Side Story｜Lethe（5）
5-1 "
The cliff overlooked it all. 这座悬崖俯瞰着世间万物。 At the end of the day, those who had abandoned the mortal coil left behind their souls like hermit shells for other, new lives to take them. 一日即将收尾。每当到达这一时刻，那些终于摆脱红尘俗世的人们也将抛弃自身的真实性。好似寄居生物一般，他们将褪去的外壳留给随后而来的崭新生命。 Their spirits ascended to the land's Pool, luminous and glimmering overhead. 最后，他们的灵魂就会升向头顶上方：那潭闪闪发亮的灵魂之池。 Water-like spirits, almost formless; everything white and flowing into that vibrancy which bore through the clouded sky. 灵魂若水，缥缈无形。一切都将化作霜色，归于阴云彼岸的光彩生机。 In the gray landscape that was her world, 她身处的世界便存在于那灰蒙蒙的盛景之中。 this sight—this unique, spectacular sight—was something many could call a wonder. 那番景象——此般独特，而又这般壮丽的景象——称作"奇观"也当之无愧。 To her, it was ordinary. It was everyday. 可对她来说，这确是日常之景。她的心中并未因此诞生任何涟漪。 It was work. 这只是每日工作必经的一环。 "Any trembling on the left side?" "左方有过任何波澜吗？" her confrère asked from behind. 背后，她的那位同事如是询问。 She very slightly moved her head to see him sitting on the ground. On his lap sat a wide, black, shallow bowl of water, used for lecanomancy, 她略微转过头去，正见他盘坐于地面，大腿上方还平置着一只用于水象占卜的黑色浅碗。 and from the ripples inside it she could see that he'd just performed a divination. 碗盏水面上尚未消逝的涟漪，让她意识到他不久前刚刚进行了一次预测。 She answered him lightly with, "No." 她稍有些漫不经心地开口应答："并无发现。" Then she asked, "Why? Have you noticed something?" 随后，她追问道，"何故这样问？你是不是有察觉到什么？" "It looks like the earth shook a bit," he explained. "方才地面似乎有些许震荡。"他补充道。 "Ahh... That's not good. Should I look closer?" "嗯……的确不是什么吉兆呢。需我前去留心观察一番吗？" "Hmm... It seems like a fissure," he said. "呵……那东西看上去像是道裂缝。"他说道， "Go take care of it." "那好，你帮忙过去处理一下吧。" With a simple "alright," she stepped off the cliff. 简洁精练地应了一声"好的"之后——伫立于悬崖边沿的她纵身一跃。 The density of spirits nearby slowed her fall. 周遭的灵魂密集到足以减缓她的下落速度。 She found a pair of strings that were keeping her blouse, sleeves, and skirt taut. When she tugged them, they loosened and began to dangle; 在此情形下，她将手探向了那对用来束紧自己上衣、袖口与短裙的丝线，将其拉扯几许。少女身上的衣装立刻莲松开来，于空气中悠悠飘扬。 a shimmer emanated from the cloth and her dress began to ruffle loudly. And as it did, it dulled the influence of the dead. 一团光晕自她的服装中逐渐显形。光辉点亮之际，四周死灵所带来的干涉也随之黯淡无数。 Once she reached the ground, she took her scythe from her hip, unfolded it to its full height, and after turning it over, rode the underside of the blade in flight to her far-off destination. 在抵达地面后，她将悬在腰后的镰刀举向身前，展开到原有的长度后便翻转过来，斜坐于刀刃旁侧，朝着自己遥远的目的地高速驶去。 To mend the fissure after coaxing out the souls trapped within it. 将受困于裂隙的迷途之灵引领出来，再着手修复裂隙。 To return to the cliff, and watch for any other aberrations. 默默无言地返回悬崖，继续留意其他的异常现象。 She was to do this, and things like it, day after day. 过去的她，正是这样活着——重复着如上所述的任务，或是一概肖似之事。日复一日，年复一年。 Yes. That was her responsibility. And, in time, her life would join the others. 这便是她的职责，她的义务所在；这般周而复始，直到她再也不是孤单一人。 In fact, that time has already passed. 到底，那段时光也早就褪色逝去。 It's long ago, gone. 那些日子，很早以前便不复存在了。不复存在—— The world and life she once knew is now only a shapeless memory. 她脑海中生活于那片世界的"记忆"，早已化作无形。
5-2 "
But this isn't what death was meant to be. 只是，"死亡"本该截然不同。 There was no mystery to it in her life: what happened to the dead was what happened. 形存则神存，形灭则神灭——在她的生命历程中，此为公理，"死亡"自然也不是谜题。 There was no "next world", only that which you were born in, lived in, and died in. Something like heaven... hell... even purgatory: these were moralists' tales which only seemed valid in the most ancient of times. 不存在转生来世；那些有关天堂，乃至十八层地狱的故事，都仅仅是远古时代的道德主义者才会推崇的无稽之谈——人出生于那个世界，在那里活着，在那里死去，在那里迎来结局。 So what is this place? What is this mysterious realm that she one day awakened to? 那么这地方究竟又是何处？她到底苏醒于什么未知的领域？ What might it be? What might it be? 到底是哪里……这里到底是什么地方？ Well... does it really matter? 不过也是……或许她根本没有必要纠结这个问题吧？ "Hm..." "嗯……" She sits knees-up on top of a lighthouse, overlooking a desert. White. 她蹲坐在灯塔之巅，俯视着脚下的无尽荒漠。 White, and more white... 纯白、无际的纯白、整片大地延伸着纯白…… and there, glass. "Arcaea" is its name. 而就在那边，有着玻璃碎片：那些名叫"Arcaea"的碎片。 