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oozmium · 1 year ago

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Hidden Relics and The Man Who Hid (Them) - Translation

This is a translation of Hallelujah's side story found in the SMTIVA artbook. There used to be a translation floating around for this a couple years ago, although it appears to have been taken down. So I've asked a good friend of mine to translate the story and I looked over it for lore accuracy.

A direct link to the translation hosted on their blog can be found here. But if you'd like to read it on tumblr, click the read more. Please enjoy your read!

One more thing: PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THIS TRANSLATION ANYWHERE ELSE. Instead, link back to either this tumblr post or my friend's blog if you wish to share it.

Hidden Relics and the Man who Hid Them

Original Writer: Mito Yoko

Translator: VerdantGrove

ENG Proofer: Elegy

note: translation notes can be found at the bottom.

—

A single notebook rests in the man’s hand. That aged notebook is just one of the relics the man found in his former residence…it’s the memoir of a certain woman. The man places his fingers atop the warped cover just as he always does, and sets foot into the world of the memoir…

—

Feb 12

Hallelujah found a pen and a notebook. He said it was a present for Mama. I used this when I was study-ing¹ with Angel. How long ago was that again? Hallelujah’s four now, so… No, no. I don’t wanna think about it.

Angel complimented my handwriting. He said “it’s not very well done, but repetition is key.”

Writing a diary so he compliments me again.

Feb 13

Three visitors. Ashura Kai came to collect the money, and give us food rashions². A little more than usual, thanks to the work I did. Mama will work hard for Hallelujah.

Feb 14

Zero visitors. Big fire in Shibuya. Scary.

Humans are scarier than demons. Angel…

Feb 15

Four visitors. Tired.

Feb 16

Visito

May 2

Forgot about the diary. Writing every day is hard.

Jun 13

Ashura Kai came to collect the money. Guy in charge is annoying.

Luckily visitors were nice today.

Jun 15

We got canned food from the guests³. Hallelujah was super happy. But… I didn’t know what to say when he asked me “what’s a backblue⁴?”. If Angel were here, he would have told him. Have to study.

Jun 20th⁵

Hallelujah keeps yelling about wanting to go outside. Even though it’s dangerous up there. Even though I’m doing my best to live down here for him.

Jul 4th

Hallelujah and I talked about Papa. “Samyaza”... I get shy just saying his name. I’ll keep what really happened a secret for now.

He asked me, “why isn’t he with us?”

Why, I wonder?

Jul 15th

Ashura Kai came to collect the money.

Seems grades are good. Oh dear.

August⁶ 15th

The Ashura Kai⁷ came to collect the money. I ranted to a friendly guest, and their response was “poor thing.” They said I was such a poor thing, having to work and take care of a child at the same time.

Am I really a poor thing?

August 16th

Was all guests I hated today. But have to stay strong. For Hallelujah.

Sep 9⁸

Wrong. Something, wrong. Head spinning. Get mad when I look at Hallelujah. How can he laugh when I’m suffering this much?

But all this suffering is for his sake.

He looks just like me and I hate it. Hate everything.

September 15th

Collected the money.

I’m mad. Can’t even look at Hallelujah.

September 2

September 21st

I hit Hallelujah yesterday.

He kept asking questions about my work, and I said “you know it’s all your fault” and hit him.

I even blurted out “it’s your fault Angel went away too.”

I’m awful.

September 30th

Hallelujah threw up.

While I was cleaning it up, he cried “sorry, sorry.” I said “you’re a lot more serious than you were when you were a baby,” and it made me laugh.

I felt like that was the first time I’d laughed in a long time.

Then Hallelujah laughed too.

He laughed for me, even though I’d done something so horrible.

For some reason, it made me want to cry.

October 1st

I’m thinking as I watch Hallelujah sleep.

Hallelujah’s name was given to him by Angel.

It means “gratitude.”

I was really happy, so I tried my best to remember how to write it, even though it’s hard to spell⁹.

How the hell did I forget that? I’m such an idiot.

