#mino translates

[mistbow]

Which of Sorey and Mikleo's exchanges leave the most impression on you? KIMURA (SOREY): The fact that they fight too. That left an impression on me. OHSAKA (MIKLEO): Like at the Aqueduct ruins right. KIMURA: Yes, that! It's still the beginning of the game during that part, they're both still young too, so it wouldn't be strange for them to get into a fight. Sorey is generally mild-mannered towards people, though of course, he can get angry when necessary, but that wasn't the case here. They truly had a childish argument and ended up being apart, but they both each other knew what would happen next. I was deeply impressed by the strong bond between them, where their argument was because they cared about each other. They really did end up fighting out of their concern for each other, these two are really amazing. OHSAKA: In the end, even though what they do may differ, they're looking at the same thing. It's like, even before the final battle, [Mikleo] doesn't say much because he knows everything about [Sorey] already. That's how they both are. Even though it might be short in time, they share many experiences during their journey, getting to know each other even more, and finally, they don't need to say anything to understand each other. I could feel that kind of bond with tacit understanding between them and it realy left an impression on me, it made me think "yeah, that's how they are."

[mistbow]

From Kimura Ryouhei (as Sorey) and Ohsaka Ryouta (as Mikleo) quick interview as partners (one of the many interviews/other stuff that they have as Sorey and Mikleo). The [5th] question was "please give a message to your partner."

Kimura to Ohsaka (orange block): "I'm really glad that you're my partner. Even though we have a close relationship and we voice a lot of characters together, it always feels like you bring something new. Thank you."

Ohsaka to Kimura (teal block): "It was fun being your partner. Let's go play together again!"

[mistbow]

Since it's less than one month until Tales of Festival 2023, I want to share one of my most favorite moments in Tales of Festival related to Zestiria lol.

It's the telephone game in Tales of Festival 2018, but only the Team C (Zestiria & Berseria) part. In order of the telephone game, the team consists of Satou Rina (Velvet Crowe - Tales of Berseria), Tsuda Kenjirou (Zaveid - Tales of Zestiria), Ohsaka Ryouta (Mikleo - Tales of Zestiria), and Kimura Ryouhei (Sorey - Tales of Zestiria).

By the way, this is the perfume referenced in the video:

[mistbow]

From the Official World Guidance interview with Kimura Ryouhei (Sorey’s VA) and Ohsaka Ryouta (Mikleo’s VA).

――スレイとミクリオのやりとりで、印象に残っているシーンはありますか？

木村　二人は普通にケンカするんですよね。それが印象に残っていて。

逢坂　水道遺跡のところとかね。

木村　そうそう！あそこはまだまだ序盤で二人とも青いし、そういう意味ではケンカしててもおかしくないんだけど。スレイって人に対しては基本的には温和で、もちろん憤るべきところでは憤るんだけど、あれはそういうんじゃなかった。本当に二人が子どもみたいなケンカをして離れ離れになるけれど、相手のことが、このあとどうなるかがわかってる。そこにすごくいい絆を感じたことが印象深かったですね。ケンカしたのがお互いを思い合っての結果っていうのが、すごい二人だなぁって。

逢坂　けっきょくやることは違っても、見てるところは一緒なんですよね。最終決戦前でも、君のことは全部わかってるから特に深くは言わない、みたいな。それはお互いがそうなんですけれど。時間的には短いけれど、旅のなかでたくさんの出来事を共有して、さらにお互いのことがわかって、最後には言わなくてもわかる。以心伝心というか、そういう絆を感じられたのがすごく印象に残っていますし、やっぱり二人らしいなと思ったりもしましたね。

――Are there any scenes with Sorey and Mikleo’s interactions that stand out in your mind?

KIMURA: That they also fight normally. That stood out to me.

OHSAKA: Like in the Aqueduct.

KIMURA: Yeah! It’s still early in the game there so in that sense, it’s not surprising that they got into a fight. Sorey is fundamentally mild-mannered towards others, of course he will get angry at things he should get angry at, but this wasn’t the case here at all. They really fought like children and went their own separate ways, but they understood about each other, about what would happen afterwards. The amazing bond I felt there left a deep impression on me. I also thought that they were amazing, the both of them; they fought because they cared for each other.

OHSAKA: Even though what they do is different, what they see is the same, after all. Like, even before the final battle, “I’m not going to go into too much detail in particular here because I know everything about you.” That is true for both of them. Although it was short in terms of time, they shared a lot of things in their journey, they got to know each other even more, and in the end, they don’t need to say anything to understand each other. That kind of bond that feels like tacit understanding left a great impression on me, and I thought it was very like them.