With her chin in her hand, she casts a languid gaze toward a bridge extending left. 她逍遥地用手托着下巴，慵懒的目光投向那座朝左面延伸而去的桥梁。 She doesn't know where that one goes. 少女并不清楚那座桥会通向何处。 "Phew..." She exhales and stands, taking the scythe from off her hip. "呼……"她长呼出一口气，站起身的同时将手探向了臀部后方的那把长镰。 It doesn't work quite the same here, but she can still utilize it for travel. 时过境迁，这把镰刀的用途已不尽相同，但辅助她四处游走仍旧不在话下。 Unconsciously, she brushes her bangs the other way. In doing so she grazes the front side of her left horn with her fingertips. ——无意识地挥手抚弄着刘海，指尖轻轻碰触到左角的前段。 Right... right. 对啊……差点都忘了这件事。 To this day, of all the memories she can find within the Arcaea... 迄今为止，她于Arcaea之中见证了如此多的回忆…… she hasn't found a single one with any horned humans represented. 但自始至终，她都未曾寻找到哪怕一片能够代表头顶长着双角的人类。 With these memories being really the only attention-grabbers in this world fashioned from glass, she's spent quite a bit of time watching and cataloguing them. 在这片由玻璃碎片而点缀的世界之中，她确实花了不少的时间去观察、分类那些回忆。毕竟说到底，那些碎片中的各种回忆是这世界里唯一能够吸引住她的事物。 Keeping them, like records. 她就这样保存它们，像是记录情报一般。 And indeed, those records don't even hint at her race having ever existed anywhere. 不容置疑的是，这些记录根本丝毫无法证实她所属的种族位于任何领域的存在性。 Her race is... 她所属的种族是……？ Race... Race? 种族……种族？ Is that a safe assumption to make? 如此假设究竟合理吗？ Was she part of a "people" when she was alive, participating in spiritual horticulture? 难道说，她活着的时候也曾身为"哪一种族的成员"，参与着某种不可告人的心灵园艺？ Not that it matters now, but perhaps remembering more clearly will unlock more of her old self... 这也并不意味着那些过往要放在此时还会显得有多重要，但说不定尝试弄清那些往事就能离彻底唤醒旧时的"她"更进一步。 Something like that, anyway. ……也就是诸如此类的想法。管它那么多呢。 For now, it's time to evaluate which shards of glass have left the part of Arcaea she calls home, which have remained, and which are new. 此时此刻，该去尝试对那几团玻璃碎片做一番鉴定了一一那片被她称之为"家"的Arcaea究竟处在何方，有哪些碎片仍旧残存，又有哪些是新出现的…… She moves to step from the lighthouse, ready for her new routine. 这样想着的她从灯塔上踱步而下，随时准备开始新一轮的例行公事。
5-3 "
It does still fly: the scythe. 那把镰刀，——确实仍能用于飞行。 Sitting on the length of the handle as a witch might lackadaisically sit on a broom, 若联想女巫总无精打采地横坐在扫帚柄上四处飞行，这一场景用于形容少女现在的模样简直在合适不过。 the young woman rides down a broken, shambled street. The blade sits upright beside and behind her, shifting for every swivel and turn. 这位年轻的女孩沿着下方那条破败不堪的残毁大街飞驰而下，身体斜后方那竖直立起的长刃随着飞行方向的改变而挪动。 Her movements are smooth and completely ingrained. 她早已能够随心所欲地操纵镰刀飞行。 As she goes, she looks upon a particular jumble of flying glass. This one runs alongside and above the road like a river, 在飞行途中，她望向了某一团紊乱无章的飞舞碎片。这群玻璃碎片宛若一条悬河，也顺着大路流淌向前。 and since her arrival it has not once lost or gained any memories for its flock. 自从她来到这地方后，那群碎片的成员便再无增减。 This being so peculiar, she checks it every day. 每日都对此进行检查的少女，认为这种情况难免显得异乎寻常。 Today, too, the memories that glint within each are all ones she has seen before. 直至今天，这条闪闪发光的溪流也同往日一般，包含着与前日完美一致的回忆内容。 Unrelated, unconnected memories of play, song, sadness, strange machines both enormous and fast... It's really a rather eclectic mix, 尽是些彼此之间毫无联系，也丝毫无法衔接的各种回忆。娱乐、音乐、忧伤，以及那些庞大却敏捷迅速的怪异机械……倒不如说，这也算是一种折衷的不寻常搭配。 making the fact that they're seemingly unconnected very interesting. 每当想到这些看似没有关联的事物可能是相通的，事情就会变得有趣几分。 She looks for the memory that she likes the most. 她在寻找自己最钟意的回忆。 Of course, finding a specific memory within a crowd is similar to seeking a needle in a stack of hay. 当然，在无数回忆中寻找自己正在渴求的那一段，无疑是海底捞针。 But the one here—it likes her in return. 但事实上，那对象就在此处——而且，它似乎也喜欢着她。 A piece of glass breaks from the chain, and it approaches her as she glides on. 那一片玻璃脱离了碎片的队列，于少女滑翔之时靠近了她。 She smiles faintly, lifting her right hand from her scythe so that the piece can come to rest over her palm. 她微微地笑着，将右手从镰刀上举起，用掌心去迎接那一片碎片。 In it is the final moment of a small hand-crafted flute's creation. 它所蕴含的那段回忆中——一支小巧玲珑的手工竖笛的制作马上就要大功告成。 Making the instrument had been a labor of many minutes, hours, days and months, but the carver who'd done it had condensed all his feeling into this single moment. 制作这支乐器耗费了多少个分秒日月……尽管如此，那位雕刻师却将全部的情感凝聚在了这最后时刻。 It all came to this. 这一刻终于要来临了。 He plays a note, and the tone makes him wince. 他试着吹奏了一个音符，随之奏响的音符不禁让他眉头一皱。 Terrible. 简直糟透了。 But it does work. 还好，至少能顺利奏出音色。 Though this memory marked the end of an arduous journey, it also marked the beginning of an even grander one. 尽管这段记忆标志着一段艰辛旅程的结局，却也象征着另一端更为宏图大志的旅途即将开始。 Such a curious position... 还真是异样的处境呢…… Truly—and the others it shares a crowd with are special indeed. 实不相瞒——隶属于同一团块的其他碎片所蕴含的特殊性质，自然也是毫不逊色。
