greeted with a soft smile which made him a bit more confused though he still greeted you back.

"Hi.. uhm—" he watches as you kneel next to him and open the kit, taking out a gauze.

"Can I?" Your action surprised him, he just curtly nodded and watched as you tended to his injuries. Gently with your care unlike someone in red he knows.

Once you are finished, you give him a pat on the shoulder. "There! You're all good to go!”

Your enthusiasm despite the dreading reality of the place is a nice fresh sight. He smiles at you, "Thanks..”

"No problem! If you need any help on replacing some bandages don't hesitate to come to me." He watches as you leave. You didn't just help him with his injury, you also helped him bring hope.

Next you tend to Two time despite their protest, "Spawn doesn't like this, Spawn doesn't want that, blah blah blah!" You mocked, but not too harshly disrespecting their beliefs.

"And the Spawn doesn't want its devoted follower to be hurt, now let me help you!" "And The Spawn think you're unworthy to care for m—" "NON BINARY FELLA IF YOU DON'T—”

In the end you manage to convince them, gently tending to their injuries and bandaging the rips on their back. You can't help but chuckle as you see their tails wag.

They're an odd fella, but you can't help but think they're just some weary cat. You pat their shoulder, “You're good to go, thanks for your corporation!" your voice is laced with bitter sweet sarcasm.

Two time muttered something along the line of The Spawn but you choose to ignore it and watch as they walked away.

You hissed, staring at Dusekkar's arm. The scar has red marks around it with the teared skins burning into a black scabs on the edge.

“C00lkid?” you cleaned the area around the scar with a cotton wet with gauze. The former admin shook his head.

“The kid plays rough alongside his companions, though as you say, he's not aware of the hurt he inflicts.” you hum, finding his speech to be calming.

You wonder if he's hurting at all with his call demeanor, though his pained grunting answered your question.

“I'm.. trying to help him come to a realization, I don't know if it's working.." Dusekkar hummed in response. He lets you hold his arm in your hand as you begin bandaging the cleaned wound.

“All done!.. If it's starting to irritate, tell me so I can check on it." You placed back the remaining bandage into the kit, closing it seeing as the others had been healed.

“Much appreciation, I've seemed to have mistaken you as ignorant, fed by the rumors. But you kneel and heal for the injured despite the hatred put on you. Deepest apologies from me and deep thanks for the help." You process it all in. Confused and bashful.

"I-it's alright! No biggie—" "Though even as conflicts swim in between you, I recommend you help a fellow survivor."

Dusekkar cuts you off, motioning a hand towards Elliot who's tending to his wounds on his own. You glance at him before back at Dusekkar with uncertainty yet all in response he just nods. A push for you to help Elliot.

Elliot huffed, trying to reach a hand to his back and failing to do so. The others have gone to their own cabins due to his insistence on them to rest, leaving him alone. He would ask you, but he knows you would not be pitiful enough to tend to him.

He struggled to tie the bandage on his injured hand, hissing in frustration before pausing as he saw two knees in front of him. He looked up and saw you.

"Need help?" You offered, kneeling down in front of him.

"I'm fine." You wince at his cut answer, despite the denial of help you still opened the kit and placed it next to the one Elliot's using.

"I'll help anyway." Elliot opened his mouth to retaliate but hissed as he felt the searing of his burnt scar on the back.

"Here," you reach over and grab the wet cloth from the bowl next to him before getting behind him, "Please let me help you."

He has no other choice, the others already retreat into their cabins except for Taph who's sitting on the couch waiting for you.

He lets you and you carefully clean the burnt scar, careful not to touch the gashing area. You placed the red tinted cloth back into the bowl of water before grabbing a napkin to dry the area.

"I'm sorry.. About c00lkid.." you start, "I know it's not enough, but I'm truly sorry for him hurting you guys. He's.."

"Just.. Playing. He was playing with.. him." You listen as Elliot begins to tell you what had happened. At first c00lkid wasn't aggressive, playing with his father.

The only thing that made c00lkid start to hurt them was due to c00lkid uncontrollable power. He told how c00lkid apologize for hurting him and Dusekkar, including accidentally hurting his father who tried to stop him.

And Shedletsky attacks and c00lkid is mad.

"What.. Made you hate them so much?" He paused and you fear you might've touched a sensitive topic.

"Like you, 007n7 exploits. He hacks small things like his neighborhood, then the park, before he gets to builder brothers' pizza place." "Your workplace," "My workplace."

You hum, you listen. Letting him speak about his past with 007n7, letting him ramble about his feelings, and what it made him feel. You felt bad when it was made worse when you began exploiting because when the issues with 007n7 then came c00lkid, and after that you.

"I'm sorry—" You furrowed your brows in sympathy, "I am. I truly am, I'm sorry for causing you this much stress."

"If you truly are, then you would've changed years ago, think about what you've done." He sneered, hands clenching at his sides.

"I did and you all refused to believe I've changed!" "It's hard to believe when you don't even think to apologize sooner or regret it."

Your eyebrows furrowed further, pursing your lips tight. You got nothing more to say, he's right.

"Then help me. Just let me know what kind I do as proof." He stares at you, seeing the genuine look in your furrowed eyes. He let out a deep sigh.

"Maybe you should start with Builderman. He's the one who carried the weight of your doings to his people." You nod, closing the kits.

"You should rest. We don't know when the next hell starts. Best you regain more energy, you're important to the team." He watched as you walked away, leaving him to lean against the wall of the staircase.

[ryuu242]

[Ryōshū stuff: again]

Question. Find the similarity between the moment when your mother goes to the parents’ meeting and, on her way home, tells you, “I need to talk to you,” leaving you gnawed by fear like a dog on a bone for those 30 minutes while she’s still out.

And. The scene of a sinner realizing it’s next on the platter—while it’s still lying on that very dish.

Whatever your answer, you can keep it to yourself or drop a comment below. But for now, welcome to the show: “I Play the Analysis Game: The Lore Pieces of Ryōshū Released in Canto 8, Part 1.”

(If any of the theories here are wrong, the worst would just me being wrong… and you still get something fun to read.)

[for this part i have to read on both JP and EN TL of the game to make sure they aren't too different, or else i will more fond on JP TL]

「蜘蛛の巣は恋しいか？まあ恋しいわけあらへんよな。俺っちも行くたびに気ぃ悪くなるし。」 “You miss the Spider’s Nest? Nah, course not. I'd sick by just visiting that damn place.” Spider’s Nest / Kumo no Su / 蜘蛛の巣 — For some reason, the English version chose to render this as “Spider’s House”, which gives off orphanage vibes. Like we’re about to meet a gaggle of mini Ryōshū living inside wwwww (insert spider dance BGM)

Anyway, we can temporarily refer to the Spider’s Nest as Ryōshū’s “home.” A not-so-safe one. In fact, it’s so messed up that even a Capo from the Thumb admits the place makes him feel sick.

“Heebie-jeebies” is a term used to describe a mix of anxiety, fear, unease, or nausea.

and 悪くなる (wakunaru) means "to feel worse / to become unwell," which is why I went with "feel sick"

「あとでまた顔でも見せやぁ。あんときみたいに、もういっぺん刀の握り方ちゃんと教えたるさかい。」 “Swing by later, yeah? I’ll teach you again how to properly hold a sword—just like the old days.”

「��んやぁ、そんでも・・・あんなかじゃ俺っちが一番格好よく斬る方法を教えてやったやろ？」 “Wait, didn’t I already show you the slickest way to slash someone back then?”

We’ll set aside how effective his “training” was (and whether he’s the one who got her into smoking). But out of everyone present, Lei Heng is the only one genuinely happy to see Ryōshū again—so happy, in fact, that he went easy on someone just because she showed up.

Now, remember: in a syndicate like the Thumb, where hierarchy and protocol are law, talking to a superior without permission is a massive deal. Just a few examples from Library of Ruina:

"When a subordinate dares to speak without a superior’s permission—cut off his lower jaw.” – Dennis

Katriel asked Dennis to cut out her tongue for upsetting Angela.

A Kurokumo clan head lost an arm (mercifully, thanks to sottocapo Kalo) just for apologizing on behalf of an unruly subordinate and asking a question out of turn.

So when Lei Heng only took one arm from Nangong Xianhe's young master, that was him being “merciful.” And that was after said young master’s servant got his hand shot off and tongue removed for stepping out of line just because "seein' a friendly face put me in a good mood."

Even looking at a superior could bring consequences, as Faust gently reminded Ryōshū. Yet Ryōshū made eye contact with Lei Heng—and Lei Heng jokingly called her out for not even saying hi:

「お〜い！目ぇ合ったやろ、挨拶でもしろや！」 “Oi! Our eyes met, didn’t they? Least you could do is say hello!”

This interaction leaves us with two main theories:

Lei Heng wasn’t a capo yet when he trained Ryōshū—or maybe he hadn’t joined the Thumb at that time. Now, their ranks have reversed.

He was already a Capo, but something happened—possibly Ryōshū joining Limbus Company—that significantly lowered her usual standard (or her power).

One of those must be true. Because otherwise, we’d be witnessing a full-on verbal beatdown from our temperamental artist, not some playful prodding from a capo to a muzzled mutt. This isn’t a true “conversation” anyway—it’s completely one-sided, thanks to the Thumb's law: don’t speak unless spoken to.

Then again, maybe Ryōshū just doesn’t want to talk to Lei Heng, or the power imbalance has always existed between them. But hey—you didn’t click on this post just for lukewarm takes, did you?

Another detail: Faust reminds Ryōshū of a promise she made before joining the company, which remind us that moment in Canto III when Vergilius reminded Don Quixote of their deal on the fateful day of her recruitment. It’s subtle, but may imply Faust personally recruited Ryōshū, just like she did with Yi Sang.

Moving on, this next line hints at something foreboding: one day, Ryōshū may be taken back.

「肩の力抜きぃや。お前さんを連れに来たわけやないし、あんときみたいに、なんか教えに来たわけでもないさかい。」 “Relax your shoulders. I didn’t come here to drag you back. And I’m not here to teach you a lesson like last time either.”

(“Teach a lesson” — in this context — also implies beating someone up. Classic Asian parenting energy.)

Most people hate getting smacked around, but in Ryōshū’s case—someone who practically breakdances along the boundary of sadomasochism—it’s a bit more... layered. If Lei Heng thinks that’s what sets her on edge, then it must have been that bad.

His surprise at not knowing Ryōshū had disappeared might suggest:

Ryōshū ran away. The Spider’s Nest didn’t like that and may have sent people after her.

Lei Heng, who only visits the Nest occasionally, isn’t really interested in dragging her back—and doesn’t feel like wasting his breath on her either.

His tone implies Ryōshū is fully aware she’s on borrowed time—that someone might come collect her—and she clearly doesn’t like that. Nor does she like Lei Heng, considering the entire “conversation” is him monologuing while her only line is yelling at Faust to shut up.

(Spoiler: Faust didn’t shut up. And frankly? We should be grateful she didn’t.)

「オメェのガキ、 まだあの家におるやろ。ちゃうか?」 "That brat of yours is still in that house, right? Or not?"

The word "ガキ" or "brat" in English is usually used for a boy or a rowdy, misbehaving child. That’s why I’m bringing this word to the dissection table—because it typically implies two things:

The child in question might be a boy.

The child might be really bratty, just like their parent.

It immediately feels wrong if we think of this “gaki” as Yoshihide’s pitiful daughter. Because clearly the tone and nuance of this word do not match the way the work builds the image of that girl. Now, Yoshihide’s daughter clearly isn’t described that way, but her pet monkey? That does suit the word perfectly.