――自身が眠ることで世界を救うという、スレイの決断についてはどう思われましたか？

木村　世界は救われるけれど、仲間みんなが喜ぶ決断ではない。だからこそ、それをわかっているスレイは帰ってくるんじゃないかな、っていう期待をしました。そこは裏切らないだろう、コイツは仲間を悲しませないだろう、と信じていました。

逢坂　スレイにも考えがあって、悩みに悩んだ未の決断だと思うので、ミクリオも何も言えなかったというか、彼を信じようと思ったからこそ許したというか。ミクリオも相当悩んだのだと思いますが、最終的にはスレイの気持ちを尊重して決断に至ったのかなと。まぁ最後にはスレイが戻ってきたような描写があったので、よかったですね。冒険の始めと同じシチュエーションなのがまたよかった。

――What did you think of Sorey’s decision to save the world by going to sleep?

KIMURA: The world will be saved, but it is a decision that will not please all of his friends. That is why I had hoped that Sorey, who knew about this, would come back. I believed that he would not betray that, that he would not make his friends sad.

OHSAKA: I think Sorey had thought about this and made his decision after much consideration, so Mikleo could not say anything to that either, or rather, he let him exactly because he wanted to believe in him. Mikleo also had a lot of trouble making up his mind himself, but I wonder if he eventually came to terms with that decision out of respect for Sorey’s feelings. Well, in the end, there’s a scene where Sorey seems to be back, so that’s good for him. I also like it that it had the same situation as the one at the beginning of their adventure.

[mistbow]

[Translation] Tales of 20th Anniversary Tales of Taizen 1995-2016 - Mikleo

I will perhaps start putting the translations I’ve been putting up only in private with friends on here publicly too. Starting with Mikleo’s page in the 20th Anniversary Taizen book.

“Wherever you go, I’ll be with you.”

My childhood friend was the only one who lacked the power that he should have had, among everyone in our village. Weak and fragile; that is what it means to be “human,” and once I learned that, I believed without a doubt that it was my duty to be with him. Even if I am a little behind him in terms of physical strength, I will never lose in knowledge, and above all, I have the underlying principles of the world* on my side. When the two of us felt the history of the old ruins that lived right next to the peaceful atmosphere of our village, I believed that we would spend our time together like this for the rest of our lives.

My friend, however, began to long to become the Shepherd, and walked a step ahead of me. With his understanding towards the seraphim nurtured in the azure earth, and with his great innate kindness and purity, he was taken in by the Lady of the Lake and offered the pledge of the sword as it was stated in the folklore, truly becoming the bearer of the dragon’s crest and the calling of purification. In the midst of the selfishness that humans spew out, denied by the very people he is supposed to save, feared and ostracized, my precious friend lifts his head, with tears and smiles, still trying to be their Shepherd. If only I could share even just a little bit of his sorrow. If only he could retreat from his suffering, even if only just for a bit. But, alas, the truth is... if I had been human, I would have understood him more and been able to be there for him. If only I could live through the same flow of time as my friend, I would have been able to heal him, as if tracing his soul.

Water is easily tainted and easily spills out. It easily attracts malevolence from the slightest hesitation and muddies the many things it touches. However, water can also wash, rinse, and purify itself when it comes close to something else, changing the way it is in various ways. If my friend’s pain gnaws at his heart like the misfortune that overwhelms him, if he is angry and confused, if he weeps helplessly, then with these hands that control the power of water, I will remove every obstacle in my friend’s path and make his steps untainted.

Born as a human, died once, born again as a seraph; such a dramatic life was mine. If it is said that every beginning is predestined for a Shepherd, then I would like to find the meaning of my seraphic rebirth by walking with my friend. In the same place as my mother, in the same light that adorns my forehead with the same radiance as my mother, as a seraph that is deeply attached to humans, I want to raise a great power. It is like the wish that Gramps had written down; like the prayer my mother, Muse, offered on my forehead.

There’s no need to repeat this vow; my friend had known my true name for a long time. The voice calling out that name grants us both the strength to transcend even the most difficult hardships and sorrow together.

* An explanation on this here.

[mistbow]

[Translation] The Essence of Zestiria - Kami and Seraphim

From the 20th Anniversary Taizen book.

Higher spiritual beings that help humans have played a significant role in the “Tales of” series. They are the “spirits,” or in some cases, words such as “Craymel” or “Sacred Beasts” are also used in place of it, who are involved in the formation of the world and control the underlying principles and basic structure of the world. In fact, these concepts found in medieval alchemy are said to have originated in the myriad gods of the ancient polytheistic world.