5-4 "
That memory is precious. 那一段回忆，确是珍贵。 In fact, if it can be called "precious", more likely than not it has found its way to her at some point. 当然，前提是它的确配得上"珍贵"二字——这碎片似乎更像是在某一刻主动追随起了少女。 Memories of first pets, of one's survival and another's sacrifice, of first words, of inspiring speeches, of important and private talks... 第一次拥有宠物的回忆、生存与献祭的回忆、第一次道出某个词语的回忆，甚至哪怕是一次鼓舞人心的演讲，一次重要的私人谈话…… Sometimes, when she is strolling or riding by, these significant memories will just begin following her. 偶尔少女会在它们一旁漫步而过，或是骑着镰刀飞掠附近地带。届时，这些意义非凡的回忆便会跟随起她。 She doesn't mind. 少女却对此漠不关心。 She likes that memories so special were kept safe in this curious place. 让她真正心感欢喜的，是眼前这些性质格外独特的回忆被安然保存于此地的事实。 That is a good thing, but there is something better. 这当然十分美妙，只不过在这后面还有更加精彩的事情。 The world of Arcaea serves as an archive to memories of any sort. Arcaea的世界就好像是一座储存着各类回忆的宏大档案馆。 A memory of a toothache, a memory of a good meal, a memory of a horse ride, a memory of spilled milk. 像是牙痛的回忆、美食的回忆、骑马的回忆、不小心将牛奶打翻的回忆…… Whatever it is, if it was remembered, then it is here. 不管这些回忆是否存在特殊的意义，只要它们被世人所铭记，便会归于此处。 And it is really every one of those memories, along with those standouts among them, that shape a man or woman, she thinks. 而正是这每一片看似微不足道的记忆碎片——甚至连那些极端特殊的个体也在内——成功塑造起了那一位又一位人物形象，她心中如此想到。 Not only that, but they serve as the only real evidence that a person ever was alive. 不仅如此，这些碎片更是那些故往世人曾切切实实活过的唯一证明。 Monuments and graves are erected in the name of memory, and as for the loss of memory... 纪念碑与坟墓以回忆之名于大地建造而起，也以逝去的记忆为名继续留在世间…… as she has seen within the Arcaea, that is something at times more tragic and difficult to accept than death. 如同她于Arcaea内所见证的一样，失去记忆有时比死亡本身更让人难以接受，也令人倍感伤痛。 "..." "……" She quietly comes to a stop, stepping down onto what looks to have once been a town square. 她静悄悄地停止了前行，缓步走入一片看上去曾是座中心广场的城镇地带。 Here, innumerable pieces of glass drift through the air. 在这里，不可胜数的玻璃碎片正漂泊于半空之中。 It's something like... 这一场景就好像…… well, the appropriate term for her might be a garden, 可以说，这里对她而言就是一座花园—— though one with every "plant" brought in instead of grown natively. 当然，这儿的"植物"都并非土生土长，而全是外来物种。 She tends to them all the same. These are the memories she has found in what she considers to be her "home" part of Arcaea. 她对这里的所有碎片都视同一律。这些Arcaea所包含的回忆，便是她心中认定的"家"。 These specific shards are those which were not there when she first awakened. They'd drifted in. 在这里苏醒过来的时候，她其实并未享受到这群碎片的陪伴：它们都是直到后来才流浪至她的视界之中。 "...Hmph," she sniffs, absently taking stock of the pieces. "……哼嗯。"她用鼻子轻轻吐气，心不在焉地盘点这些碎片的数量。 They don't usually leave, but sometimes they wander off... 它们通常都不会自主离开，却时常不小心飘到别处去…… And that worries her. 而这一现象令她开始感到担忧。 ...Is there meaning in the Arcaea being in the form of something as fragile as glass? ……在这些犹如玻璃一般脆弱的Arcaea之中，究竟存在着什么意义? ...Back in life, she learned not to ask many questions. 从前活着的时候，她早已学会不将过多的疑问牵挂于心头。
5-5 "
"Huh?" "呵？" Her gaze, still on the Arcaea above, is suddenly broken. 即使目光仍旧停留于前上方的Arcaea，她的视线却在刹那间絮乱了。 ...Where did that come from? ……它是从哪里来的？ Appearing on the shore of her thoughts suddenly, like a fair and gentle-seeming stranger, 那微小的事实就这样没有预兆地乍然跃入她的思绪，仿佛一位端庄有礼的绅士要前来拜访…… was that little fact, in the form of a miniature memory. 尽管它显然是以微缩记忆的形态存在着。 She wasn't sure at first that it was even there, 起初，她甚至无法确定它是否真实存在。 but as she thinks it over again and again... she's sure of it. 但在她屡屡沉思了一番后……绝对没错，她明白这是事实。 She recalls this. 她以此回忆起这段故事。 This... it happened. 这段故事……它曾存在过。 