"Each time he came to the Lord’s palace, he wore a clove-dyed hunting garment and a floppy eboshi on his head, but he had a vulgar appearance and his lips, too red for his age, had an unsettling bestial quality. I do not know for sure the cause of this red colour. Some said he had the habit of licking his paintbrush. Others, more slanderous, compared his appearance and gait to those of a monkey and nicknamed him Saruhide"

それが大殿様の御邸へ参ります時には、よく丁字染の狩衣に揉烏帽子をかけて居りましたが、人がらは至つて卑しい方で、何故か年よりらしくもなく、唇の目立つて赤いのが、その上に又気味の悪い、如何にも獣めいた心もちを起させたものでございます。中にはあれは画筆を舐めるので紅がつくのだ��どゝ申した人も居りましたが、尤もそれより口の悪い誰彼は良秀の立居振舞が猿のやうだとか申しまして、猿秀と云ふ諢名までつけた事がございました。

--------------------------------------------

"The Prince, the Lord’s young son, who was at the time in the age of mischievousness, named the monkey Yoshihide. The monkey’s gestures were amusing indeed, and everyone in the palace laughed at the animal. If this mockery had been all, things would not have been that bad for the monkey, but each time it climbed up the pine tree in the garden or soiled the mats in the Prince’s bedroom, everyone chased him, shouting, ‘Yoshihide, Yoshihide,’ to tease the poor beast."

すると何かの折に、丹波の国から人馴れた猿を一匹、献上したものがございまして、それに丁度戯盛　りの若殿様が、良秀云ふ名を御つけになりました。唯でさへその猿の容子が可笑しい所へ、かやうな名がついたのでございますから、御邸中誰一人笑はないものはございません。それも笑ふばかりならよろしうございますが、面白半分に皆のものが、やれ御庭の松に上つたの、やれ曹司の畳をよごしたのと、その度毎に、良秀々々と呼び立てゝは、兎に角いぢめたがるのでございます。 — Hell Screen, Chapter 2

Fusion dances between characters aren’t new now—we’ve already had Linton Edgar, who combines the features of blond, sickly Linton Heathcliff. So, the idea of Yoshihide’s daughter and her monkey being thrown into the same melting pot to create a single character isn’t that far-fetched. The personification of an animal, or the animalization of a human, is a familiar motif in Japanese literature – especially when associated with the image of hell, punishment, or karma.

Of course, it could also just be Lei Heng’s way of talking. But again, what’s the point of reading an analysis if we’re going to ignore details that might be exploitable?

「う~ん、ちゃうんか? もうおらんのか? なんかあったんかいな。 俺っちはそっちの事情はよく分からんくてな。けど、何かあったんは確かっぽいな ?」 "Hmm? I got it wrong? They’re not there anymore? Guess something happened, huh. I don’t really know what’s going on over there. But seems like something definitely went down, yeah?"

So, something did happen at the Spider’s Nest—some event that caused that “brat” of Ryōshū’s to no longer be there. It’s also very likely that this very event led to Ryōshū leaving the Spider’s Nest herself.

If Ryōshū had lost a child (or some other beloved creature that was considered a child), and that animal was a monkey, then Lei Heng's use of the word "gaki" would be both an insult and a dig at the pain.

Or perhaps the "gaki" was no longer human, but had transformed into something else – an embodiment of guilt, karma, or obsession, which Ryōshū could not shake off the past.

Lei Heng’s tone and word choice make it sound like he’s bullying a child. And honestly? It doesn’t seem like it’s the first time. Their teacher-student relationship might’ve always been this one-sided.

This is also the moment he hits Ryōshū’s nerve. She nearly drew her sword if Faust hadn’t chimed in to spare our eardrums with another 5–30 Ultra Pro Max versions of Ryōshū’s wrath.

The only thing Ryōshū seems to feel when facing Lei Heng is a mix of rage and panic (焦りと怒り). This is why have to check other TL as well and English versions—the English oddly decided to go with “anxious.”

The English translation of “anxious” is a bit soft and doesn’t capture the danger of Ryōshū losing control of her emotions. Ryōshū is like a ticking time bomb here.

Saude might’ve sent Sinclair to keep both her and Heathcliff in check, but in this case, it’s Faust who had to intervene—twice—because if Sinclair, by some miracle, tried to stop her, he’d probably end up as a seven-piece chicken nugget.

"Ryōshū-san, now is not yet the time."

Why Faust? Because she seems to be the one who’s made a direct pact with Ryōshū, and also the only one who knows everything about the sinners’ pasts. That’s why she knows exactly what to do.

Let’s be real—when someone’s got deep beef with another person over past events, and then some random third party who knows nothing tries to step in, it’s only going to backfire. Or worse—it’ll throw fuel on the fire.

「次はお前さんたちのオヤジの話でもしようやないか、ヨシヒデ!」 "Next time, let’s chat about your daddies, shall we, Yoshihide?"

Another namedrop just like in Canto 7 for both Sancho and Baoyu, but it still doesn’t take the edge off the shock from the previous line.

お前さんたちのオヤジ — "your daddies."

Yes, you heard that right — plural. Not even in my wildest dreams did I imagine she'd have more than one dad. Is this… LGBT Company?/jk

But there’s something even more noteworthy here. A lot of people interpret Ryōshū as someone in a parental role — in fact, most people do, even non-fans. But have you ever stopped to think: What if Ryōshū is also someone’s child?

— Intervallo IV: Murder on the WARP Express

— Lobotomy Red Eyes E.G.O Uptie Story

— Canto VIII episode 11

From those quotes, we can tell that Ryōshū despises — or at least deeply distrusts — controlling parents. You can picture her life being smothered by overbearing fathers forcing their ideals onto her, burying her under expectations, demanding she follow the future they envisioned.

Judging by that line from Canto VIII Episode 11, it’s possible that Ryōshū was raised to reach some high position — whether that was to become “the greatest painter under heaven” or even... a lord as i mentioned before from the word "領主" (Ryōshu) — Lord.

Speaking of that, we should talk about her name, which is a whole messy process on its own.

If you’ve followed me for long time, you know that the inspiration for “Hell Screen” (Jigokuhen) came from 絵仏師良秀 (Ebusshi Ryōshū), a character from the Uji Shūi Monogatari.

And according to official sources, Ryōshū here is based on Jigokuhen. But let’s be honest — she’s not just from Jigokuhen, right? All three characters — Ebusshi Ryōshū, Yoshihide, and Ryōshū — share the same kanji for their name: 良秀 (Ryōshū / Yoshihide).

Originally, in Uji Shūi Monogatari, 良秀 was read as Ryōshū. Later, Akutagawa came along and read it as Yoshihide. And now, with the release of this Canto, it loops back again — Ryōshū becomes Yoshihide once more.

Anyway, I’m not trying to play ship-theory here, but if we’re talking about who’s the worse father, Ebusshi Ryōshū is way worse than Yoshihide.

I mean, look at it this way — one dad abandons his wife and child in a burning building and watches it like it’s the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen, totally unmoved. The other dad suffers seeing his daughter burn, only to suddenly light up with joy a few seconds later like she hadn’t just turned into a charcoal brisket.

One’s bad. The other’s horrifically bad. So between “a bad dad” and “a worse dad,” they’re both still bad dads.

With all that in mind, we can tentatively guess that Ryōshū’s “daddies” — the ones Lei Heng referred to — include none other than Ebusshi Ryōshū, since at this point, the only person who out-awfuls Yoshihide is him.

And based on Lei Heng’s promise to “chat about them next time,” I fear we’ll be seeing more of these dads again. Which means we’ll be back with Lore Dissection: Part 2.

[chaewandz]

DUOLINGO DATE : NRK

synopsis: niki catches u practicing japanese on duolingo just for him while he’s asleep

wc: 777 words

pairing: nishimura riki x reader

genre: fluff

warnings: niki teases, y/n throws a pillow, cliché, very cringey I must admit

“translate: a vegetable”

you quickly typed “やさい” into your keyboard, earning a little ding meaning you were correct.

moving onto the next question you were determined to finish the lesson under 30 seconds, even though your speed did not matter in the slightest.

“translate: どうもありがとう!”

“this is way too easy.” you whispered, swiftly typing “thank you very much!” into the space provided. duo blinked at you, then cheered.

“どうもありがとう duo!” you said, giggling as you prepared to answer the next question.

“translate: 先生, おはようございます”

as you were typing the correct english translation, a voice suddenly interrupted.

“what the actual fuck are you doing.”

you jumped, dropping your phone onto the floor and holding your chest, gasping for breath.

“YOU WERE MEANT TO BE SLEEPING!” you declared to your boyfriend as if he was somehow in the wrong for waking up to your extremely loud duolingo practice.

niki laughed and shook his head.

“HELLO why are you learning Japanese from a BIRD when you have me?” he asked, eyes wide and eyebrows raised, now propped up on his elbows.

“because! you were ASLEEP!” you were determined to blame him but only so you could mask your embarrassment.

niki just rolled his eyes, muttering something in japanese that you tried your absolute hardest to understand. but that was merely impossible considering you were still on level one of “greetings” according to Duo’s lesson plan.

“what was that?” you asked accusingly.

“did you not understand? i thought you were a japanese master…” he teased, a smug look on his face.

you just threw a pillow at him in return. this brought about the most dramatic gasp that you had ever heard from niki, which was not easy to beat considering he did this all the time.

you watched as he contemplated picking up the nearest pillow and chucking it at your head in the name of revenge, but paused and composed himself.

“y/n, why are you learning japanese? especially while I’m asleep?” there was a slight smirk on his lips that let you know that he already knew the answers to his own questions, he just wanted to tease you.

“you know, I know, we all know- let’s move on haha go back to sleep goodnightnikisweetdreams!” you rambled, quickly diving under the covers, hiding your face and turning your body away from him.

this didn’t really do anything. you were only met with loud shuffling and breaths until your boyfriend was now laying next to you, also underneath the covers.

“this is nice.” he whispered sarcastically, his lips pressed into a thin line as he stared at the duvet above him.

“now what do you want.” you turned your body now to face him, only to be met with the same mischievous smirk as before.

“tell me why you were learning japanese as a secret.”

“no.”

“yes!”

“no?”

“YES???”

“FINE. fine fine fine fine you win- alright- whatever- yes I was learning japanese because I wanted to surprise you and your family to make them feel more comfortable at dinner tomorrow and to make you happy.” you whispered the last part, letting out a deep sigh. “can we go to sleep now?”

even in the dark underneath your blankets, you could still pick out the rose colored tint that dusted niki’s cheeks, paired with an equally as flustered grin.

“thank you.” was all he could manage to say without getting too lovey-dovey. slowly, you began to smile back, finding his reaction to be quite sweet, a complete contrast to his sass from moments prior.

niki then grabbed your wrist and pulled you closer to him so that your head was now resting against his chest with your arms around his waist.

you breathed in his warmth, eyes peacefully closing.

“do you want to stay under the covers because I’m starting to sweat…” he whispered, suddenly breaking the comfortable silence. you just laughed, jokingly rolling your eyes. your laugh instantly made him chuckle as well, chin rested on the top of your head.

“yeah I’m overheating as well.” you slowly released your hands from around his waist and shoved the blanket away, the cool air of your apartment rushing in.

“better?” you asked, fanning his face.

“much.” he grabbed your wrists again and put your arms back to the way they were, wrapped around his waist.

“goodnight riki.” you whispered, titling your head up to lightly press a kiss to his chin.

