Sitting on a bench by the river, Kasane
reads her mother’s letter to Nagi. Narration: “The last letter that mama wrote
to Kaido Nagi mentioned her own daughter.”
Izana wrote: “From beginning to end, I
don’t know why I was the one who lived and not you. With this kind of
situation, I became a mother. The daughter’s name is ‘Kasane’. It’s disappointing
that she didn’t look like your brother but rather, me.
[Kasane: Confronted with an ugly daughter
who looked like ‘Izana’, she is endlessly perplexed, and it took her a very
long time to become aware of her own love towards the daughter.] In my eyes,
she, who is originally ugly, had become very cute in my eyes. Is your love,
Chigusa’s love also like this?”
[Kasane: She saw her own reflection on the
daughter, afterwards, she also saw her own reflection on the witch ‘Yoi’.] “I
want to become ‘Yoi’, become that witch. Mountains, trees, spring water gushing
and moss-covered rocks.
Lofty Keyaki [Japanese zelkova] guarding
the confined place. Teardrop-like stars. Four seasons. If I can go back to that
place, go back to that place which I always cursed, go back to that time...”
Kasane thinks, “Even if you have the
intention of turning back into ugly ‘Yoi’, turning back to your original self,
but, you don’t have the courage to reveal this idea[/thought].
Narration: “—but Kingo will
definitely...no, no one would want to see this appearance again. How can one
make an ugly woman without cover, use her original appearance to stand on
stage?”
Kasane says, “So, if the ugly daughter were
to live on with her original appearance-- You cannot dare imagine that kind of
future.” Kasane is facing Izana who wrote, “Once there was a random
opportunity, I asked Kasane-chan, ‘What do you want to become when you grow
up?”
Flashback: ‘Sugeyo’ is walking with Kasane
at that time. Kasane stopped walking. ‘Sugeyo’ glanced at her. After pausing, Kasane
blurted out, “...actress.” This surprised ‘Sugeyo’. End Flashback. Izana wrote,
“She will walk on the same path so I handed over to the daughter...”
Izana says, “Thus, I decided to give the
‘lipstick’ to Kasane-chan... Afterwards, as a precaution, I also entrusted that
task to Kingo.” Kasane asks, “...is it to finally get me on stage using the
lipstick?”
Izana replies, “That’s right. You’re ugly
but you wish to get up onstage, then, you’ll simply walk in my path. Even if I
wanted to tell you this but if I help Sugeyo and Nogiku escape from that
house...
...then it is quite possible that the me as
‘Sugeyo’ who is left behind cannot run away and escape. ...so, in the end, I
still haven’t told Kingo of my idea as well as my understanding of ‘Yoi’...”
Kasane asks if she is really afraid to
expose her weak point to Kingo. Izana says, perhaps. “I’m always acting in
front of him, acting out whom he considers as the beautiful ‘Izana’--”
Kasane says, “But, actually, whether it is
Habuta-san, Fuchi Sugeyo, Kaidou Nagi, they are willing to face the ugly you
squarely, but you simply didn’t respond to their gaze. I understand your dread—
...but, you’re so gutless. I will not walk
in your footsteps. I will personally go witness--- the future...as to what it
is like at the end of the path that you didn’t choose.” Izana smiles.
Then, Kasane looked surprised. She opens
her hand and sees the lipstick. Then, walking Nogiku to her. Kasane apologizes
to her for always asking for her help. Holding out a small paper bag to Nogiku,
Kasane says like what they’ve agreed before, this is for her...please.
After Nogiku takes the bag, Kasane looks at
the lipstick on her hand. She says, “Furthermore, ...I’m also giving the
‘lipstick’ to you...” Nogiku looks at it. She reaches for it then stops.
She tells Kasane that actually, in her
eyes, whether being the beauty whom everyone talks about or the ugly person
whom everyone talks about, I’m both ‘unusual’. You are the person whom Fuchi
Sugeyo wanted to protect...even if right now, you still wanted the forever
switch, it doesn’t matter to me. For me, there is no loss whatsoever.”