Sitting under a pair of quiet old trees, the Soul Stream having gone down, and night having risen, she was speaking with her confrère... 夜幕悠然。倾听灵魂溪流的潺潺流水声，她正端坐一对远古巨树之下，与自己的那位同事进行畅谈。 "You learn to think of it in this sort of paradox," he'd said. "身处此类悖论中，你终将学会对它进行深刻思考，"他讲述道， "You think of all life as precious, but at the same time the drudgery leaves it all as just numbers. "或许你固然会认为每一条生命都是无价的；可与此同时，繁琐沉闷的日常工作还是会让那些事物逐渐褪色为单纯的数字。 Higher numbers, lower numbers. It isn't like you stop caring; 不论那些数字是相对比较高的，抑或是比较低的……这并不意味着你就该停止为此倾注心意—— it's more as if, if anything, caring so much sharpens you into someone who seems cold." 倒不如说……过量地眷注所有事情，你的外在却反而会被打磨得愈加冰冷。" "But it's alright," he assured her, smiling weakly at the Stream. "但这并没有关系啊，"他信誓旦旦地向她说道，朝那溪流露出一抹疲倦的笑容， "Thinking too much about it will probably tear you up inside. When you went to the Glen, what was the reason you gave for wanting to walk this path?" "过分存眷于那些事情，确实会把你的内心撕裂得狼狈不堪。在你前往"山谷"的那时候，究竟是什么理由促使你决心踏上这条道路？" She answered. 她对此做出了回答。 "See? That's what we all say," he replied, "看吧？其实我们每个人都会这样说。"他给予了答复。 and she recalls how calming his voice had been then. 而她，始终未曾忘却下一刻他那格外平静的话语声。 "Just remember that, and you'll be fine." "将那一点永远铭记于心，你就不会再迷茫。" But there it ends. That's it. 只是，这段故事在这里就迎来了结尾——没有分毫遗漏，这便是故事的全部。 Her gaze comes back to the sharp air above her. 她将视线重新转向头顶上方那片凌冽的空白。 Just remember it? Just remember it. Remember it. It... Remember what? 将那一点永远铭记于心？铭记那一点……铭记……哪一点？到底要记住什么？ "I... don't remember," "我居然……将那件事忘记了。" she whispers softly, but each word, each syllable falls heavily off her tongue. 她轻声说道，可自舌根说出每一个字眼的时刻，都艰难到无法想象。 He had been absolutely right. Now she can feel it, building in her eyes: the dull, warm grief that comes with sad revelation. 他说得完全正确。如今她已经能深刻体会到正构建于自己视界之中的一切：那一丝单调却又伴随着温暖的哀思，环绕象征悲伤的启示而至。 A new piece of her memory has shown itself to her, but it is crucially broken, and without answers to the questions it has forced into her mind, 这一小片拼图确是让她进一步见证了自己在世之时的回忆——但它早已残破不堪，而且根本无法回答那一系列肆虐着她的困惑分毫。 her heart is killed. The agony is nearly unbearable. 她近乎心死。这种程度的痛苦，令人根本无法承受。 How do you put the pain of knowing you are not entirely yourself into proper words? 知晓你根本不是完整的自己——这样的痛楚，究竟有任何文字能够形容吗？ Under the cloud of glass, she shuts her eyes, bends her head, 置身于玻璃云团之下的她紧紧闭起了双眼，缓缓弯下腰来。 and puts the heel of her palm over her nose, the underside of her fist against her skull. 她将鼻梁沉重地埋在双手手掌之间，指关节死死抵在上眼眶。 She won't cry. She can't let herself do something like that. 她不会哭泣。她没有办法让自己这么做。 To cry here, at this, would open her to too many facets of reality she has chosen not to face. 若是在此处放纵泪水流淌，她又将会回忆起多少层面的现实——那些她执意逃避的，残酷的现实。 She sits on the ground, sucking in her lips, tightening them. 她就这样静静地坐在地上，紧咬着嘴唇不放，竭力屏住心中的悲痛。 She will not cry. Absolutely not. Okay? 她不会哭泣。她当然不会落泪。不是吗？ So, gripping at herself and trembling in the world of white, the solitary reaper steadily breathes. 故此，那位形单影只的收割者能做的，只有抱紧自己孤独的身躯，在这个纯白的世界中默默地颤抖着。 She tries not to dwell. 她的鼻中，时不时传来轻柔的呼吸声。 She doesn't want to dwell. 她试图让自己的思绪不再徘徊于此——她不想再让思绪被这种事情侵占了。 But, while calming herself, the thought can't help but occur to her: 只是，试图使自己平静下来时，那思绪却还是会主动回到她脑海之中。 that, if this is death... 若眼前的全部，便是"死亡"真实的样貌…… ...she would much rather have oblivion. ……那么，她宁可忘却一切。
5-6 "
The break that occurred within her left her quiet... quieter than usual for what could amount to days. 心智的崩坏终于使她平静了下来……多久，她都比从前的任何时候表现得更加安静。 The key element of that memory—the idea that one was better off not asking many questions—is something that in her contemplation she realized she was attempting to adhere to all this time. "不要将过多的疑问牵挂于心头。"这一思想，便是那段记忆的核心要素——而她在一番深思后才觉察到，这更是她往昔至今始终尝试追循的信条守则。 Her attempts, however, had been half-hearted. 然而时至今日，她的那些尝试都未免显得心不在焉。 That taste of an old memory was too intoxicating to forget. 那一段古老的回忆始终令她魂牵梦绕，难以忘怀。 Indeed, she refused to forget—but having forgotten so much else... 她固然完全不打算去遗忘那段故事——却还是忘记了过多除此之外的事物…… she'd realized she was a broken half-shell of a person. 