“goodnight, sneaky japanese prodigy.” he whispered back, smiling as he kissed the top of your head.

and the two of you fell into a comfortable silence, the same way you did each night. and as always, you wished that you could stay this way forever.

a/n: 🫠😅💃🏼🩰😚😊☺️😳 guys I wrote this like last summer bc I was trying to beat my gf in our friends quest on duolingo LOLLLL yes freja this is inspired by u. Guys also I gave up learning Japanese on duolingo bc it made absolutely no sense ??? n e ways

[atrirose]

TAKE 9 : STRAWBERRY FLAVOR ! psh

はい bf!sunghoon x f!r . . . 🎀 warning. none ! + FLUFF ★ seiu msg: after so long i feel great mwah lovies

“is there something on my face?” sunghoon has been staring at you for a while now and even though the silence was comforting because you know he loves to just sit next to you and enjoy a moment of peace, nothing said but so much conveyed.

“no” he said as he continued to watch you apply mascara, his hands tracing your forearm, stroking it as he moved closer to your face “are you trying get me killed darling” you said popping the mascara wand back in the tube as you faced him, booping his nose “and why do you think that” he tilted his head “what can i think of it when your handsome face is so close to mine, i’m afraid my heart might bust out” he looked at you, eyes admiring your face as he brushes a strand of hair behind your ear.

“how did i get so lucky” he whispered as he leaned in and kissed your cheeks, his breathy kisses trailing down your neck, you gulped at this “are you nervous my love” he said smiling in a teasing way, he knows too much and he uses that to his advantage everytime. he cups your face “you are going to hate me for this”

“what do you mean? why would-” before you could finish your question his lips were on yours, it took you too long to nail the lip combo you got on but at that point it didn’t matter, maybe you can get mad later. his lips were soft as he giggled against your lips “sorry i needed this, i wanted to make sure you aren’t a dream” you pinched his ear “oww what’s that for yn”

“because i know that excuse, you give it everytime when you need a kiss” you pout as you see your lip gloss smeared on his lips “it’s not an excuse you truly are.. like i have no idea how did i get so lucky” he said as he licked the gloss of his lips “it’s strawberry” he giggled “your pretty face will not get you excused for running my lip combo that i worked so hard on” you were supposed to go on a date and reapplying the products and nailing will take you too much time. “how about we not go” he suggested cupping your cheeks again.

“hmph wait give me a sec-” he pressed his lips against yours, pecking you multiple times “we can watch the movie on tv, let’s spend the day together” he held your hands, his forehead pressed against yours, hoping you agree to hours long cuddle session with him.

“did i tell you about where i want our wedding reception to be?”

[snarp]

This is the official translation of the final Remembrance:

Remembrance of Radahn, consort of Miquella, hewn into the Scadutree.

In their childhood, Miquella saw in Radahn a lord. His strength, and his kindness, that stood in stark contrast with their afflicted selves.

And so Miquella made his heartfelt wish. That Radahn would one day be his king consort.

It is very different from the Japanese text. Here's my translation:

A memory of Radahn, Miquella's king, hewn into the Scadutree.

When very young, Miquella saw in Radahn a king: saw strength - so unlike their frail selves - and, too, saw kindness.

And so, Miquella's innocent request: "Be my king, please"

("Elden Lord"/"Lord" is always "King" (王) in the Japanese text, and I'm mostly using "King" in this post: "lord" has awkward implications.)

Breaking it down:

影樹に刻まれた ミケラの王、ラダーンの追憶

A memory of Radahn, Miquella's king, hewn into the Scadutree.

"Miquella's king". Miquella always phrases Radahn's role this way: "my king," "my promised king," etc. In-setting, the characters probably do read this as a subordinate role - hence the translation "consort" - but in modern Japanese, the expected meaning is the same as in English: "the king whom Miquella serves."

I think the translators kept using "consort" to make absolutely certain everyone knows they're married, but it was overkill to use it every time: there's a reason Radahn's being referred to this way. Go back and count how many times Godfrey or Radagon is referred to as "Marika's lord."

The term for "Remembrance" is "tsuioku" (追憶), "a memory". This is explicitly Miquella's memory. The description of Radahn as "kind" isn't coming from the omniscient narrator: it's what toddler-Miquella saw, firmly in the past tense.

���き日、ミケラはラダーンに王を見た

When very young, Miquella saw in Radahn a king:

脆弱な自分たちにはない、強さを

saw strength - so unlike their frail selves -

そして優しさを

and, too, saw kindness.

That's not a complete or grammatical sentence, and the linebreaks create the cadence of someone struggling to find words. It feels like the thought got constructed backwards, potentially because Miquella could remember the word "king," but had trouble with "strength" and "kindness".

(Which makes sense both thematically and in terms of how hard those words are to say: kindness = "yasashisa", strength = "tsuyosa", king = "oh".)

だからミケラは純真に願った

And so, Miquella's innocent request:

私の王に、なってください

"Be my king, please"

The "innocently" is "junshin ni" (純真に), which carries a strong implication of naivety that "heartfelt" does not.

The comma in the middle of the quote isn't grammatical, but rather an indicator of hesitation. Miquella said this aloud to Radahn while too young to understand what it meant. Maybe even what "king" meant, aside from "dad".

And it's not phrased as a question; given Miquella's status as an Empyrean, it could even be interpreted as an order. And if this happened in front of witnesses, and if Radahn - possibly already an ambitious adult - said "sure, when you're grown up"...?

This is a horror story, and the kid is not the monster.

[dzvelinaskebiyars]

I love your foreigner gf headcanons for Toman. Can I request the same with Hanma, Ran, and Draken please?

Thank you so much!! And ofc! Have a nice day/night<333

Hanma:

He genuinely doesn't care if you're foreign or not, really doesn't care about someone's race and etc. He dislikes everyone equally^^ but not you--someone who kicked him in the balls on their first meeting.

I feel like that's when he kinda took interest in you? So he'd try to get close to you and find out that you're foreign. Well, since he was amused by you, he'd be nice.

You: Well then, how to say "stop smoking in front of me" in Japanese?

Hanma, currently smoking:....禁煙目の前で私.

You: 禁煙目の前で私<333

He ended up helping you with Japanese.

Hanma: あなたはとても背が低いです. (you're so short).

You: Huh?

Hanma: Nothing.

You: I know "短い" means short so if you're calling me short, then fuck you.

Well, he became your first friend in Japan so maybee he's not that bad, hm?

He'd randomly call you "豪華" and when you would question it, he'd just brush it off as you hallucinating. (Tr: gorgeous)

Ran:

Let's be honest, this man has learned many languages because he wants to be foreign celebrity. So he'd be happy to speak in other language than Japanese with someone because otherwise, he might forget what he has learned.

Coming to Japan to befriend a delinquent never ever crossed your mind, not even once, but here you are, in his house, chatting with him.

"That's not right." Ran said, taking pen from you and writing down the kanji right. You let out an audible oh and thanked him, copying what he wrote.

Meanwhile he was staring at you the whole time.

「 あなたはとても美しいです」 He said. You glanced at him, confused. You're sure you heard "You're" from him but you couldn't catch what he said next. (tr: You're beautiful)

"What was that?" You asked him.

"You're working hard, that's all." He smiled at you.

"Well, of course. I must learn Japanese."

What you two didn't know was that Rindou stood behind you two, his mouth hang open in shock hearing what Ran said. He definitely was going to tease his older brother about it.

Draken:

Unlike other Toman members, Draken wouldn't introduce you to his friends. Not until you came across them. Because all of his friends are delinquents and he doesn't want to take a risk and get you involved in any way. He doesn't want you to be pressured to meet new people either. Of course, he can introduce you to Hina or Emma if you ask him tho.

Please don't even mention teaching or learning to him, he hasn't done that in decades. But still, he'd help you out with Japanese.

He knows some people aren't very welcoming to foreigners and he doesn't want you to experience any hostility just because of your nationality.

While you're learning Japanese, he's learning your mother language so it'll be easier for him to teach you and chat with you in general.

It's so sweet of him! How he even asked you out to go with him on Tanabata and other festivals, explaining their meanings to you.

He wouldn't really take risk and confess to you in Japanese, thinking you wouldn't hear him. I think rather than that, when he's ready ofc, he'll confess to you in your mother language. Be it English, Italian, Spanish, French, Tagalog, Georgian, Arabic or whatever language, he'd learn it.

♡♡♡♡

I really hope you're satisfied!

[gyakuten-attorney]

why is fransizka called sir by gumshoe? does the Japanese version call her something similar? I've been itching to know for a while now!

Another excellent question! A short answer to the first question is "the same reason he says 'Pal' all the time!"

"Shounin. Namae to shokugyou wa?"

"Witness. Name and occupation?"

(English Localization: "Witness, your name and occupation?")

"Ha--! Namae wa Itonokogiri Keisuke. Shokatsusho no keiji-ssu."

"Yes[, sir]!* My name is Itonokogiri Keisuke. [I'm a] local precinct detective."

(EL: "Yes, sir! My name is Dick Gumshoe. I'm a detective at the local precinct.")

Gumshoe speaks with slang Japanese. As an example, he often says "ッス", "ssu", which is a slurred "です", "desu", the polite way to say "be, is". It's like if you're trying to be polite but you just aren't.

English doesn't really have polite language in the way Japanese does, so the localization team decided to have Gumshoe say "Pal" to thread the needle of showing that he's a little rough around the edges, but still tries to be polite. It's a good choice!

However, calling Franziska (or Edgeworth, for that matter) "Pal" in this situation doesn't exactly work to show this semi-polite speech. Polite speech is expected in the Japanese workplace when you speak with superiors, so the localizers opted with "Sir" instead when he's speaking to Edgeworth--or Franziska.

*Here comes the asterisk! Gumshoe says "はッ", "Ha--", a shortened way to say "はい", "hai", which is a polite "yes". It's often translated as "Yes, sir" if it has the nuance of an English "Yes, sir".

"Shounin. Namae to shokugyou wa?"

"Witness. Name and occupation?" (yep, exactly the same as Franziska above)

(EL: "Witness, please state your name and profession to the court.")

"Ha--!"

"Yes[, sir]!"

(EL: "Sir!")

So, in Japanese Gumshoe doesn't really call Franziska anything. He's merely speaking in a way that shows he's speaking to his boss.

Now, why does Gumshoe call Franziska "Sir" in the English localization? I originally was going to say, "I don't know," but after some googling, it seems like it's a Hollywood trope to address high ranking women in the police or military as "sir" (although, a few folks on various forums who were in those fields insist it's not true to reality). Gumshoe's way of speaking in Japanese is from hierarchical communities, such as the military (the first person pronoun, "自分", "jibun", which Gumshoe uses, is the first-person pronoun used by folks in those communities), so it could also be a nod to that. I'm not sure if that's what the localization team was going for, so I don't want to speak for them!

[bettelaboure]

⊹Tell Me To Stop⊹ | Choi Seung-Hyun

seventh part in series "Course in Chemistry"

⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹

⊹ Pairing: Choi Seung-Hyun x Reader

⊹ Warnings: sexual tension, explicit sexual content, embarrassment, mature language, peer pressure, and high school dynamics involving gossip and judgment

⊹ Summary: Y/N helps Seung-Hyun explore his sexual curiosity through an intimate and consensual encounter that begins with erotic media and leads to mutual physical exploration

⊹ Author's note: This one is a bit bit longer, full of shit show, so grab popcorn and let's go! we are nearly at the end

⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹ ⊹

"Urgh! I can't do this!" You threw your hands in the air and slammed them onto the floor, burying your face in your palms.

