Compilation of English fan translations I've done related to Nightcord at 25:00. Relevant tags: #Event translation #Side story translation #Song translation #Area convo translation
"Shizumafu is Real" Key Scene Compilation [English CC]
Okay, so, this is like 10% translation and 90% me being insane.
World Link 3-3 destroyed me and then I started looking back through every past Shizumafu interaction to see how we got here and then this video happened.
It drove me crazy how many times Shizuku notices Mafuyu dissociating at school and asks her if she's okay and Mafuyu straight up lies and is like "yeah I'm fine!" *insert excuse here* and then changes the subject. It's sooo satisfying to see Mafuyu finally stop doing that and so cute how happy Shizuku is that Mafuyu has finally stopped doing that. This is my Shizumafu propaganda.
There's several scenes in here from Draw Your Bow in This Snow White World, of course, but they hit different when they're in chronological order in-between all the other interactions. There's also a lot of side stories in here that I hadn't seen before that add a lot, and unless you're a side story shark, you might not have seen them before either! And then, the last 11 minutes of the video is the relevant new content from the JPN server and that part is actually my translation. (The rest of the subs are the official TL with slight modifications.)
Mafuyu World Link 3 Part 3 Card Story: A Smile Blurred by the Rain
(translation in English CC)
I recommend watching the full World Link 3 Part 3 event first if you haven't already- Meltdown posted it on youtube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIe9f07gSQZc8pX4MBMlkRYBWKJiriomw
This 4koma might be my favorite now because it's particularly hilarious and so I wanted to try two things with it:
Translating it in such a way that it was as funny as the original, meaning the result is more of a localization than I usually do. I exaggerated Mizuki's polite speech in the first half so that the difference was just as obvious in English as it is in Japanese. Here is the original: https://x.com/pj_sekai/status/2061643971726541081
Typesetting. I'd never done that before.
Edit 6/5/26: @strawberry-seal77 volunteered to do the redrawing and it looks so much better now! Thank you!
Personality: Careful, delibrate
Special skill: Being able to sense how much time has passed (probably)
Dislike: Cilantro, etc.
Hobby: Music appreciation
Favorites
Food: Mochizuki-san's home cooking
Drink: Herbal tea
Season: Spring
Animal: Gentle, quiet animals
Place: SEKAI
Item: Music box
Write down the person that comes to mind!
Cool: Dad
Kind: Ena
Funny: Mizuki
Switch places with for a day: Nobody in particular
Take with you to a deserted island: Mochizuki-san
Go to karaoke with: Mafuyu
Free Space
Nice to meet you
_________
Mafuyu
Personality: Serious
Special skill: English conversation
Dislike: nothing, I guess
Hobby: writing lyrics, I guess?
Favorites
Food: Warm food
Drink: Flavored tea
Season: Spring
Animal: Rabbit
Place: Family restaurant
Item: Bracelet and portrait
Write down the person that comes to mind!
Cool: Ena
Kind: Mizuki
Funny: Ootori-san
Switch places with for a day: Miku
Take with you to a deserted island: Kanade
Go to karaoke with: Hinomori-san
Mafuyu Bloomfes Card Story: "Because I Was Found," with English CC
This one is a doozy. Serious Mafuyu lore.
It picks up right after Mizu7, but the reference it makes to Mizu7 is vague, so unless you're someone who does not want to read out of order at all, you should be good to read this without spoilers if you've read up through Mafu6 (And So, The Clock Hands Started Ticking). If you don't care about mild spoilers, that's fine too.
I was kind of blown away the first time I read this one. Mafuyu and Rui have a really poignant conversation at the end, and the setup to that conversation is well worth it, too.
Mizuki also makes fun of Tsukasa at one point. You can't miss out on that.
There are no spoilers in this side story for any N25 events that are currently only on the JPN server, so you can watch even if you're not caught up.
Don't ask where their parents are, don't ask why they're living together at their age, don't ask why Mafuyu is concerned about Kanade sleeping, don't ask why Kanade is going to bed in the morning, don't ask why Mafuyu's smile at the end comes out like that, just don't ask any questions and it's all super cute!