她终究意识到，自己已经变成了一具残缺的躯壳。 Forget it. 这种事情，还是忘却为好。 She is once again guiding vagrant memories to the square today; 今日，她又一次将那些迷途的回忆引领至这片广场； trying to make this into routine, which will turn to habit, which will turn to nature. 她试图将这一举动当成例行公事，等其成为生活习惯，再等其转变为顺理成章之事。 Perhaps tedium can rescue her from the cavern always lurking just under the surface: 或许乏味会在她落入那潜藏于安详地面正下方的深坑之前牵扯住她前进的脚步—— the tar pit of miserable feelings endlessly calling to her. 若非如此，那不断呼唤着她的焦油陷坑终会让失足的她被不幸的感受所淹没。 Better oblivion, she thinks sincerely, than to feel—if feeling means only grief. 她真切地认为——若感受那些事物所带来的只有痛苦——比起"感受"，果然"遗忘"才是更好的选择。 And, while conducting the shards of Arcaea, one catches the light of the sky in such a way that she is reflexively bidden to look at it. 就在她如此引导着这群Arcaea残片的时候，其中的某片忽然以一种特别的形式反射了源自天空的光线，以至于她条件反射地望向了它。 Without thinking much of it, she brings this shard close. 她几乎没去多想，随即将那碎片召至了自己面前。 The reflection: a crouching, slouched child covering something off the side of a road with her hands. 反射的场景：一个孩子正懒洋洋地蹲在路边，用双手遮罩着什么物体。 Outside her hands, ants shy away, though they seem clearly interested in whatever she's hiding. 在她的手掌周围，小小的蚂蚁们显然对她藏在手心侧的事物感到十分好奇，却还是害羞得四散而逃。 The reaper gives the memory more of her attention, and finds that what the child is hiding is a wounded jade beetle. 这名收割者将更多的集中力投予这段回忆，继而发现那孩子掩藏的事物其实是一只受伤的无花果甲虫。 After a moment of contemplation, the girl scoops up the small thing in both of her hands and stands up. 在一番思虑过后，那女孩便用双手捧起了那小小的存在，从地上站起了身。 That's all. 这便是全部。 The young observer is motionless for a moment, but then she smirks. 许久，这位年轻的观众都处于呆滞状态。可接着，她便傻笑起来。 That's such an... absolutely pointless memory. 这还真的……是一段毫无意义的回忆。 Did the beetle recover? How long did that child live for? How long did she hold on to this memory? 那只甲虫的伤痊愈了吗？那孩子活了多久？多少年月，她将这段故事铭记于心？ Stupid little thing... 全然是件愚笨而无关紧要的小事…… The girl chuckles. 少女轻笑了起来。 It's ironic, isn't it... 真的挺讽刺的，不是吗？ Remembering something had made her forget why she believed she was here. 铭记某样事物，却使她遗忘了关于自己为何身于此处的揣测。 Arcaea is a world of memories. Arcaea是记忆的世界。 Of the dead? Of those still alive? Who can say? 这些记忆隶属于死者？抑或是尚在之人？又有谁能回答这个问题呢？ Regardless, it keeps old stories that anyone could forget. 不论谜底为何，这世界保存着那些任何人或许都会忘却的过去。 Past expiration of mind, body, monument, or land: however it works, Arcaea steadfastly keeps all. 灵魂消散、肉身腐朽、石碑碎裂、大地风化……任凭时光流逝，Arcaea都完好无缺地保存着一切。 The girl is alone. She has no confrère here, and she was given no reason to do anything when she woke up. 少女已然只身一人。她在此处并未拥有同事，也不存在什么需要起床做任何工作的理由。 But that doesn't mean that she was to do nothing. 但这并不代表她什么都不会做。 She is here, now. Her old life is over. 此时此刻，她便身在此地。她过去的生命已经到达尽头。 That's it. 仅仅如此。 But doesn't she still have control? 但她难道仍有权利掌控一切吗？ She still feels responsible. 她依然能感知到自己的职责。 She doesn't remember the answer she gave, as to why she sought to be a tender of souls, 她依然无法回忆起自己给予的那个答案——那个使她成为一位灵魂守护者的理由。 but whatever it was... something tells her that the broken her of now would give the same reason as the complete her from then. 但无论谜底究竟是什么……有一种无形的力量使她坚信，哪怕心灵早已残缺不堪，但当她再次遇到那个问题时，一定也会给出与曾经完整的自己相同的理由。 There is no telling what will happen, ever. 世人本就无法预言未来。一向如此。 Lives and memories can vanish in a second... but not here. 无论生命还是回忆，都可能在转瞬间灰飞烟灭……但在此处不一样。 Her memories may be lost, but these will not be. 她可能会忘却属于自己的回忆，可面前这些回忆不会消逝。 "Tender of Souls" to "Tender of Memories"; she thinks that has a nice sound to it. 由一位"灵魂的守护者"正式转变为"回忆的守护者"——她觉得这听上去十分美好。 Absolutely. You will all be remembered forever. 没错。你们将一直被深深铭记—— So long as I am here. 只要我仍伫立于此。
5-? "