Jae-mi looked up from her bed to see you sprawled out on her bedroom floor, surrounded by textbooks and notes, clearly overwhelmed by the complexity of Present Continuous.

"Do what?" she asked, shutting her Spanish textbook, eyeing your frustration with a mix of concern and amusement.

"This." You gestured to the textbook in front of you. "It's all so..."

"Boring?"

"Complicated," you huffed, rubbing your hands over your face. "Why can't they just make it like a fun story or give step-by-step instructions that make sense?"

"Because it's a textbook, not a bestselling novel," Jae-mi teased as she joined you on the floor. She glanced at your notebook. "What's that?"

"A snowman eating its own nose," you muttered.

"Nice," she said dryly.

You groaned and slapped the book closed. Stupid book. Whoever created textbooks should be jailed for the mass destruction of teenage happiness.

"Are you and Choi Seung-Hyun seriously done?" Jae-mi asked, her voice softer now.

You rolled your eyes. "You say that like we were ever in a relationship."

"You kind of were," she said, shrugging.

You shot her a glare, and she lifted her hands in surrender. "Okay, more like in a weird tutor-student-situationship-friends-with-benefits vibe."

You chuckled, exhaling. "Please. Seung-Hyun and I were never friends." Were you? Did he think of you that way? You spent a lot of time together, after all.

"You did spend a lot of time with each other," she echoed your thoughts. "And you both saw each other in... personal ways."

Very personal. You gave him a hand-job and he saw you naked. That was hard to ignore.

"Look, all I'm saying is maybe you should talk to him. You clearly need him."

"I do not need him!" you snapped.

"Okay!" she backed off with raised hands. "But then how are you going to get your grades up?"

Good question.

"Maybe I'll drop out and become a stripper," you mumbled.

Jae-mi gave you a deadpan look. "You can’t even touch your toes. How would you do the splits on a pole?"

"I can learn!"

"You can also learn how English sentences work," she said, tapping the textbook.

You groaned again. Why was she always right?

Back in class, you were calculating how many minutes were left before you either escaped or hurled yourself out the window. Mrs. Arakaki had been glaring at you like you’d insulted her ancestors. Her constant nagging, condescending tone, and unfair callouts made it impossible to behave.

You’d once gotten a week’s detention for threatening to paint the classroom red because she wouldn’t let you go to the bathroom during your period.

"Y/N," she called, eyes narrowing. "今日はどうですか?"

Oh, for fuck's sake.

"今日は元気ですか?" Choi Seung-Hyun, seated behind you, gestured for you to respond.

"Are you on drugs?" you muttered. He raised a brow.

"Seriously?" he pressed. "How are you today, Y/N?"

What was he doing?

"Fine. I got shampoo in my eyes this morning, but I’m still alive."

He chuckled, leaning back.

"So... good? Say it. '良い.'"

"良い," you tried. He nodded encouragingly.

"So, 今日はどうですか?"

You smiled, something clicking.

"良い," you answered again.

The look on Mrs. Arakaki’s face dropped. You never responded in Japanese, and your tiny victory made you glow with pride. You wanted to rub it in her face.

You actually got something right.

Because of him.

Damn it. No, not because of him. You don’t need him. You told him that. And Y/N doesn’t go back on her word.

The cafeteria hadn't changed much since the Se-mi disaster. She hadn’t shown her face since, and neither had Jun-ho. Drama queen.

Jae-mi was deep in her history notes, preparing to destroy Young-bae in their next class.

"You know you’ll look back and wonder why you were so obsessed with beating some guy," you said lazily.

The glare she shot you could have killed.

"I will revel in it. He's Satan's twin, and I will vanquish him."

"Maybe you two should just have angry sex and get it over with."

Now the glare had grown murderous.

"That’s the most horrifying image I’ve ever imagined," she hissed.

Please. If only she knew.

"Suit yourself," you murmured, stabbing your salad.

Later, standing at your locker, you fixed your hair and tried to remember what had possessed you to make a deal with Choi Seung-Hyun. What were you thinking?

How could someone so disinterested in school thrive with a tutor like him? And how could you turn someone like him—a total newbie to sex—into anything remotely confident? The plan had been doomed from the start.

You turned around—and there he was.

Leaning against the wall, book in hand, he was staring at someone else.

Se-mi.

She came back to school.

With her blonde hair glowing in the light, flute case in hand, she looked like an angel. Everything you weren’t. Innocent. Sweet. Happy. She was the type of girl who looked like she erased the darkness from a room.

Kinder. More genuine. But with a biteful tongue.

You watched his eyes follow her like she was the only thing that existed. You wondered what he was thinking. Was it about her? About the date he had planned? About the books he read?

Was she the one he pictured?

When you kissed him, when you touched him, when he whispered beautiful against your skin—had he meant you?

Or had he meant her?

The question echoed in your mind, pounding like a second heartbeat.

You were so lost in it that you didn’t notice the jocks approach.

One of them slapped the book from his hands. Another shoved him.

"Weirdo," one sneered.

You clenched your fists.

You wanted to say something.

But before you could, the PA system crackled:

"CAN MISS KIM JAE-MI AND L/N Y/N PLEASE REPORT TO THE PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE. THANK YOU."

Silence.

Everyone turned to look—including Seung-Hyun, Se-mi, and the jocks.

Your heart dropped into your stomach.

Oh god.

What now?

The last thing you expected to see in the Principal's office was Jae-mi sitting anxiously across from Mr. Park's desk.

Mr. Park always carried himself like he had a permanent stick lodged somewhere unfortunate. He wasn’t just strict—he was insufferably smug, and while you usually admired people who owned their power unapologetically, with him it was different. He was the kind of authority figure that made you want to rip your own ears off just so you wouldn’t have to listen to his self-righteous, monotone squawking.

"Y/N," he acknowledged dryly as you walked in. "Sit."

You didn’t protest. You weren’t even entirely sure why you were here, and antagonizing Mr. Park was only going to make it worse. You took the seat beside Jae-mi, whose face was pale and tight with worry. She wasn’t used to being summoned for anything less than praise.

"I’m sure you’re both aware of the diary pages that have been circulating around school," Mr. Park began.

Your eyes met Jae-mi’s. Shit.

"And I received a very concerned call from Dr. Kang regarding the vulgar invasion of his daughter’s privacy."

Here it comes.

"I have strong reason to believe you two are behind this," he continued.

"And what makes you think that?" you asked, arms crossed, tone defiant.

Mr. Park smirked with satisfaction as he rotated his monitor toward you both. "I’m so glad you asked. Vice Principal Seo installed new CCTV cameras around campus recently. A very wise move, it turns out."

Your jaw practically hit the floor. There you were on the screen—both you and Jae-mi—tossing printed copies of Se-mi’s diary into the air like flower petals at a wedding.

Well, shit.

"Do you have CCTV everywhere, Mr. Park? Even in storage closets? What’s next, hidden mics in the locker room?" you muttered under your breath, your sarcastic smile barely hiding your panic. Mr. Park had always shown a little too much leniency toward the football team, especially Jun-ho.

"I’d be careful with that tone, Y/N, unless you want your punishment doubled," he warned before turning to Jae-mi. "Miss Kim. I expected better from you. You can kiss “Best Student” award goodbye."

"Jae-mi didn’t do it!" you burst out. No way were you dragging her down with you. She had worked too hard for too long for this to be the reason her shot at that award was taken away.

"Y/N, it’s clear—"

"I made her do it!" you blurted. Jae-mi whipped her head toward you, eyes wide. "I thought if the perfect student was involved, I’d have a better shot at avoiding punishment. I told her I’d spread a rumor about her hooking up in the boys’ locker room if she didn’t help."

Mr. Kim's eyes narrowed as he turned to Jae-mi. "Is this true, Miss Kim?"

You kicked her ankle beneath the desk.

"Y-Yes, sir," she stammered, eyes downcast. You knew it killed her to lie.

Mr. Kim sighed dramatically, tapping his foot. "You may go, Miss Kim. I apologize for the trouble."

She glanced at you, conflicted, but you nodded, silently telling her it was okay. The moment the door shut, Mr. Kim locked his death glare on you.

"In all my years, I’ve never seen such a vile act of bullying—"

"Bullying? That’s a reach," you scoffed. If anything, Se-mi was the queen of emotional terrorism. She looked like angel, but she wasn’t a less bitch than you.

"You’ve humiliated that poor girl and tarnished this school’s reputation. And to blackmail another student? Frankly, I’m not surprised. You’ve been a handful since day one."

"You’re welcome," you muttered.

"So here’s your punishment. Luckily for you, both of Se-mi’s parents work at the hospital, and they’ve generously agreed to offer you community service there."

Your mouth fell open. "Community service? What do I look like, a criminal?!"

"It’ll look far better than suspension on your college applications. Which, I’ve heard, are not going too well."

Damn it, In-su.

"That’s none of your business," you grumbled, slumping back in your chair.

"Perhaps not. But I’d hope you take this as a chance to grow."

What was this, a sermon?

You didn’t have a witty comeback. Honestly, you didn’t want your parents hearing about this. Or anything else, for that matter.

When you were finally dismissed, Jae-mi was waiting outside, chewing on her lip.

"What happened?!" she whisper-shouted, dragging you into the corridor. "You shouldn’t have done that! I didn’t ask you to—"

"It’s fine," you reassured her, holding her by the shoulders. "I didn’t even get suspended."

"What?"

"Yeah, I got community service at the hospital instead. Apparently, Se-mi’s parents work there."

Jae-mi blinked. "Community service? What are you, an inmate?"

"That’s what I said! But hey, better than suspension."

"And it’ll look better on your college applications," she said pointedly.

"Don’t remind me," you muttered, eyes scanning the now-empty halls. "Where is everyone, anyway?"

"We missed last period. They’ve probably gone home."

Great. You finally started trying to do better in school, and Mr. Park decided the best way to reward you was to drag you back to rock bottom with a lecture and hospital labor.

Awesome.

"Hello again, Y/N."

"In-su," you reply, narrowing your eyes with spite.

You still can’t believe he snitched to Principal Park about your college situation. And being in the guidance counselor's office? Still feels like punishment.

"I'm sure you know why you're here."

There are so many reasons you could be here, you might as well reach into the grab bag of disaster and see what flavor of hell you’ve drawn today.

"You found the bag of crack in my locker?"

In-su’s eyes go wide, and you chuckle. "Relax. It was a joke."

"You shouldn’t joke about those things, Y/N," he says sternly.

"And you shouldn’t be spreading my private business to Principal Park," you fire back. Checkmate.

In-su sighs, folding his arms. "I have to put all your info on ProMonitor. Only me and Principal Park have access."

Great. That... actually makes sense.

You groan. "Then what do you want now?" If he’s gearing up for another inspirational speech, you're going straight through the nearest window.

"Mr. Kim reported that Choi Seung-Hyun is no longer tutoring you."

You blink. Huh. You figured Seung-Hyun would quietly ghost the tutoring agreement, not actually file it with the administration. Weirdly official. Weirdly painful.

"Yeah, so?"

"He told Mr. Kim you weren’t doing the work."

Snake.

"And?"

In-su leans forward, resting his forearms on the desk. "Y/N, right now it’s really looking like you're repeating the year."

"What?!" Panic shoots through your chest, even though you knew this was coming. You thought maybe you could wing it alone. "I can do this on my own!"

"Then let me ask you something." In-su adjusts his glasses—purely for aesthetic, you’re sure. "Tell me something in Japanese."