October 3rd

I hit Hallelujah and managed to say “sorry.”

He forgave me with an “it’s all righty.”

He patted me with his tiny little hands.

Sorry. Love you.

October 15th

That guest again. Always telling me I’m a “poor thing,” so annoying.

October 21st

I still have a lot of mixed feelings about Hallelujah.

But I’m not angry at him. Luckily.

Nov 15¹⁰

What am I gonna do? Hallelujah hit the man who collects the money. I got hit, then Hallelujah, he turned into something not human, got scary strong, then that guy, he wouldn’t move. Ashura Kai—no, oh my God, this isn’t what you should write in a diary.

But I want to calm down.

Hallelujah can’t stop shaking even though I’m hugging him tight.

Hallelujah was just helping me. He didn’t do anything wrong. That’s it, Hallelujah didn’t do anything wrong.

Hallelujah did not do anything wrong.

Hallelujah cried himself to sleep. Thank God.

It was hard, but I made up my mind.

We’re going to leave the Underground. I thought I wouldn’t survive if I wasn’t here. But that’s wrong.

I have everything Angel has taught me. It’ll be okay.

Leaving before the stores open is a matter of life or death.

I’ll keep Hallelujah safe.

—

“They sure do change easily, these ‘humans.’”

The man's cold and emotionless words reflect his hardened features as he emerges from the glow of the streetlights. And yet, for some reason he couldn’t place, when his eyes catch sight of these words of determination written in smudged letters, his hand stops. The man had never once thought about why that was.

Just as his hand stopped, he checked his smartphone for new notifications, but… The name which he hoped to see was still not there. Ignoring the many voices seeking out his direction, the man turns his attention to the rest of the memoir.

This memoir tells the tale of a mother and child desperately searching for a way to survive. Silently, the man continues to read…

—

May 19th

Our life on the surface has been going smoothly, thanks to us handing out Reds. I’m less worried about the demons. Hallelujah will be 10 soon. Seems like he’s made a friend called Chiro. I wonder what kind of kid they are?

June 12th

We got canned food as payment for the Reds!

Hallelujah was on the edge of his seat before we even opened it. He looks happy eating the fruit. I’m glad.

June 13th

Hallelujah fell asleep hugging the empty can.

It made him that happy?

June 15th

Studying with Hallelujah. I want to tell him everything Angel taught me.

June 28th

Hallelujah made me mad. It was because he took out that empty can when we were collecting relics. Is that thing his prized possession…?

June 29th

Making up with Hallelujah. I promised I wouldn’t put my hands on him without thinking anymore. Sorry, Hallelujah.

July 10th

I know what Hallelujah’s friend is now. It was a shock.

July 12th

I ran into that guest from our time underground. I wished they’d shut up about wanting me to come back to the city or wanting to look after me. Not to mention they told me how sorry they are for me again. I’m mad.

July 18th

Hallelujah has gotten good at looking for relics.

I told him “you’d be fine doing this on your own at this point” to praise him, but that made him extremely grumpy. Why??

July 20th

That guy’s here again. Ugh.

Even though Hallelujah’s forgotten what happened that day.

July 22nd

Hallelujah doesn’t seem to like studying. He said it was because he was gonna play with his friend, then ran off. Where’d this come from?

If only Angel were here at a time like this…

August 22nd

Had a conversation with a grumpy Hallelujah.

Studying is essential for proper judgment.

It’s essential in order to decide for yourself what’s important to you. Just like how I decided to believe Angel. …I wonder if I got through to him?

September 2nd

I found out why Hallelujah was acting so strange.

That man told him things. Things like “it’s my fault you got driven above ground” and “they want to get rid of me.” What the hell? Sure enough, humans are the worst. Way, way worse than demons!!

I want to explain. But what should I say?

September 5th

That guy has been loitering around us again.

Hallelujah is still feeling down too… Worried.

September 30th

I was debating whether or not to do this, but I’m going to tell Hallelujah.

That Angel really is an angel.

That he’s not human.

And… about what happened that day.