It was her. There can't be any other explanation. And now, she's here. 就是她干的，一定是，不然为什么现在她要找上门来？ Lethe grips at the handle of her scythe and swallows. She remembers her duty, and steels her heart. 忘却握紧了她的镰刀。她绝对不是那种不尽义务的人，她的内心此时更加坚定了。 Though your life may have ended, your duty has not. 纵使她已长眠于世，她也会在这个世界继续履行她的义务。 The sky flickers with glass above. Earth crumbles from the sides of the plateau where she has knelt. 空气中漂浮着的玻璃碎片相互折射着，大地自她跪坐在的高地边缘开始向外坍塌...... The horned reaper picks herself up from the ground—out of her prayer and contemplation. She stares hard at the other. 这位长角的收割者结束了她的祷告和冥想，起身，紧盯着来者。 "Even now," the woman says, "you don't want to understand... Is that it?" "直到现在你都还是不明白，"她说，"对吧？" "You... can't even talk," Lethe replies. "Why do you even bother?" "你根本就不懂怎么沟通，"忘却说到，"你到底想说什么？" "I try to talk," says the other. "I even like to believe I've gotten better at it." "我尽力在跟你沟通了，我觉得已经算是小有进步了，不是吗？" With a tremor entering her voice, Lethe tells her, "It certainly doesn't seem that you have." "有吗？"忘却反问道，声音些许不稳。 The other woman doesn't answer. With a still face, she stares off at the earth. "You really don't like me at all, hm?" 一段沉默。那个人面无表情地盯着远方，过了一会儿，开口道："我就这么不受你待见吗？" Lethe does not answer. Her tight grip on her tool is all the answer needed. 忘却没有回答，但紧握在镰刀上的手已经交出了答案。 "Unfortunate..." the woman says, turning her eye to Lethe. "Though I can't say that I'm concerned about you much one way or the other." "那可能要扫你的兴了。"对方说到，一只眼看向忘却："我其实不太在乎你怎么想。" "I... don't..." Lethe begins through clenched teeth, then shouting, "CARE about your opinion of me!" "我才——"忘却咬紧了牙，接着吼道，"不在乎你怎么想的我！" The woman stares back. Without words, she says: "It is clear that you do." 对方看着她，一副"很明显你在乎"的表情。 "I won't let you..." Lethe continues. "I can't let you soil their souls like that!" "我绝不会让你那样对待这些灵魂！"忘却回应道。 "Souls?" the woman repeats, baffled. "灵魂？"对方像是突然听到了什么奇怪的话一般，微微愣住了。 "Is that how you've thought of them all this time? "在你眼里，那些东西是灵魂？ WE have souls. THEY are only the echoes of dead souls' thoughts." 给我搞清楚了，灵魂只有我们才有，那些东西只是死去的灵魂的一些想法的回声罢了。" The woman looks behind herself. The jagged "clouds" shift eerily overhead. 她看了看身后，凹凸不平的碎片云诡谲地盘旋在她们头顶。 "For what little it's worth..." she mutters, before meeting Lethe's eyes again. "行吧......"她轻声说道，将视线再度于忘却对齐，再度开口： "I will tell you again. Whatever they are, they can be used. And, we are here to use them." "我再说一遍：管它是什么，有利用价值就行。我们就是来把这些东西物尽其用的。" "Be SILENT!" "你给我闭嘴！" Lethe rushes forward and lifts her scythe high, swinging it down the instant she is near her enemy. 忘却突然冲向前，高举镰刀，向对方砍去—— The blade cuts only through an image. 镰刀落下，砍在了一副虚像上。 "Because you've never accepted this place for what it is," she hears as the image collapses into smoke, "你至始至终就没有接纳过这个地方。"虚像消失时，对方的声音在她耳边响起。 "you can't even 'use' the glass." "你甚至无法使唤这些碎片。" Her left ear perks up. 她的左耳敏锐地捕捉到了声音的来源。 She turns and sees the woman at the other edge of the plateau, emerging from light. That woman continues to speak. 她回头，看见了高地对面的那个人，边自光那处走来边说到： "Whatever your foolish motivations, I will pick up the pieces of these lost worlds and bring about one better." "不管你愚蠢地认为你有什么使命，我都会收集齐这些过去丢失的世界的碎片，重新带来一个更好的存在。" With her hand at her face, she fixes her posture and turns to face the reaper. 她手遮着脸，调整好姿势，转身面对着举着镰刀的这位收割者， She brings her hand down, and behind it the flower blossoming from her eye shimmers. 然后落下了手，她眼睛上盛开的花闪烁着。 "Because even now," says the woman, Saya, as she fixes her clear eye once again on the woman who hates her, "就是因为，"咲弥看着那位憎恶她的人，说到， "I'm sure that we all have a part to play here... except for, evidently, you." "就算是现在这个时候，大家都有自己的事情要做，除了你，明显什么忙都没帮上。" At once, Lethe grows furious, and prepares to fight again. 忘却愤怒到了极点，准备再次发起攻击。 It is infuriating... 此时此刻，怕是只有盛怒一词才能精确描述当下了。 That sentiment is shared, and mirrored, between them. 横亘在二人之间的怒火，一触即发。
5-? "