You squint at him. Is he serious?

"Um, what?"

"Say anything. In Japanese. Go ahead."

You wiggle uncomfortably in your seat. "Uh... 私の名前は—"

"Something complex, Y/N."

"Well, I don’t know anything complex!"

"Okay. Chemical symbol for gold?"

"Gd—"

"What form do muscles store glucose in?"

"Square—?"

"Two examples of collecting data?"

"Uhhh..."

"When did the World War II end?"

"1940...?"

In-su gives you a look. You sigh and throw your hands up. "I don’t know, okay?!"

He smiles like he’s just checkmated you in 3D chess.

"I’m gonna be real with you, Y/N."

"You always are," you mutter under your breath.

"I really don’t want you repeating a year," he says. You open your mouth, but he cuts you off. "Believe it or not, I want every student to succeed. But you? You're not even trying. No effort, no graduation."

You glare past him at the tacky motivational poster behind his head. "You don’t succeed," you say flatly.

"Exactly!" In-su beams.

Someone, somewhere, cue the funeral music.

"Now, I don’t know what happened between you and Seung-Hyun," he continues.

Clothes happened. That’s what. And Se-mi.

"But I suggest you talk it out and get back on track."

"Can’t I just get another tutor?" you groan.

"Choi Seung-Hyun is one of the best students here. Mr. Kim specifically matched him to you. His advice? Worth taking."

You snatch your bag. "You really enjoy making my life hell, don’t you?"

"At least I’m making a difference!" he chirps, giving you a thumbs-up as you storm out.

"Déjà vu," Jae-mi whispers beside you as you crouch behind the library shelves.

You know exactly what she means. It feels like forever ago that you cornered Seung-Hyun here and begged him to tutor you. Now here you are again.

"You got a game plan?" she asks.

Not exactly. You run through possible intros.

Hey Seung-Hyun, remember when I called you a dick and said no one would ever like you? Let’s be friends again, yeah?

No.

Hey, remember when you called me pathetic? Well, you were right.

Definitely not.

If you don’t tutor me, I’m going to jab my pencil through your eye socket.

Okay, dial it down.

"He’s moving!" Jae-mi hisses.

"What?"

Before you can react, she shoves you into the next aisle—right into Seung-Hyun’s path as he slides a book back onto the shelf.

You smooth your skirt, run your fingers through your hair. You got this.

You grab the closest book and approach him.

"Hey," you say sweetly. "Can you put this back for me?"

He turns, eyes as cold as steel, and brushes past you without a word.

Okay. You don’t got this.

Pull yourself together, Y/N.

You chase after him. "Look, Seung-Hyun, I know our last talk wasn’t exactly friendly, but I really think—"

He turns the corner, ignoring you.

"Hey!" You jog after him. "Seung-Hyun!" You catch a glimpse of Jae-mi peeking from behind a pillar with a helpless shrug.

"For God’s sake, I’m talking to you!" You grab his sleeve.

"What?!" he snaps, spinning around.

Whoa. Okay. Not expecting that.

"I need to talk to you," you say more softly.

He stares, annoyed. Waiting.

"I need you to tutor me again."

He lets out a low, bitter laugh. "Yeah, right."

You block his path. "Look, I know we’re not exactly best friends right now—"

"Understatement of the century."

"—But we both need something. So let’s make this easy. You keep helping me study, and I keep helping you... y’know. Sexy-sexy time? Deal?"

You flash your most hopeful smile.

He eyes you critically. You hold your ground.

"You really want to know what I think?" he asks.

You nod.

"I think you use people at your convenience."

"Excuse me—"

"You think I was desperate to have you back?"

"I’m not—"

"Face it, Y/N. Your whole life, people bend for you. But that’s not real. And I can’t trust you."

"Wait—what?"

"I can’t trust you, Y/N."

You scoff. "Are you kidding? I’m the most trustworthy person I kn—"

"The deal went both ways," he says, stepping closer. "I helped you with school. You helped me with sex. But I told you from the start—I needed you to meet me halfway. And you didn’t."

"I—"

"You did nothing. And that’s why this is all on you."

He pushes past you, leaving you stunned and speechless. Jae-mi rushes over.

"So...?"

"I’m fucked."

"Fucked metaphorically? Or—"

"Jae-mi."

"...Metaphorically. Got it." She stares down at her shoes.

You groan, kicking the bookshelf in frustration.

And to make it worse? That’s when you remember:

Your English essay is due tomorrow.

And it’s 11 p.m.

On a Wednesday.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," you mutter, tearing through your room in search of a pen.

Mr. Kim swore you'd fail the class if this essay didn’t land on his desk by morning.

And that is definitely not on your to-do list.

Your conversation with Choi Seung-Hyun still bubbled in your brain—and boiled your blood. What made it worse was the fact that he’d been right. You hadn’t even tried with the tutoring part of the deal. You’d agreed to help him with schoolwork, but instead, you let the whole thing turn into a crash course in sex education—and you’d completely ignored your end of the bargain otherwise.

Now, it showed.

You scrambled to find a pen and notebook, finally yanking them out from under your bed. Thank God. You threw yourself into your squeaky desk chair, wincing at the sound. You hated that damn thing, but it was better than sitting on your bed and inevitably wrapping yourself in layers of blankets like a burrito, only to fall asleep halfway through whatever you were meant to do.

Jae-mi, the absolute angel she was, had let you borrow her history notes a few days ago while you were "studying." You say "studying" because you’d actually spent that time doodling Santa hats on every historical figure you could find. Abraham Lincoln looked like Santa Claus on a juice cleanse, and it cracked you up.

Focus, Y/N.

What was this essay on again?

Oh, right—World War II.

Why the hell Mr. Kim wanted your essay on history? 

Half an hour passed, and you glanced down at your notebook only to find… not an essay. Nope. What you had was a passionately aggressive letter addressed to Anthony Marwood and Stephanie Callington, the sadistic authors of this torturous textbook. You were now referring to it exclusively as Satan’s Bible.

Okay, it wasn’t too extreme—just an “I hope your children suffer just as much as I have these last thirty minutes” and a casually slipped in “don’t be surprised if your houses get set on fire.” But hey, what could you do?

Twenty more minutes passed, and you were spiraling.

You have to actually have wits for them to end, Y/N.

If only textbooks weren’t so damn boring. Maybe if someone made them into cool TV shows—

"It’s a history website. They make documentaries in the style of American TV shows. The acting's a bit bad and questionable, but it's entertaining nonetheless."

Seung-Hyun's voice echoed in your brain like a mini divine intervention. You practically launched out of your chair and started digging through the laundry-pile disaster that was your floor, searching for your school bag. After throwing pencils and highlighters across the room in a frenzy, you finally found it.

“Bingo,” you whispered, then bolted back to your desk, turning on your computer and typing the website link from his neat handwriting into the browser.

It was a long shot, and it was late. Nearly midnight. Your eyelids were heavy, fingers sluggish as you typed D-Day into the search bar. You rubbed at your eyes and scrolled through until you found a video that looked like it covered the basics for your essay.

Then you hit play.

It was around nine when you woke up the next morning, your essay stuck to your face and your hair a complete disaster—a lopsided topknot that had somehow turned into a bird’s nest. If it hadn’t been for Jae-mi calling to complain about Young-bae stealing her parking spot (again), you wouldn’t have woken up at all.

You sprinted down the school hallways with your essay in hand, trying not to trip over your own feet from lack of sleep. You’d been up until 3 a.m. watching that documentary, and credit where credit's due—Seung-Hyun had been right. It was entertaining. You hadn’t written that much in your life.

Your English class had just emptied out as you ran up to the door.

You were definitely late, but at least you could still turn in the assignment.

“Mr. Kim!” you called, breathless, as you entered the classroom.

He didn’t even glance at you. “I’m not giving extensions on the essay, Y/N. You know the rules—”

“I have the essay!” you held it up triumphantly.

Mr. Kim turned slowly—either out of old age or total shock. “You’ve what?” he blinked.

“I’ve... I’ve done it,” you said, holding it out. He stared at the pages like they might disintegrate in his hands, flipping through them, holding them up to the light like a detective analyzing a forged check.

“These are three double-sided pages,” he muttered in disbelief.

“I know,” you replied. You’d earned every word on that paper.

He rubbed a wrinkled hand down his face and whispered, “Well, I’ll be...”

“Is—Is it okay?” your confidence faltered suddenly. “Did I do it wrong? Is it too much? What if—”

“No, no,” he waved his hand to cut you off. “It’s absolutely fine. I’ll get this marked and back to you by Monday.” He was still staring at your work, stunned.

“Oh... okay.” You chirped, spinning on your heel to head out.

You did it, Y/N. You actually did it.

You were so proud of yourself. The high from that moment carried you through the whole day. You told Jae-mi about your victory during lunch, and she’d looked just as surprised as Mr. Kim—but even more thrilled.

Well, she would have been more thrilled if she hadn’t gotten crushed by Young-bae again in that Physics pop quiz during first period. The look on her face—pure rage, tinged with betrayal—was legendary. You swore her hair was about to twist into little snakes and turn the whole gym to stone.

“This whole ego complex he has is driving me insane,” she muttered during stretches. “If I hear one more word about how he likes to fuck girls standing up because it gives him a ‘better angle,’ I’m shoving a pencil up his ass. That’ll give him a better angle.”

You choked back a laugh.

Honestly, you couldn’t wait for high school to end, mostly so this bizarre, eternal rivalry between Jae-mi and Young-bae could finally burn out. The girl spent so much time plotting his defeat—scribbling vicious little stick figures of him in her notebook, dreaming up creative insults like it was her sport.

Then again, no one got under her skin the way Young-bae did.

After last class, the two of you walked back through the halls, headed toward her locker, when a familiar 6’2" brunette stepped into view.

Seung-Hyun.

You wondered what he’d say if he knew you’d actually handed in your English essay.

He rejected you, remember?

Still... he'd be proud.

What’s the point of him being proud if he doesn’t even like you anymore?

But... he’d be proud.

“Hang on a sec,” you told Jae-mi, jogging ahead.

“Hey!” you chirped as you caught up to him.

Seung-Hyun glanced your way—and rolled his eyes before turning back to his locker.

“Guess what,” you tried again, bouncing slightly. You couldn’t help it. You were excited. You wanted him to be proud of you.

“I don’t have time for this, Y/N,” he grumbled, pulling books out and shoving them into his backpack.

“No, no! You want to hear this!” You waved your arms a bit, hoping he’d look at you.

Nothing.

So you rushed ahead anyway. “I—I handed in my English essay! Three pages. Double-sided!”

He slammed his locker shut, your smile faltering as the sound echoed.

“Cool. Whatever.” He sighed, slinging his backpack over his shoulder.

“But… I did the… I thought that... w-what?” You could barely form a sentence. The wind was knocked straight out of you.

“I’m really not interested, Y/N. See you.”

And with that, he turned and walked away—leaving you there like a complete idiot.

Jae-mi appeared at your side, wincing.

“That was harsh.”

You frowned, eyes glued to your shoes.

You just wanted him to be proud of you.

Before you stood a large, dimly lit room. The walls were raw brick, the floor polished black concrete. Scattered throughout the space were worn pieces of gym equipment: treadmills, bench presses, pull-up bars, elliptical trainers, rowing machines. Yoga mats were laid out across the floor, surrounded by tires, skipping ropes, and stacks of barbells.

A makeshift gym.

What the hell was Choi Seung-Hyun doing at a gym?

You knew about dance practices, singing lessons, even rap sessions, but gym?