I've been slowly rereading and just got through Secret Distance. I got brainworms and translated the song. ID Smile's lyrics are sadder and also have more sewing analogies than I thought (pretend to be surprised).
Mafuena Relationship Development in a Nutshell (comparing the main story to a recent scene)
Make sure English CC are turned on!
Ena is actually a sweetheart and has finally character-developed her way to showing it.
Mafuena dynamic analysis under the cut:
In the first clip, from the main story, Ena is still pissed at Mafuyu for being naturally talented and not telling the rest of them that she was also composing under the name OWN, so Ena doesn't care that she comes off sounding like a jerk towards Mafuyu. Ena has an emotion, Ena lets it out. In that sense, Ena's brain works completely differently from Mafuyu's, and Ena doesn't try to understand that difference yet because she's still mad.
Then we get dozens of story events of character development, and Ena does in fact care, and she pays attention. Ena and Mafuyu fall into a pattern of banter. Perhaps Mafuyu observes Ena's banter with Mizuki, and since I would guess that Mafuyu has successfully navigated her entire social life at school by copying other people, she decides to copy Mizuki's way of interacting with Ena. Unfortunately for Mafuyu, the mizuena dynamic is one-of-a-kind and impossible to replicate, so this doesn't exactly work until it has had the time to develop into its own thing. So, with this in mind, I propose that in the second clip (Mafuyu's 2026 birthday sidestory Part 1), since mafuena's style of banter has had time to develop, Ena is delibrately messing with Mafuyu. Ena knows it is ridiculous to ask for praise for waking up early and she is not surprised that Mafuyu's tone doesn't sound very sincere, but she pretends to be aggravated by it because that's their bit now. Ena used to actually be offended, and now she's mostly joking.
Mafuyu knows how much Ena cares and her 'thank you' at the end is extremely heartfelt, and Ena can tell.
However, the part that gets me is the very end, which is the newest side of Ena that I think we've only gotten to see in full force recently- the side of Ena that's a total sweetheart who loves her friends so much. Ena flips a switch from banter to genuine concern for Mafuyu's well-being and it absolutely floored me the first time I read this, because what Ena says and the reasoning behind it shows such a deep understanding for who Mafuyu is as a person and what her strengths and weaknesses are.
In conclusion, this is the 2026 mafuena dynamic. You've got the banter and the sap. Because Ena can seriously be a sap. (Don't tell her I said that.)
Full translation of Ena's 6th focus event, "Colors of Pure Sense." (Make sure English CC are turned on!)
This one picks up where "Knowing the Unseen" left off with Ena's art student woes, and is major for her character development! (It's not just woes this time, Ena finally gets a win! Sort of. It's complicated.) We also finally get a sprite for Yukihira, her art teacher.
A feeling of unease coming from somewhere, like a cloudy sky-- that's the theme I used to create this song. With a word choice focusing on rhyming and a catchy melody that will linger in your ear, I aimed to create a cute atmosphere with the sense that something is out of place in the midst. It's nothing special, but, this is a song that casually scoops up the feelings left in your heart. I'll be happy if you can sympathize in some way and think, "Yeah, that kind of thing happens."
- LonePi's comment on the upcoming N25 commission. The song and the accompanying event will be released in January 2026.
"Samsa" (Nightcord at 25:00) and Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis
I read Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis in high school, and it left an impression on me. I donāt remember exactly what kind of impression. I might have been very distressed by the story's ending. I might have thought something along the lines of "oh, this German guy from 100 years ago gets it" which is totally not concerning at all for a high schooler to be thinking.Ā
In any case, the song "Samsa," covered by Nightcord at 25:00, got me thinking about the story again and how it relates to Mafuyu, and what follows is my thoughts and comparisons as I reread it.
Metamorphosis is available for free online. If you haven't read it, you can read it too (its not very long): https://giove.isti.cnr.it/demo/eread/Libri/calm/Metamorphosis.pdf
Analysis after the readmore:
Gregor Samsa, the protagonist of the story, wakes up as a giant, human-sized bug, and immediately starts worrying about being late to work.
"What about if he reported sick? But that would be extremely strained and suspicious as in fifteen years of service Gregor had never once yet been ill."