When they met while the sky was still whole... 她们在天空尚且完整之时相见...... When they met after half of it had fallen to night... 亦在夜空半数倾塌之时再度相遇。 Every moment they have met before and since, every time they have spoken, Lethe's resentment has grown, and it boils out of her heart now. 每次相遇，每次对话，忘却心中的不满就会增添一分，直至现在倾泻而出。 She has to have come for the dead. 她绝对是为了利用这些已故之人而来。 Always, always, she's kept her eye on that. 一直以来，明明一直以来我都有尽好自己的义务看守着他们。 Every gathered soul, every gathered sentiment— 她竟不肯放过任何一个魂灵，任何一丝情愫。 She thinks that she is a god, and she thinks she can play with the dead. 她觉得自己是上帝，能对这些魂灵为所欲为吗？ But the dead are sacred. 不，已故的魂灵是神圣的、不容侵犯的。 The reaper will never allow it. 我绝不允许。 Lethe flies at the callous woman, who, unflinching, vanishes again. 忘却冲向这位无情的来访者。后者不慌不忙，在攻势抵达之前消失了。 You have to remember what brought you here. You have to remember what saved you. 铭记谁将你带到此处，铭记谁将你拯救。 Glass flies between them and around them. Saya, however, simply studies Lethe. 玻璃碎片飞舞于她们之中，围绕于她们之间。咲弥却仍不紧不慢端详着忘却的一举一动。 You remember the heartache. You remember the bliss. 你记住了那些心痛，也记住了那些欣喜。 Those feelings can't be lies. 这些情感怎会是虚假的？ Lethe's scythe strikes against the earth. From afar, Saya continues to watch. 忘却的镰刀撕裂了大地。远处的咲弥默默看着这一切。 Those feelings AREN'T lies. You REMEMBER who you are. She is GUESSING for want of belief. 这些情感都是真真实实的啊。你想起来了你是谁，你知道你是谁。 "Lethe..." says Saya. "忘却......"咲弥开口。 And Lethe stops. 忘却停了下来。 "Did you know that was your name?" "你知道这是你原来的名字吗？" She turns and faces the flower-eyed girl. Her heart pounds through her chest. 忘却转身，面对着这个眼睛上长了朵花的女性，心如擂鼓。 "I know..." Saya reveals. "I've seen you, across memories." "我知道那是你原来的名字。"咲弥继续说道，"我在回忆里看见过你。" "L-Liar—" "一......一派胡言！" "Does it resonate?" "你觉得这个名字和你相符吗？" Lethe flinches, biting her tongue. 忘却蹙眉，拒绝了回答。 "When I learned my own name, it resonated. "当我知道我的真名时，我觉得这个名字很适合我。 There are more of us here than you know, reaper. We don't all keep our names from the past, 你要知道，这块地方不仅仅只有我们两个，但不是所有人还是叫自己原来的那个名字， but you have." 不过你却保留了原名。" Warmth threatens her heart and blood. 喜悦冲击着她。 Lethe swallows again, and tries to push it down. 忘却尽力地压制着这份趁虚而入的欣喜。 "I've always thought of you as some starry-eyed believer, mistaken in her drive. "我一直觉得你是一个过分乐观的傻子，就知道忠诚于你那错误的信仰。 But after 'finding' you, I can understand why. 但找到你、见到你之后，我就明白了为什么你看起来会是那个样子—— Am I right? You 'remember' yourself. 那是因为你记得你是谁，我说的没错吧？ That is unusual." 这就是你非同寻常的地方。" "Why are you still talking?" "你为什么还在说些不明不白的东西？" "..." "......" Saya stares at her. 咲弥盯着忘却看。 "You even hate my voice?" asks Saya. "是吗，讨厌我到我的声音你都不喜欢吗？"咲弥问道。 "I have NEVER said I hated you." "我什么时候说过我讨厌你了。" "You've never needed to." "有些事情无需开口。" A pang flies through her, and she shivers. 她忽然感到一阵刺痛，颤抖了起来。 But eventually, she laughs. 最终，她干笑了两声。 "Pretending at knowing hearts? You? Ha! Yours is as cold as they come. You don't know hearts." "装自己很懂人心呢？就你？呵呵，哈哈哈！你没有心，你了解个什么心。" Saya looks again at the dirt beside her feet. 咲弥再次瞟了瞟她脚边的泥土。 "...I know them," the flower-eyed girl replies, almost too quiet to hear. "......我怎么不了解了。"眼睛镶着一朵花的女性回答道，声音微小几近不可闻。 "What?" "你说什么？" "I know them," Saya answers in a clear tone, meeting Lethe's gaze unwaveringly. "I know the contents of a heart." "我说，我怎么不了解了？"咲弥正视着忘却，提高声音回答道，"我知道一颗心是由什么组成的。" "...Hmph. Really?" Lethe queries in turn. "Listen to yourself. Even the way you say that reveals that yours is hollow." "你是在搞笑吗？"忘却说道，"你听听你都在说些什么。你说的话根本就是在证明你的内心是有多么空洞。" Saya does not answer, but she does not look away. 咲弥没有回答，但是也没有移开视线。 "I've already told you that I don't care for whatever's bouncing around behind the petals in your eye," Lethe continues. "我已经说过了，我不在乎你那朵花后头的眼睛轱辘着在打什么样的转盘，"忘却继续说道， "I will stop you. You know what I was? You know what I am? Then you know that I can't let you desecrate what is here." "我会阻止你。你不是知道我曾经是什么身份吗？你不是很清楚我现在有着什么样的使命吗？那你就该知道我绝不会让你亵渎此地。" Still, Saya stares. 咲弥还是只是盯着忘却，没有开口。 "This is my purpose," Lethe declares. "这就是我的使命。"忘却振声道。 This is what I need, she feels. 这就是我的诉求。忘却心想。 She turns over the scythe in her hands, readies herself again. 忘却调整了一下自己的镰刀，握紧了它，进入了戒备状态。 "Whatever your reason, I will stop you here." "我不管你有什么理由，我定会阻止你。"
5-? "