The place wasn’t exactly crowded, but it wasn't empty either. There was a secretive air to it—as though only a certain few were in on it—and those who were treated it like any other gym. You realized instantly how out of place you looked in your heels and miniskirt, surrounded by people dripping in sweat and dressed in proper gym gear.

How the tables had turned. Now you were the outcast.

You walked in slowly, your arms wrapped around your books, eyes scanning the unfamiliar space. You flinched when a tall, broad man approached. He had a friendly, welcoming smile—and a burn scar tracing the side of his neck.

“Are you okay there?” he asked, his tone soft.

“I… erm… I’m looking for someone,” you said, trying not to sound awkward. You could practically hear your inner voice cringing.

“That’s okay,” he replied with a charming smile, folding his arms over his chest. “Who are you looking for?”

A flash of Seung-Hyun filled your mind. You blinked and looked at the man again—now picturing him in full military uniform.

“You’re Seung-Hyun’s dad,” you blurted.

He raised an eyebrow, surprised by how quickly you'd identified him, before his expression softened.

“Erm, yes. And you are?”

“Y/N.”

“Y/N…” he repeated, clearly thinking. Then recognition sparked in his eyes. “You’re the girl he’s been tutoring.”

“That’s me.” You smiled. So Seung-Hyun never told his dad he wasn’t tutoring you anymore?

Interesting.

“My wife’s mentioned you before,” the man continued. “She said you were a lovely girl.”

You found that strange. You’d only met Seung-Hyun’s mother once—or twice if you counted the jewelry store. Yet apparently, she had nice things to say. “You must be looking for Seung-Hyun,” he said, gesturing to the books in your arms.

You nodded quickly, and he smiled warmly.

“Come on, I think he’s down this way.”

You followed him across the gym, eyeing the equipment as you walked. Was this his dad’s place? You remembered hearing he’d left the military—it seemed likely.

“I’m Min-sang, by the way,” he added, offering his hand. You shook it.

“The owner of the gym,” he said with a grin.

Mystery solved.

At the back of the warehouse stood a boxing ring. Inside, a guy with dark brown skin was throwing powerful punches at training pads held by another man. Sweat slicked his sculpted chest as he ducked and weaved, nimble on his feet.

“Hey, Se-hoon!” Min-sang called out.

The guy stopped and looked over, eyes flicking briefly to you before refocusing on Min-sang.

“Any idea where my Se-hoon is?”

See-hoon removed his gloves and vaulted out of the ring in one smooth motion.

“No clue. He’ll probably be out soon.” He slung a towel over his shoulders, then turned his attention to you. “Who’s this?” he asked, eyes raking over you with a teasing glint.

“Y/N,” Min-sang answered. “The girl Seung-Hyun’s tutoring.”

Se-hoon smirked knowingly. “Y/N,” he said, his voice full of implication. “I know all about you.”

Heat rose to your cheeks.

“If you wait here, he’ll be out in a few minutes,” Min-sang added.

“Out from what?” you asked, still unsure what was going on.

Se-hoon sat beside you on the bench. “You’ll see,” he said with a grin.

You huffed and sat down, clinging to your books. You crossed your legs and rested your chin on your fist, bored out of your mind. Where the hell was Seung-Hyun?

Jae-mi was still waiting in the car—probably indulging in her latest obsession with all things BDSM. She likely didn’t want to be disturbed anytime soon.

Then you saw him.

A figure walked to the bench press, landing beside Min-sang. His back was to you, muscles flexing with every movement. Blue gym shorts clung to his thighs, and his brunette hair sparked instant recognition.

When he turned, your jaw nearly dropped to the center of the earth.

Choi Seung-Hyun.

And he had a goddamn six-pack.

“Don’t drool, sweetheart. Where are your manners?” Se-hoon teased.

You turned to him, eyes wide. He leaned back against the wall, sipping from a fancy sports bottle like this was no big deal.

Seung-Hyun didn’t notice you. He cracked his neck, and layed down on the bench. Min-sang stood behind him to spot. 

You couldn't tear your eyes away.

Your gaze roamed over every inch of him: every muscle, every ripple, every bead of sweat rolling down his chest.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “He’s got this.”

And he did. Every bench—he was in complete control. You’d never seen him like this. Gone was the shy, socially awkward boy. In his place stood a man full of confidence and primal strength. His biceps tensed with each bench, veins pulsing under flushed skin. 

It was the hottest thing you’d ever seen.

You stood slowly as Seung-Hyun got up from the bench. His chest heaved with exertion, his entire body glowing with sweat. He ran a hand through his damp hair. Your mouth went dry.

When he finally noticed you, he stopped cold.

His chest rose once.

Twice.

A third time.

“…Y/N?”

“Hey,” you said, trying to sound casual despite the fact you were actively trying not to melt on the spot.

“What… what are you doing here?” he asked, grabbing a towel from the bench and wiping his face.

“I needed to talk to you.”

He blinked, thrown off by your unexpected appearance. Then his eyes drifted down your body—your heels, bare thighs, miniskirt. The flicker in his eyes was unmistakable.

“Now?” he asked, a bit breathless.

“Yes,” you replied, your voice firmer.

He nodded, trying to regain his composure. “Okay… locker room’s this way.”

You followed him down a narrow hallway. The air was cooler back here, but you felt no relief—your skin was already burning. You passed a couple of closed doors before he pushed one open and motioned you inside.

It smelled of sweat and soap. Two rows of lockers lined the room, and a bench ran down the middle. A shower steamed in the corner, still running from someone who’d just left.

Seung-Hyun grabbed a clean towel and draped it over his shoulders, still shirtless, still gleaming. He turned to you, arms crossed.

“So… what did you want to talk about?”

You set your books down on the bench. “We need to clear some things up.”

“Okay…” he said slowly. “About what?”

You walked up to him. “About us.”

His brow furrowed. “There is no ‘us.’”

“Not yet,” you replied.

He blinked.

You didn’t give him time to respond. You reached out, fingertips grazing his chest. He stiffened but didn’t stop you.

“Y/N…” he warned.

You looked up into his eyes. “I saw the way you looked at me just now.”

He swallowed hard.

“I’ve never seen you like that before.”

“That’s because I usually have clothes on,” he said dryly.

You smirked. “You should take them off more often.”

“Y/N…” His voice dropped. “Don’t play games with me.”

“I’m not playing.”

“You’re not thinking straight.”

“No,” you said, stepping closer, “I’m thinking very clearly.”

You reached for the waistband of his shorts, fingers brushing the skin just above them.

He grabbed your wrist. “Don’t.”

You met his eyes. “Why not?”

“Because I won’t be able to stop.”

You tilted your head. “Good.”

He stared at you like you’d just punched him.

Then he kissed you.

Hard.

His hands gripped your hips, pulling you flush against his body as his mouth claimed yours. There was no hesitation, no gentleness—only hunger. He backed you into the lockers, lifting you slightly until your feet left the ground.

You wrapped your legs around his waist as he pressed you against the cool metal, his lips moving down your neck, nipping at your collarbone.

“Tell me to stop,” he growled against your skin.

You tugged at his hair. “Don’t you dare.”

He kissed you again—hot, desperate, consuming—while your hands explored every inch of his back, every line of muscle.

Your hand slips to his waistband, fingers brushing the heat beneath as he helps you strip him down. His cock springs free—hard, heavy, and flushed—and your mouth waters at the sight of it. You wrap your hand around the base, stroking slowly, deliberately, watching his jaw clench as he leans back against the lockers for support.

Then you sink to your knees.

The tile is cold, but you hardly notice. You start with a kiss—just a soft press to the head, tasting the salty bead of precum there. He groans low in his throat, and you feel his fingers thread through your hair. Encouragement. Control. Both.

You take him deeper, inch by inch, letting your lips stretch and your throat relax around him. His breath stutters as you hollow your cheeks and start to bob your head in rhythm. Each glide down brings a new curse from his lips. Each flick of your tongue along the underside has him twitching in your mouth.

“Fuck,” he whispers, one hand gripping the edge of the locker behind him, the other tightening in your hair. “You’re gonna make me come if you keep that up.”

You hum in response—deliberate—and the vibration makes him jerk against your tongue. But you don’t stop. You suck harder, deeper, your pace unrelenting until you feel him throb fully in your mouth. That’s when you pull back, slowly, lips slick, a thin strand of saliva still connecting you to him.

He looks wrecked. Eyes dark, chest rising in ragged breaths, cock still rigid and glistening from your mouth.

Then it’s his turn.

He pulls you to your feet and back to the bench, his hands firm on your hips as he lays you down again. You feel the cool press of the wood under your back, the air sharp against your flushed skin as he peels your underwear away. His fingers spread you open, slow and reverent, and the first touch of his tongue is light—almost teasing.

You whimper.

He flattens his tongue and licks a long, slow stripe from your entrance to your clit, then circles there, soft at first. Then firmer. Deeper. Your thighs twitch around his head, but he holds you steady, arms locked around your thighs to keep you open for him. Every motion is focused, deliberate—like he’s memorizing the way you taste, the way your body arches at just the right angle when he suckles your clit hard.

Your hands find his hair, fingers digging in, hips lifting to chase every wave of pleasure as he devours you like he’s starving.

And when two fingers slide inside you—curling just right—you know you're not going to last long.

Your back arches off the bench as his fingers move inside you—slow at first, then curling, pressing just right against that spot that makes your whole body clench. His tongue never lets up on your clit, flicking in firm, deliberate strokes that sync with the rhythm of his hand.

Every nerve in your body feels like it’s lit from within.

“Seung-Hyun,” you gasp, your voice shaking.

He hums against you, the sound vibrating through your core. You buck against his mouth, helpless to the pace he sets. One of your hands clutches the bench for something—anything—to ground you, while the other stays tangled in his hair, tugging without realizing it.

You can feel it—tight, building, inevitable. That climax, thick and molten, coils deep in your belly, and the way he’s fucking you with his fingers while sucking your clit with that unrelenting pressure pushes you to the edge. Closer. Closer.

Your thighs try to close around his head as the tension snaps.

You come with a sharp cry, back bowing, thighs trembling, hips jerking up into his face. He doesn’t stop—not until you’re whimpering from the aftershocks, from the way your body shudders beneath his tongue.

Only then does he slow down, lips soft now, trailing kisses across your inner thighs as you come down from it all—panting, ruined, bliss-drunk.

He rises between your legs again, mouth slick with your arousal, and leans over you. His eyes are dark and heavy-lidded, but there's the faintest, teasing smirk on his face.

“Taste yourself,” he murmurs, and kisses you deep—wet, filthy, perfect.

Taglist: @petersasteria @redhoodedtoad @mirahyun @sherrayyyyy @sherxoo @dilfismz @breakmeoff @janie-osuih @forevervibezzzz1 @kuinnoa @juliskopf @maskedcrawford @szonyix6277@ldydeath

Series taglist: @1950schick @zaaraaax0 @tabibabib @sofiaaaah @pepsicolapussi

[lovelyiida]

Imagine Bakugo does overseas promotions in the west and you’re the only one that he can tolerate.

previous :D

ENGLISH: These interviews are so stupid.

JAPANESE: こういうインタビューは本当に愚かだ

JAPANESE: もう一度言ってもいいでしょう

ENGLISH: You could say that again

You and Katsuki sat side by side as you snuck a snide remark to one another. The both of you are in attendance at yet another boring interview.

And what pissed Katsuki off was that no one was asking him any questions. And what tops your cake on that?

There were no damn bagels!