In Tales of Zestiria (TOZ), seraphim appear as the spirits. Although they are not so different from humans in stature, their history is much older, and they possess high wisdom and supernatural powers. Not counting transformations by malevolence or other special means, they remain immortal and are truly gods, and in fact, they are the object of faith in this work. However, what distinguishes seraphim from the spirits in other works in the series is that the concept of seraphim is rooted in animism, as opposed to the aforementioned medieval four-elemental spirit principle. Animism, which holds that all creatures and materials in nature are inhabited by spirits, has been a worldwide practice since the ancient times, and in Japan, they are portrayed as Yaoyorozu no Kami, and that these deities can be both good and evil and have a wide range of personality and ideals. The depiction of the sublimation of these figures into the form of the seraphim can be found in the structure of Divine Artifacts and festivals, malevolence and purification, and the attempt to override a politically motivated belief over a primitive religious belief to become the state religion; all as projections onto actual practices.

The interpretation of seraphim as kami or spirits has been mentioned, but just as Maotelus (Maoterasu in Japanese) is reminiscent of “Amaterasu,” all of the Five Lords are modeled after the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki deities in rhyme. The following is just an example, but we may infer that Musiphe (Musuhi in Japanese) is based on Takamimusuhi, Amenoch (Amenochi in Japanese) is Amenotokotachi, Hyanoa (Hayahino) is Hayaakitsuhiko, Eumacia (Umashia in Japanese) is Umashiashikabihikodi, and Maotelus’ predecessor, Innominat (Kanonushi in Japanese) is Amenominakanushi.

The positioning of seraphim as not limited to mere guardian deities but also includes elements of Japanese mythology and projects a likeness to kami, explains how blessings are given to humans or a human’s exercise of spiritual powers. The best example of this is an innovative system called “Armatus,” in which a human being, such as a Shepherd or a Squire, is transformed by fusing with seraphim. Armatus clearly implies “divine might” (T/N: “神威” can also be read as “kamui” like “神依” or “Armatus”) i.e., the Shepherd gaining divine powers and becoming a spiritual being transcending beyond human beings. The fusion with seraphim is “kamioroshi” to unite with kami and incorporate the feeling of the awe of the mythical age that lies within us all. Rather than being born out of phenomena, like “spirits” and their ilk, “seraphim” are beings that have been there already when humans came to perceive and become aware of the world, and their existence is synonymous with the world itself.

[mistbow]

What do you think is Sorey’s appeal? He seems serious, yet flexible. He is straightforward, kind, and has a strong heart. He is blessed to have such friends too, and also his voice is nice.

Kimura 😂😂😂 that last part is very cheeky.

[mistbow]

[Translation] Tales of Zestiria Official World Guidance - Handwritten Messages from the Voice Actors

What makes the characters’ personalities stand out even more are those voices. We asked the voice actors, who colored the tale with their true-to-life performances to offer a message to the characters they portray as well as the readers. 

Sorey - Kimura Ryouhei

A message for your character Thanks for the long journey, and best regards from now on!!

A message for the readers Thank you so, so much. Please continue to love them [Sorey and the others].

Mikleo - Ohsaka Ryouta

A message for your character Please continue to support Sorey as his best friend from now on!

A message for the readers Thank you for supporting Zestiria! I really hope you will continue to love it! Best regards!!

Rose - Komatsu Mikako

A message for your character I admire the strength of your heart and your unwavering eyes! Stay like that way forever.

A message for the readers The legend is inside your hearts...! With your hearts...! Please play a lot!

Alisha - Kayano Ai

A message for your character “Please be my friend!” I would love to travel with Alisha! Two girls traveling together... sounds fun!

A message for the readers I’m glad that you like it. If you like Alisha too... I’m even more glad!

Lailah - Matsuki Miyu

A message for your character When, why, and from whom Did you learn those many gags(?)...!? Please, do tell me...!!!

A message for the readers What is right, what is not right, As I was thinking about a lot of things I was there, as Lailah, with Sorey and the others!! Thank you for traveling with us, who are like this! Please continue to support Tales of Zestiria!

Edna - Fukuen Misato

A message for your character Cool and the best...!!

A message for the readers Thank you for your love! From now on, Both the characters! And the work! I would be happy if you love them... ♥

Dezel - Ono Daisuke

A message for your character Thanks for your hard work!

A message for the readers Thank you!

Zaveid - Tsuda Kenjirou

A message for your character Don’t... catch cold!!

A message for the readers Thank you so much for your support!!

Heldalf - Sugou Takayuki

A message for your character An eternal life... that, too, is hard! Heldalf

A message for the readers “Yet the song of death... is so sweet.” Please look forward to it.

Lunarre - Koyasu Takehito

A message for your character Nest inside me

A message for the readers Lunarre is doing well Hehehe...

Symonne - Igarashi Hiromi

A message for your character You are too lightly dressed, I hope you don’t catch a cold... I wonder if it’s fine since you’re a seraph (lol)

A message for the readers I’m happy to be back in the Tales series that I’ve loved since a long time ago. Symonne is an enemy character, but please adore her!