The light of the sky is given by glass. The souls Lethe has gathered, the memories Saya has gathered; at a border they meet, but never intersect. 天空所有的光亮仅由碎片赐予。忘却召集的魂灵和咲弥召集的回忆各居两方，形成了一条分明的界限。 Thousands of forgotten lives, remembered here. In her mind, the reaper remembers, too, the sight of a well of spirits. 千千万万条被遗忘的生命在这里重新被铭记，这位收割者也回想起了那潭灵魂之池的景象。 What was the reason you gave for wanting to walk this path? 究竟是什么理由促使你决心踏上这条道路？ Still, she can't remember how it was that she answered. 她仍然不记得自己是怎么回答这个问题的。 But she has answered it for herself since. 但她知道，她后来的行动证实了她的回答。 This feels right. She doesn't need any more than that. 这就足够了，有行动的证明就足够了。 And yet... 然而...... "—!? You...!" "——！？你！" Once more, she has swung her blade at the other woman. To this, Saya has lifted a finger. At its pad is a shard of glass which deftly catches the blade's edge. 忘却再次将镰刀挥舞向咲弥，咲弥则抬起了一根手指，指肚上的一片玻璃精准地抵住了镰刀。 Crouching, Lethe stares up and grimaces at Saya. 忘却蹲伏着，表情近乎扭曲，死死瞪着咲弥。 Saya stares back down, as always giving nothing away. 咲弥也瞪着她，一如既往地没有任何表情。 The casual insult and abuse of lost life at once raises the hairs across Lethe's body. 所有的这些漫不经心的侮辱和对于已故之人的不敬让忘却背脊一阵发凉。 "You...!" Lethe roars. "你......！"忘却吼道。 "What do you get out of taking this from me?" "拿走这些到底对你有什么好处？" Still holding Lethe back, she keeps her eye steady upon the reaper's. 仍与忘却对峙着，咲弥正视着忘却拷问的目光。 "...Get?" she asks. "......好处？" The glass at Saya's fingertip glows. Her flower shines once more. Again, she becomes a reflection, 咲弥指尖的玻璃闪烁起来，她眼上的花也再度闪烁，紧接着她再度化成了一具虚像。 and Lethe's scythe swings uselessly through the air. She reappears as light far away. 忘却的镰刀无力地划过空气，只见到咲弥重新站在远处。 "If all our time together has taught you anything, then you should know I've never been a liar," Saya tells her as the flower from her right eye flickers. "相处这么久了，你总该明白，我从不撒谎。"右眼上镶嵌的花仍在闪烁着，咲弥说道。 She pauses, and says clearly: "I 'get' nothing out of this. None of this is... personal." 一阵沉默后，她再度开口："我得不到任何好处，这一切都不是出于我个人的动机。" And though she can feel that that is the truth, Lethe almost can't allow herself to believe it. 即使忘却能感觉到咲弥说的是真话，她也不愿意相信。 "And, if you know that... if you know 'me'..." Saya continues. "所以，如果你明白这点的话......如果你，了解我的话......"咲弥继续说道。 And ten shards come down from the sky, flickering as well at her shoulders and behind her back. 接着，十块碎片自天而降，停在她的肩膀前和背后。 "Forgive me, I'm getting a bit passionate, but..." "不好意思，我也难免有些激动了......" she mutters, her eye closed. 咲弥小声说着，闭上眼。 Coldly, she opens it upon Lethe again and pointedly asks her, "Why are you still getting in my way?" 接着她睁开了眼，冷冷地瞪着忘却，问道："为什么你还在挡我的道？" "YOUR way?" Lethe spits. "What, are you about to claim that we can finally become gods now, or some other ridiculous wish?" "我，挡你的道？！"忘却骂道，"怎么着？这是要跟我说你是神了？还是有更离谱的胡话？" "Who ever said anything about wanting to be god..." "我什么时候说过我要当神了......" "You're PLAYING god! You think you aren't?" "你这态度和举动就是在告诉我你想当神！怎么，你觉得你很无辜吗？" "I am doing... whatever HAS to be done." Slowly, Saya lifts her finger and points at Lethe. "我只是在......完成必须要做的事罢了。"咲弥缓缓抬起手，指向忘却。 "I have already told you: this world is not only 'you' and 'me'." "我已经跟你说过了，这个世界不只是围绕着你我二人旋转。" Between them, a silence falls. 两人之间充斥着的是沉默。 Between them, the land is gray. 两人之间，大地灰蒙蒙的，毫无生机。 "Allow this world to die if you want," Saya tells her, still firm in her direction, "你想让这个世界死去那是你的事，"仍然坚定地准备迎战，咲弥打破了沉默： "but I have had enough of death. And if there must be a last death... I'll have it be yours." "但我已经受够了死亡了。如果必须要死一个人......那你就去死吧。" The flower-eyed woman's glass begins to point as well. 咲弥身边的碎片开始转动，指向了对方。 "Give up your memories, reaper, or I will take them. We have no time left." "把你的回忆交出来，如果你不乖乖交出来的话，我就亲自从你手中拿走。" Give up your souls, she means... 她想让我放弃我守护的这些魂灵？ Absolutely not. 绝对不可能。 "I won't let it die," Lethe replies. "I will find a way to heal it." "我不会让它们死去，"忘却回答道，"我会找到拯救它们的办法。" "Idiot," Saya says damningly. "蠢货。"咲弥呵斥道， "You are an idiot, and if I'm being honest, I've become sick and tired of hearing you speak." "你就是个蠢货，你要听实话吗？我已经厌倦听你讲话了。" Lethe chuckles. 忘却笑了。 "Another thing we have in common..." "我也是，在这点上我们竟也如此相似。" She stands up straight again and picks up her scythe. 她直起身，举起她的镰刀。 For this heartless, soulless woman... 这样一个没心没肺的人...... Next, she will swing to kill. 她绝不会手下留情。