"So (hero name), I'm sure you've seen a couple of looks at all the heroes from around the world recently. Tell me; the sight is quite revising ain't it?"

Oh, just your luck.

Misogyny is served hot today.

It's not like a hero of your caliber was here anticipating any questions based on your quirk, or your job as a hero. Nope, just beauty, romance, and what horse you're waiting to ride...

Katuski watching your temper run short at whatever question was asked. He watched as you cleared your throat and tried your best to throw on whatever coy smile you could pull out of your brain and onto your face.

"Yep, a sight for miles."

You answered flatly, Katsuki looked at his side and watched the other heroes in the vicinity quietly chuckle at the scene unfolding, which made Katsuki want to shove a bagel down the interviewer's throat.

Dry.

"And lastly, Dynamight?"

As Katuski glanced back at the interviewer once more, his attention was diverted from the snickering heroes. Raising an eyebrow, he waits for a response.

"Does he have a translator?" The interviewer asked behind him quietly before you jumped in. "No, it's okay. I can interpret for him," you say with a smile.

They let out a hum before continuing with the question. "So, Dynamight, what's it like being in America so far?"

That's it?

The 10-hour flight, multiple language classes, and interview rehearsals...for that? He hasn't been asked a single question since his stay, and when they finally give him the time of day...

ENGLISH: He just asked you what it's like being in America

JAPANESE: 彼はあなたに、アメリカにいるのはどんな感じか尋ねました…

Katsuki wanted to be calm and collected, he had a reputation to maintain for not just himself, but for his country. But he only had those thoughts after you were able to successfully rip him off of the interviewer after one swift lunge and 10 minutes of the most vulgar words you've ever heard in Japanese.

and approximately 30 seconds in English as well.

That's gonna be a lot of paperwork to fill out.

"You're an idiot, you know that?"

After 3 hours of paperwork and convincing the interviewer not to press charges. This left you to babysit the pro hero, with an ice pack in hand.

Katuki winced as you pressed hard on the knot on his temple. "You're an idiot" Katsuki spat back. You knew enough anime to know what he said back to you, which made you press harder on the bruise.

"How are we gonna go through the rest of this week without you lunging at people you slightly disagree with? Are you always like this?"

Katsuki didn't respond.

This makes you travel down a little rabbit hole...

Katsuki Bakugo, also known as Dynamight is known for his hot fiery temper which coincides with his explosive quirk. He may not be the nicest of all the heroes, but he's got the quirk to back up his mouth.

[This was pulled from the official UA Alumni Magazine]

"Wow, what a legacy."

Maybe it's because of the language barrier, but from most of the videos you've seen of him. He doesn't act like that around you. He seems quiet and reserved.

And a tad flirty.

"Well, I think that will do the trick." You placed the ice pack on the side of your bed before sitting next to him. Katsuki gave you a look before rising from the bed and heading towards the door.

"Hey!"

Katsuki turns as you yell loudly at him. Turning around he sees that damn phone. Grabbing it, he reads the message.

ENGLISH: Stay on your best behavior!

JAPANESE: 最善の行動を続ける!

"Whatever..."

yeah... this isn't gonna be a series<3

— lovelyiida

TAGLIST: @bleedingredridinghood , @burymeinside , @queenpiranhadon , @minssecret , @mochimommy2002 , @renerini , @djlance-rock , @bookcluberror, @yeehawgiddyup , @guitargirl420 , @awesomeshadowcrow-blog, @camilo-uwu, @gold24fish

[doctorbunny]

The Curious Case of the Kashiki Family Discrepency

So, I'd thought that we'd had Yuno's family situation figured out for some time now

Her 7th question of her first interrogation Q "Tell us about your family." A "Grandpa, Grandma, Mom, Me, and my little brother <- Yura"

And her dad's not around. (In theory he could be dead, but given her lack of sentimentality around the whole thing.... He probably just dipped out, either just after she was born or possibly even before then. At Most he might've returned just long enough to help make Yura, then disappeared into the night like a deadbeat tomcat -which was irresponsible but isn't necessarily a bad thing, as Amane knows, not everyone is fit to be a parent and its not like Yuno's had anything bad to say about the rest of her family)

But then I was looking over old minigrams and noticed something odd

Yuno mentions having younger brothers, plural

At first I thought it was a typo, but in the Japanese she says 弟たち/達 Otouto-tachi Otouto meaning younger brother, and -tachi, making it plural

If this was an error, it'd be a pretty obvious detail to mess up not once but twice

So that begs the question: Why does Yuno only bring up One younger brother?

There's a few possibilities: A) Yuno Really Hates her younger siblings with the exception of Yura (I'd say this is Highly Unlikely but also the funniest option) B) Given her single mother, Yuno's younger siblings may be half siblings to different fathers, and given how full to bursting the Kashiki household is already, those kids might live with their dads Meaning Yuno had to keep them all entertained if they ever visited, but she might not consider them to be in her 'core family' so to speak, especially if they don't visit all that often (I'd say this is more likely than A, and could apply alongside C if she's got more than two younger siblings) [Japan doesn't legally have dual custody, but if both parents are on speaking terms and are fine with it, the kids can as much time with the non-custodial parent as they want] C) [and this is the one @archivalofsins was leaning on me most to talk about, but admittedly is also what first came to my mind] One of Yuno's younger brothers fucking died-

And if this is the case, then we may be learning a lot more about this in her T3... (her VA did say on milgram radio we'd get to see a very different side of her this time round)

We don't know much about this hypothetical brother, but given how Yuno expects her cat's cradle to impress Amane, it may be a good bet to assume he'd have been around 12 too.

Alas, beyond this minigram, things get a bit... circumstantial However if we work based on the assumption that C is correct, then how does that colour Yuno's attitude throughout milgram?

Well, some of that probably depends on how he died, but for maximum angst.... lets suppose he'd been terminally ill [looks at Mahiru]

For starters, it'd give some interesting contexts to one of the first things we learn about Yuno from her website bio:

誰のどんな話でもニコニコ聞いてくれるが、暑苦しい精神論のようなものは嫌い。 No matter who, or what the conversation is about, she listens with a smile, but she despises stuffy ideas like seishinron.

If you've never heard of it, seishinron is the idea that anything can be overcome through sheer willpower alone. [There's lots of different ideas that are similar to this, in the US many people believe they can 'manifest' good health and future success, and that unhealthy/unsuccessful people merely didn't Think hard enough] There's many reasons one could consider this flawed. But an experience with terminal illness would be Sure to leave someone feeling angered at the idea if you had a problem you just weren't determined enough to solve it. Disease doesn't work like that.

It'd also explain why simultaenously Yuno talks positively of her family

But then also says stuff like this

Given that Yuno referred to meeting with her clients as 'reloading the warmth' I doubt the sex work was the main cause of her feeling so low... (In fact she seemed get into it as a means to distract herself From this coldness. And TBH if we try to think about depressing things that would take an otherwise good family's attention off you... I'd say dying younger brother ranks pretty high on the Bummer Scale)

Such a vivid experience with death could also lead into how Yuno says that she doesn't care about anyone, but then becomes one of Mahiru's main carers, seemingly round the clock

a role she takes very seriously to the point that Shidou suggests she get a career in healthcare (which she takes as such a serious role as to reject the idea outright, sure she's stepped up in milgram but in the real world, surely such positions would be filled by even more dedicated people-)

Only to then afterwards change her tune and say that Actually it doesn't matter at all, only murderers died, its her own fault for getting too close to the others.

Ever the Kazui foil, Yuno might be using apathy to defend her own heart. You can't be hurt by death if you don't get attached to anyone... Well you can try at least.

Or maybe I'm totally off lol... that's enough speculating for one night

Needless to say, I don't think Yuno's doing too well, it can be hard to admit you're struggling when your baseline for suffering is 'Well at least I'm not literally dying'.

[hungwy]

i think i did a good job with these translations. maybe. actually its scary

some points of difference between me and ueda:

ueda clearly separates "sentences" with the em-dash. i think this is good for representing the japanese but. i dont know. i like it better when i dont know if the next line is a continuation or a new thought

moreover ueda opts for punctuation to replicate the flow of the original. which is also great but i also forwent that

specifics:

i dont exactly know what the や in the first line of the first poem is. i do think it's the archaic sentence-final particle indicating sentiment like "isn't it?". which if true makes ueda's translation of that line weird to me. but he's the professional so im probably wrong

ueda takes 秋深き as "autumn deepens", but i couldnt find any evidence of a verb like that! i just assumed it was an i-adjective (well, ki-adjective back then)

the whole two lines of 「隣は何をする人ぞ」 are just plain hard to translate i think. so im happy with my result.

speaking of those lines, i understand why ueda chose to frame "the man next door, what does he do for a living?" it as a question, but i disagree with it (im probably too uneducated to do this). back in basho's time ぞ was indeed a question marker, buuuut, as far as im aware, it was really used for marking rhetorical questions. i dont think simply tacking on a question mark to the translation is all we can do there

the えば in the first line of the final haiku doesn't necessarily imply "whenever" as ueda translates, it's really just a plain "if", but i think ueda's choice is better by creating a more temporally lasting image. mine is more like, almost fearful: if i even try to speak, something will be lost. but whatever

also, for that last poem: its not explicit in the japanese how the lips are involved in the "cold-doing". its possible that its not lips-are-entering-into-a-state, but that lips-are-causing-a-state. i tried to go for the ambiguity there

so obviously ueda's is more reserved and professional and knowledgable and closer to the original. but i also had fun translating these. so take that

[noxiatoxia]

okay, i’ve been obsessing over your komaeda translations and i must know… given the unsure way he talks in the japanese (lots of filler words), does his dialogue change much after he learns the truth? late ch4, i mean. when he starts being condescending to everyone. i’m also very curious about his big speech about wanting to be called the ultimate hope

Hello, anon! Thank you for the message and interesting question! And thank you for the patience!

So, there's three questions here if I'm understanding:

Does Komaeda's speech pattern (sounding softer and using filler words, or generally downplaying his words) change later into ch.4?

When Komaeda starts rambling about hope, does he speak more clearly and more confidently?

What is the nuance in Komaeda's "hope" speech on the laptop?

I will answer all 3 in this order.

(Also, for anybody confused.... here's my post talking about how Komaeda uses filler words, and here's my post talking about how Komaeda's speech was deliberately changed during the earlier beta to make him sound less confident in himself.)

So, question number one:

1. Does Komaeda talk more rudely, use less filler words, or talk more assuredly in ch.4?

Hmm...I don't think so. He still uses honorifics for everyone (-san for girls and -kun for boys), he still uses sa and ne to the same amount, and he does not seem to devote any sort of rude speech for the most part. It is only his words that change, and not the way he speaks them.

My memory is horrifically bad, so please keep that in mind...I asked my friend @kaiokentimesten for help, and was provided with a good number of lines he remembered from ch.4/5 of Komaeda saying rude things, and I looked them up in the Japanese version. All lines were said in his usual speech formations, so there was no change. Again, the words he spoke just happened to be ruder, but they were said in the same tone.

I will show an example.

KOMAEDA: おっと、安易にハムスターを例に出すと、 脱落した彼に怒られちゃうかな? KOMAEDA: Oops. How clumsy of me to use hamsters as an example. Do you think that loser* would've gotten mad at me if he were still here?

*Komaeda does say "dropout" and it's used for people who have been eliminated in a game, or failed a test/exam/otherwise didn't "make the cut". I just think "loser" works better as a translation.

Nothing changes about Komaeda's speech here, he talks the same as he always does. He's just saying meaner words.

