Mahoutsukai no Yoru: Witch on the Holy Night (Mahoyo), is a relatively short (about 8 hours for the fluent reader) VN produced by Type-Moon. As such, it is part of the Nasuverse, which consists of titles like F/SN, F/Z, and KnK. I started reading Mahoyo in hopes of it helping me learn Japanese while still doing something interesting. Mahoyo has quite the funny history behind it as its first draft was written quite a long time ago and had been teased for many years. After being announced officially, it received a plethora of delays and then finally was released a year ago. However, the anticipating readers were unfortunately informed that this would be the first of a trilogy of Mahoyo. And so, with what will surely be a 10 year wait for part 2, I aim to finish reading this by then. Actually I just aim to finish before fan translations are done.
Considering how much absurd amount of time I’m putting into this due to my horrendous Japanese reading skills yet still writing down (very poor) translations of every line, I decided to share my read through. While Mahoyo is not voiced like many VN’s are, the production values are vastly superior to the average VN, with beautiful artwork and excellent music. The story may not be the best, but I think it should be a fun read for anyone interested in the Nasuverse. While I will by no means be including everything, I hope it’ll more detailed than a simple summary. I will try to emulate the storytelling as best I can but obviously this is ruined by my reading skills (as opposed to writing, heh) and it doesn’t help that Nasu tends to have an odd narration style to begin with. For example, he will switch between omniscient narration and the character’s inner thoughts without warning. As a final note, this is a clean VN for the most part. There will be violence/fighting though to what degree, I do not know myself (and I can always censor if need be) but other than that, there shouldn’t be any content to worry about. With that, let’s start!
Prologue
It is a cold, winter morning, 8 years ago, deep in the mountains. The small girl’s father asks her to turn on the engine to the car to warm it up, and she does so with pride. But. An inhuman shrill comes from the engine. She recognizes the sound. Her father opens the hood of the car and…
A mother cat and her two kittens had been tempted by the warmth of the car. Now, the mother is split in half. The kittens’ lives are nearly extinguished.
“It isn’t anyone’s fault,” her father calmly explains. Suddenly, the girl picks up one of the cats and begins running. Her grandfather is a magician who could do anything. Surely he can save them. After begging him to save the kitten, he merely grants her selfish wish like a machine. The life of the kitten…faded. Yes. If saving a life were that easy, the world would be very different. And then.
“Who is there?” That day, I, a mistake, was born into the world.
Chapter 1
A quite morning. The clock shows 8am. A girl is in bed and, having stayed up until just 3 hours ago, is hoping to get at least another 2 hours of sleep. Normally such a weekday would be full of despair; however, today was the school’s anniversary and thus, a holiday. The weather outside is gloomy but she still closes the curtains and hopes to enjoy a nice dream. Ring ring. Her small wish was mercilessly denied. Ring ring.
The distance to the phone is too far. Ring ring. Her housemate Alice does not seem to be home. Ring ring.
“Ughh…my precious sleep.” She gets up and puts on a jacket. The air is cold as the housing does not have good heating. Ring ring. Down the long hallway and a set of stairs to the lobby. This mansion has extravagant furnishings and is far too big for only two people to live in. Ring ring. Whoever is calling must have quite a bit of free time. That, or he knows the circumstances of this house. She looked at the somber colors outside the window. The phone has rung over 30 times by now as she finally reached it. She felt if she picked up the phone, her peaceful morning would end.
Perhaps it is chance or perhaps it is fate. Whatever you call it, all adventures begin from something simple like this.
Watch the Opening here
A light shower had started by the time she got to the school. Not that the weather mattered to her; she had business to take care of. She entered the empty school that lacked any signs of life and reached the staff room. She opened the door and spotted the young, gentle looking man who wore thin glasses.
“Yamashiro-sensei,” she said as she slammed the door shut.
“Good morning, Aozaki-kun.” She had been called here an hour ago with no explanation. Yamashiro was a teacher loved by the students due to his ability to relate to them as he as a recent alumni; however, she did not feel the same. Rather, she felt a teacher should not be so friendly with the students. Yamashiro asks if she is in a bad mood. She brushes it off but in reality, of course she is in a bad mood between her lack of sleep and being called out here on a holiday.
Yamashiro apologizes for the lack of explanation regarding this “transfer student.” Aozaki had merely heard about it, and she questions why she is needed. He wants her help to guide around this transfer student.
“He…Soujuurou-kun is a bit off in various ways.” That worries her. Off was a not word that would normally be used for problematic students.
“I have one question.”
“What? Oh, he is the same grade as you, 11th grade, and he’s a fairly calm person. He does not speak much but rather, he is the type to listen. He is in a different class but I hope you two get along.”