Kasane looks surprised at sad Nogiku. She
closes her eyes then says, “...thanks. But, I already do not want to do this
kind of thing again. Besides...we shouldn’t be played between Izana and Sugeyo’s
hands. We should use our own way to settle it off.”
Nogiku says, “...I understand, sister.”
With that, Nogiku takes the lipstick and leaves. Kasane looks up then looks
down. She holds herself as birds fly up the sky.
Narration: “I’ve gave up the unlimited
possibilities that the lipstick gave me. *scenes of Salome and Lady Macbeth* Now---forever.
What’s left is simply this human body
that is filled with ‘fear’, ‘uneasiness’, ‘self-inferiority’ and ‘shame’. What
remains is simply an ugly monster [/freak] squirming to climb out from the
bottomless abyss.”
At a meeting, someone enters which causes
Kingo and Iku to look surprised. That someone apologizes for being late on the
first day. A woman asks if that person is an actress. The man says no way. The
woman says but, there is still no one who’ll play ‘Yoi’...
Kingo says that everyone had already
greeted the others and you’re the only one left. Looking tense, Kasane says
that she’ll be play ‘Yoi and she’s...‘Kasane’...Yoroshiku” Everyone looks
uneasy over her but Iku is teary-eyed.
A glasses woman asks Iku what’s wrong, is
she alright. Wiping her tears, Iku assures the woman that she is fine! Kasane
quietly looks at Iku. Kingo says then, let’s start. “First of all, I want to
think everybody. This ‘Ake no Hime’ was actually terminated last year when it
was about to be staged...
...Even if it is like that, I still have
made a few friends from the theatrical troupe and there are also new friends
who agreed to come and join. For this...I want to express my gratitude. Even if
it is inevitable that the scale and staging period has been cut [short], but I
can definitely create a remarkable drama. Together with everyone present here.”
Kasane looks at Kingo and thinks that he
had also sorted out his state of mind and plan on a comeback. “This [situation]
and the previous situation is not the same. I have also properly sorted out my
state of mind, and tried to imagine for countless times the scene wherein my appearance
‘is being look upon by others’. Then, with resolution, I’ve come here-- But,”
Kingo tells everyone that they’ll quickly
do a cold reading [/dialogue reading] from act 1 scene 1 starting from ‘Ake’s
lines. Iku says okay. Iku reads, ‘I’m known as Ake.’ Kasane says, “...ah...I’m
known...’ Kasane, Kingo, Iku and the others look tense and surprised.
Narration: “Even if the mind has already
understood this situation, but the body—rejects [it]. In the end, don’t even
talk about acting, I cannot even finish reading a small line from the script.
The first day of rehearsal ended like this.”
Comment: From the letter, it turns out that Izana did manage to love her
little Kasane. And after reading ‘Yoi’, she had longed to go back to her
hometown. She also wanted to go back to her original appearance but alas, she
is a coward in doing that.
That is one thing Kasane had but her mother
didn’t. So, Kasane now wants to try to do what her mother didn’t do. Can she do
it? From the looks of things, it won’t be easy. She has to battle her ‘subconscious’
self which is making her body stop doing what she wanted to do.
Still, it is good that the sisters made
amends. I wonder what’s in the paper bag. Letters? Perhaps, things from Nina
which Nogiku can help give closure to Nina’s parents? Maybe something from
Sugeyo? I think it might be important later on. Scans by 网易汉化
Quote
of the day:
Life isn't about preventing yourself from
falling, but learning to pick yourself up after falling. ~ thatonerule
Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for these summaries!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading them, lovelyluvluv ^-^
DeleteThanks for the translation Kat!
ReplyDeleteAnd what did I say!^^ She did return to Iku!
She did what Sugeyo wished of her looked up to her mother and returned alive T.T She calls herself Kasane which is a good thing but now she has to conquer what her mother couldn't but the adoptive mother decided to do her own "Stage Fright" and how she got that scar.
She has yet to reembrace the "Fuchi" (Abyss)...
Let's see how she and Nogiku will be able to heal themselves now that the revenge part is over!
Thanks for reading, Jack ^-^
DeleteHehe ^^
Yup.