Mafuyu never skips school. Even when she was sick she still went and had a horrible day until Kanade made her rest. Gregor has nobody to help him- the only reason he is still in bed and not at work is because he woke up as a bug and is having trouble getting out of bed. The chief clerk from his job shows up at his door that same morning in a ridiculous show of over-surveillance of Gregor's every move. It absolutely reminds me of how closely Mafuyu's mother watches her and makes a big deal out of it the instant Mafuyu does anything slightly 'suspicious' or out of the ordinary.Ā
Gregor is opening the door to his room, with the eventual goal of getting to work: "...he bit on the key with all his strength, paying no attention to the pain he was causing himself."
Continuing on with his life as normal is causing him great pain (getting out of bed and trying to stand upright was also very painful), but he ignores that pain, just like Mafuyu ignores the pain of putting on her honor student persona and living a lie every day.
Gregor is alone in his room after the chief clerk leaves:
"...for the time being he must remain calm, he must show patience and the greatest consideration so that his family could bear the unpleasantness that he, in his present condition, was forced to impose on them."
This is what is so heartbreaking about this story to me- Gregor does not see himself as a real person with feelings. He sees himself as a means to an end- he works and makes money for his family, and that's why they appreciate him. He does not understand what it feels like to be truly, deeply loved, and Mafuyu before meeting the rest of N25 was the same, feeling like the only reason for her existence was to carry out the role that had been given to her.
After Gregor has been a bug for a while and starts crawling on his walls and ceiling, his sister (the only member of the family who has dared to enter his room thus far) gets the idea that they should remove the furniture so he has more space, but Gregor is unsure if he wants the furniture gone or not. Being unable to communicate with them, Gregor ultimately has no choice in the matter. Mafuyu can, of course, communicate with her mother, but her mother does not listen to her, and Mafuyu's synthesizer, which her mother views as an unnecessary distraction, is taken away.
Gregor is distressed at the furniture being removed from his room, and one thing leads to another and he ends up outside his room for the first time in a while. His father comes home and starts throwing apples at him. One of the apples gets lodged in his back.
This is referenced in the song - Kanade's first line translates to āPlease donāt throw apples at me.ā Later in the song, at the end of the last chorus, there's the line, "It's like you're taking a bite out of the apple, Samsa." The idea of biting into the apple represents healing, or saying, āThis should not have been thrown at me in the first place, this shouldn't be here, let me do something about it. This is healing that Mafuyu is in a position to do because of N25's support, but Gregor himself never gets the chance, and the apple stays in his back until he dies.
Later in the story, Gregor's sister is playing her violin for the first time since Gregor became a bug, and he is drawn in by the music. "Was he an animal if music could captivate him so?" Gregor wonders. Gregor has fallen into a state of total apathy at this point- he isn't eating much and has no desire to do anything, but he does want to hear more of this music. At the beginning of N25's story, Mafuyu feels resigned to her fate and is generally apathetic about her life- but then she hears Kanade's music, and wants to hear more.
The recurring theme of the story is that Gregor Samsa has nobody who cares enough about him to help him in his time of need. For a while, his sister does feed him and clean his room, but this emotionally disconnected, fearful looking-after is not enough. It takes real love to make a difference.
Let's look at a few lines of the song in more detail.
Here's my Samsa Lyrics Translation
Kanadeās line: āEven if you become a shadow of your former self, Iām right here.ā
You could argue that Gregor becomes a shadow of his former self when he turns into a bug, but even more than that, as he gradually sinks into despair and depression he truly becomes a shadow of his former self. Gregor doesnāt have Kanade by his side while this is happening. Mafuyu does.Ā
Mafuyuās āafterwordā line: āIn the afterword, these days arenāt even mentioned,ā
Gregor's mental state deteriorates over the course of the story, and near the end, Gregor dies. The last few pages are from his family's perspective. They are happy to move on without the shadow of his monstrous presence hanging over them- like part of them knows it's their fault he turned out like that, and now that he's dead, they can stop being reminded of it. Gregor is therefore absent from the "afterword" of his own story.
Conclusion
The theme of the song is that N25, and in particular Kanade, are absolutely not going to let Mafuyu's story turn out the way Gregor Samsa's did. At the same time, the song serves as a really wonderful tribute to Gregorās story.Ā