(I don't know where the translators got "weakling" from...that's nowhere in the text.)

The only exception I can think of is the beginning of Trial 4. Souda remarks they talk about the murder weapon, and Komaeda three times goes, "Ha?"

It's a funny scene, but significant because, as far as I know, this is the only time Komaeda uses this word.

(I could be wrong, but I'm totally coming up empty right now...please correct me if I am!)

は ha, is very rude. It means "What?" or "Huh?" but is a very rude way to say it. People like Kuzuryuu and Oowada love using it, and Hinata uses it a fair amount, although even Hinata - who's whole design philosophy, as pointed out by the SDR2 artbook, is to be more masculine and ruder than Naegi was - uses え e more often.

え e, うん un, ん nn, あれ are, are more casual but non-rude ways to say "What?"

Komaeda always used one of those first four from what I can remember, or simply 何 nani, which is probably the most neutral way to say "What?"

So to see Komaeda use this is surprising.

This is different than ははは, はっ, or あはは which are normal laughing sounds.

Oh, before we move out of Chapter 4, here's a mistranslation I want to point out (or, less mistranslation, more very direct translation where the joke is lost in English).

KOMAEDA: じゃあ、始めようか。シンキングターイム...ってヤツだね。

Komaeda isn't a stranger to randomly injecting English words into his speech - a quirk that I feel is used to show he's a bookworm/otherwise intelligent (that's just my thought) - and in those instances, instead of translating directly (because using English in English loses the nuance that using English in Japanese does) I would replace it with bigger, more obscure English words.

But this is actually not one of those times.

Another thing Komaeda is no stranger to is making random pop culture references. He does it more than you would think for a character like him.

While "Thinking Time" isn't a reference to any specific Japanese media per se, it's Japanese game show lingo.

For example, a tough question is given to the contestants, and they have 30 seconds to think of the answer before being forced to give one. These 30 seconds are called "Thinking Time".

I don't know the English equivalent. I know there's a countdown timer in stuff like Jeopardy and Minute to Win It, but I don't think they say anything. Sometimes it's "You have [x] seconds, good luck!" Or "and...start!" or suchlike.

I guess in that case, this line is better localized as:

KOMAEDA: Let's start! You have 30 seconds on the clock...good luck!

(I chose 30 seconds because that's how long the "Make your Selection" part lasts maximum).

2. When ranting about hope, does Komaeda speak more clearly, more confidently?

Yes!

In scenes like post- Chapter 1 trial, where Komaeda monologues to the audience for a few minutes before being knocked out - where he is rambling on and on - his speech is noticeably smoother with less pauses or filler injections. I would also venture to say the way he speaks makes it sound like he is stating facts, that he is very confident in his assertions.

3. Komaeda's Hope Speech on the laptop

Firstly, I want to point somethings out...unrelated to the hope speech itself, but just fun to note.

The garbled, loud noise you hear sometimes where Komaeda is speaking is not gibberish (listen here, volume warning). For whatever reason, the English version did not have Bryce Papenbrook record lines for this, and still uses the Japanese version.

It doesn't reveal any new information, sadly. And I can't make out the second one...but it's highly likely in that line I linked that Komaeda is saying 希望は絶望なんかに負けないんだ or "Hope will never lose to despair."

When it comes to the scrambled text...I've never been much of a decoder, but I can point some stuff out.

For one, I'm 99% sure the Japanese team probably provided the translators with the full, unscrambled text so they could better translate it.

That said, it's not impossible to figure this out.

<まじむかつく+超Ｙさしい２こんなにEEものｇ１０２＄うRしｓ～＝～＋いｄｓねうれOｒｚ』

まじむかつく is a term that means "extremely irritated" hence "seriously pissing me off".

The + is the same in both version, I assume it means "and".

The next part needs a little explaining. In Japanese, all consonants (for the most part) are followed by a vowel. on a Japanese keyboard, if you do not finish typing the character, only the consonant shows up.

for example, な is "na". but if you only type the n and don't follow with the a, you get ｎ.

There's a lot of Japanese slang based off this. To type ん you have to type "n" twice. so, a slang form of konnichiwa (こんにちは) is shortened to こん, konn. But it got shortened even further to こｎ.

so, 超Ｙさしい requires a bit of guesswork, as there are several sounds that start with "y", like ゆ yu, よ yo, や ya. the さしい at the end tells us it's an adjective.

超 in this case means "very", like "very expensive" or "very awesome".

Likely, Yさしい is やさしい, which is either "kind" or "easy".

This makes 超Ｙさしい either "extremely kind/nice" or "extremely simply/easy".

Official translators wrote it as "hella nice", aka "very kind".

Beyond that I start to get bad at this xD I don't know where they get "I can't believe something odd like this is only $102".

The 2 may be に, as 2 in Japanese is pronounced に(ni), and に is a particle.

I think the ＥＥ Is to be read like いい (ii) in Japanese. And the ｇ might be が (ga)?

超やさしいにこんなにいいものが１０２＄

こんなにいいもの would be "Such nice stuff" or "Really good stuff".

が at the end could be "But..." or "However..." but if the 102$ is connected somehow, then it may be an object particle.

Maybe it's "Really good stuff gotten easy for $102"

But that isn't fully true to the official English version, so maybe they were provided with more clear words to translate from. Like I said, I'm no good at codes.

The last part is easy though. うRし follows the same rule as before. うれし Ur(e)shi(i), which means "happy". I don't know what the "s" is, since it seems the sentence picks back up at いｄｓね, as うれしい is the full word. "d s" is probably d(e)s(u) with the ne particle at the end. うれしいですね, which means "I'm happy!"

And I'm guessing Orz is the emoticon.

Okay, sorry for rambling. When it comes to the actual speech, there is something interesting to note, albiet small.

The English version is correct in its translation, and the only thing I have to offer is the nuance behind how Komaeda makes his requests.

He says stuff like, "Respect me" "Praise me" "Build a bronze statue of me" and such. And he requests all of these by saying ～てくれ ~tekure.

I don't think Komaeda ever uses this outside of this speech. てくれ can be seen as rather rude. Though the formation looks like an imperative (very rude), it is not, since at it's core, てくれ means you are asking someone to do something for you, not ordering them. It is still the rudest way you can "request" something though.

It's not as severe as Komaeda yelling 黙れよ (damare yo) in 2.5, but it's close behind.

It does show he is being very callous and assertive in this scene, truly a 180 from him being casual but still respectful. This sort of demanding request tone coming from Komaeda is surprising, I feel.

Otherwise...there isn't really any nuance to add, I'm afraid. The speech is rather straight forward and the English version translates it well.

I hope this answers your questions!

[sun-citadel]

Headcanon time, hooray

Harpuia is a ✨️ narcissist ✨️

No, I don't mean the stereotypical portrayal of an individual with narcissism, but rather the concept of a person [ reploid ? ] with NPD [ pwNPD ] . I'm not saying this because he was a villain, but because it suits him.

Edit ;; this is a game based observation, I didn't account for the audio dramas as it's been a while

[ flag cred ]

Why specifically NPD ? It's typically viewed as the " evil abusive person disorder " , when in reality it's a maladaptive coping strategy to handle a sense of inferiority and an internal struggle with deep seated self - hatred from early on abuse, by portraying one's self as high and mighty — and in many instances, better than other people to cope. But that's barely scratching the surface.

Anyways. I did reference the DSM - V / an unofficial revised version by a pwNPD, as well as testimonies from others. But this is more an internal character breakdown, rather than how a person may view a pwNPD on an external level.

But to my points :

- 1. Grandiose sense of self :

That's very blatant with how Harpuia portrays himself, to where upon his first meetings with Zero, he states that he will repent for his sins, only to then be bested. While he'd admittedly impressed by it, he does tell Zero to stay healthy so that he may exact his revenge in the end — still believing himself to be superior, despite Zero's legendary status and capabilities. Upon years of going unopposed and retiring reploids to the point of almost boredom it feels like, I've always felt he'd garner a rather haughty attitude up until a challenge comes forth and bests him. Though, his disgust and anger is best apparent upon the repairs forced upon him. To be stripped of his position, to be torn apart, only to then be repaired by those he views as lesser is a clear strike to his ego. He's pushing himself to the point of fully avoiding repairs if it meant he could have a shred of pride left, which, self punishment and harm is common when a pwNPD struggles against a crash and feels at a low point. Harpuia has gone from mighty, basically second in command to X, to someone who was brutally beaten time and time again, to outright admitting to enjoy the pain / letting the pain distract him from his existence [ depending on translation ] to just cope with a fragile sense of self as someone split of X.

- 2. Preoccupied with feelings / fantasies of success, power, etc.

It does tie what I said previously, his countless attempts to try and surpass the legendary reploid, so I won't be redundant and repeat points. But he is in a place of power, of success, yet feels dissatisfied at times. His Japanese dialogue states that :

フフ‥あいかわらず‥やるな‥

それでいい‥それでいいんだ‥

オレは‥

オマエとたたかっているときだけ‥

なにもかもわすれることが‥できるんだ

しばらくは、これでいい

Only when fighting Zero can he forget everything for a little while, an act of self - harm that allows him to cope with the fact the world he knows is starting to crumble. He's forced to face his ego, when he never did prior to the awakening of Zero. It's a ruse. His feelings are complex, switching from the enjoyment of a challenge, only to go mask off during the repairs and admit to feeling highly inferior, especially after his banishment.

By this point, as to not repeat myself, I'll lump categories together.

- 3. Believe that they are “ special ” and can only be understood by other special or high-status people.

The Four Guardians position, being created of X's DNA — dare I elaborate ? He's essentially the top 1% of Neo Arcadia, just below Copy X essentially, with an entire battalion beneath him.

- 4. Require excessive admiration.

Harpuia recieves it, he receives admiration, respect, yet at the same time, fear. He is entitled, because he's so used to his role as someone so above everyone, yet below only Copy X — which he does seem mostly satisfied with, up until his questioning of things with Weil. Being betrayed by his Master like so, especially to someone like Weil, is bound to make anyone feel low : and with Harpuia, he results to harming himself by leaving early from the Resistance Base.

- 5. Sense of boredom, due to a lack of connection with others.

Points to the Japanese translation yet again. That, paired with the fact he seems relatively lonely. The other guardians don't even follow him in his banishment, and show up only after to aid in defeating Omega. They were a team, he worked closely with Leviathan — yet, ultimately he was left by himself.

- 6. Lack of empathy.

He's killed others for what he assumed the greater good, contemplated killing Zero while he was downed, attempted to kill Elpizo for knowing too much, there are various times where he takes a more selfish approach when he tries to play hero. Though, in his lack of compassion and empathy, he does choose to do good — especially when following the rules of robotics to help aid and protect Neo Arcadia. Though to other reploids, he comes across as callous, harsh, and even evil, yet, he is simply following orders that he learns to eventually question upon realizing he's doing more harm than good.

So he enters an arc of remission at the end, where he isn't cured [ NPD is incurable ] , but ultimately makes a selfless sacrifice to better humanity.

Does he like Zero after this ? Debatable. Does he respect him ? Absolutely, possibly to the point of being viewed as an equal in the NPD hierarchy in my eyes, despite initially starting out as a devalued person / bottom of the tier.

There are other points, but I really don't want to be repeating myself. He just comes across as an individual with NPD, judging from a fluctuating sense of self as his ego is repeatedly shot down by Zero. He's self loathing despite a mighty mask he wears, and ultimately, still attempts to do good despite the horrible actions commited from a lack of awareness that his goal caused harm.

Thanks for coming to my TED talk.