Tomorrow I will tell him. Angel, give me courage.

October 1st

The conversation went awful. “You’ve been giving me special treatment ‘cause I’m not human,” and “I can tell my dad was more important to you.” …I had thought it’d go like that.

October 3rd

Hallelujah’s in his room with Chiro, and he won’t come out.

If I was Angel, what would I do? …Maybe It’s because I’m always like this that it seemed like his dad was more important to me.

I have. To think.

October 4th

I’m rereading through this diary and thinking. I’ve written everything here, whether it’s the things that made me happy or the things that caused me pain. It’s really true that I hated that child. It’s really true that I loved him, too.

All of it. It’s all true.

October 5th

Received a summons from that man. I’m scared, so I’m bringing that weapon I snatched back then. I wonder; can I use it?

I want to talk with Hallelujah when I get home.

I’ve finally settled on what I want to say.

I like Hallelujah.

I love Hallelujah, because he’s Hallelujah!

I didn’t ask for us to make someone I could cherish other than myself just so I could abandon him.

When I had a chance encounter with Angel and was blessed with Hallelujah, I was really, truly happy.

I just wanted to do a good job of getting this happiness across to him, too.

…Can I even get that across to him? I’m an idiot, so I doubt I can.

But I’ll tell him as many times as it takes. Angel told me that repetition is key, after all.

Well, I should head out soon. …I know you probably wouldn’t give me a reply to this, so I’ll write it here.

See you later, Hallelujah.

—

The memoir ends there, and the aged notebook does not speak further. But the man knew. He knew of both the woman’s abrupt and miserable end and of the whereabouts of the child who lost his mother’s protection…

“Mr. Abe, it’s an emergency!!”

The man who was called—Abe, furrowing his brow, would go to respond to the insolent trespasser.

“Understood. The ‘final battle,’ yeah?”

Yes, at last, the curtain has risen on the battle between God’s Chariot and the Demon King. As Acting Chairman, it is his duty to finish this play, and yet…

“...Not a word from him.”

There were still no notifications from the person he longed to see—from Hallelujah.

That made one thing apparent—estrangement.

“Guess ya found yer angel… Eh, Ayako?”

Abe—the fallen angel who was once called an ‘angel’—imagined a future in which he would stand opposite his own son…and laughed.

<Fin>

TL Notes:

Studying is written in katakana here. It shows unfamiliarity with the written word.

Half of the word is written in katakana here, and the other half in kanji. I chose to portray this as a misspelling, as someone new to writing would be just as likely to misspell the word “rations” in English as they would be not to know the first kanji of the word haikyuu (rations) in Japanese.

Mama writes the word okyaku (visitors/guests) in kanji for the first time here. I marked this with a switch from “visitors” (neutral connotation) to “guests” (more respectful connotation of welcomeness).

Hallelujah seems to have flipped the kanji in the word “blueback (fish)”（青魚 lit. blue fish）to 魚青 (lit. fish blue); I had him flip the word “blueback” to “backblue” in the same manner. He likely read it left to right instead of right to left.

Before this date, the days were written in hiragana. This marks the switch to the use of kanji for each day. I decided to portray this by typing the numbers in proper date format (e.g. 20th instead of 20).

Before this date, the months were written in hiragana. This marks the switch to the use of kanji for each month. I decided to portray this by typing the months spelled out instead of abbreviated.

Rather than writing the “Ashura” in “Ashura Kai” entirely in hiragana as she had been doing previously, Mama writes the first kanji in “Ashura” here for the first time. I decided to portray this by using the article “the” to make it a more complete sentence, thus similarly showing a progression of education.

Mama returns to writing the date entirely in hiragana here in her distress.

Referring to it being difficult to write the kanji for gratitude (感謝). I paralleled this to spelling the word.

Same as TL note 8.

#smt iv apocalypse #smtiva #smtivf #smt4a #hallelujah smt #translations #theres like 5 bajillion ways to tag this game im cryin idk which one to use so im using all of them #anyway if you have any questions feel free to leave them in my ask box

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