Aozaki does not care to hear this from him. “Why was I chosen?” she asks, and realizes this implied she had agreed to help out. Yamashiro tries to dodge the question with cheap explanations like she is the student council president or because she is the ideal student but eventually, “Because you are a kind person.” She glared. Yamashiro wisely gets out of his chair and they leave the room.
The 1 hour wait continues. He was in some sort of conference room alone. The end of November meant the temperature was becoming cold. He was told to wait here and so he did. He wondered what the teachers were discussing. He sighed and listened to the sound of rain. Outside the window, he could see the mountains, giving off a feeling of pleasant nostalgia. So even this other world has mountains. And then his anxiety grew again. How pathetic. He directs his attention toward the sound of rain once again.
On the other hand, she was incredibly upset. A boy who came from such a rural place that had no electricity. This could not be more hopeless. Her indignation rose. Yamashiro had explained how he came from a mountain village deemed unnecessary during the building of the JR system and so, it was left forgotten with no modernization. It also seemed he currently lacked a place of residence; commuting from home was impossible.
“Wow, what an exciting adventure to see this wolf boy!” …Scary. Aozaki’s glare was too scary for Yamashiro. To cover up his ill-received joke, he describes Soujuurou as a small animal that did not understand when you were speaking to it. She is hardly consoled. The teachers had given up on this losing battle. Aozaki prepared to open the door to the conference room, as if charging into battle.
“…Um, Aozaki-kun? Can you please try to smile?” She does not believe in forced smiles. Well, she was not one to smile in the first place. She had been forced to come out here on a holiday to clean up the teachers’ problem. How irresponsible. This enemy. A fearsome enemy who would ruin a young girl’s sleep is without a doubt, an enemy. She faced her enemy who was off.
The time was almost 9am. The rain continued trickling down the window. Finally, the sound of footsteps. The door slid open and a man with an awkward smile appeared.
“Huh, Satonaka-sensei isn’t here?” And then. From behind him, with no hesitation in her eyes, a girl with long, dark hair appeared.
Completely stunned.
This time. This passage of time that for once in his life felt like it had stopped.
She wavered in surprise.
An unknown reason.
He opened in eyes wide in surprise.
An obvious reason.
This moment.
The boy felt something akin to fate.
Yamashiro introduces the two: Aozaki Aoko, the student council president, and Shizuki Soujuurou, the transfer student. The boy was unremarkable. Truly ordinary in every way such that one could not possibly point out one unique thing about him. Aoko’s “anger for no reason” had turned on like a switch. She reeled in it, wondering the reason for her anger. Yamashiro laughs and asks her to give her greetings. She only glares at him. He calls out to Soujuurou who finally came back to his senses. The girl took one step forward and with a menacing look, put out her hand. He was staring with admiration for some time before finally taking the hand. From a third party’s perspective, this might look like war. Yamashiro had good intentions when choosing the honors student Aozaki, but for some reason, today she was in a bad mood.
“…Then, you two are fine?” he says as he retreats out the door while accepting his blunder with fake laughter.
Like two shogi players who both got off to a bad start, there is a period of silence. Finally, Aoko asks his name in a harsh tone.
“Ah, Shizuki Soujuurou.”
“Is Shizuki okay”
“Is what okay?” Aoko sarcastically remarks on how slow he can be but somehow he completely misses her blatant hostility. She asks what he already knows regarding school.
“All the buildings here are the same age. It’s amazing.” …Aoko put her fingers to her brow. This boy knew nothing.
She explains the most basic things while walking down the school corridors and then Soujuurou asks a question. “It might be my imagination but you seem to have been glaring this whole time. Was today not a good day after all?” With eyes that asked “have you eaten?” and a serious look of concern.
Aoko realized she really had been glaring. Or rather, she was always glaring. Even her housemate would say things like
“Your gaze is so harsh compared to a normal person’s.” Soujuurou makes more meek comments that Aoko cannot seem to understand. He certainly is off. They are about to head toward his classroom next when he makes one last comment.
“I have a little guess about why you are angry, if that’s okay? Could it be that your occupation or family business is to be angry?” A long silence. It was too late, but Aoko felt a deep, bitter regret about answering the phone this morning
The guide continues. The boy quietly watches with amazement. Aoko is perfectly graceful with no wasted movements. When she stopped, it was done with beauty and when she pointed, he could not help but look. But then he stopped.
“Not good. It’s almost 1pm.” Aoko stops. The school tour couldn’t possible take...no. This boy had asked a million questions at every classroom. It’s possible it had been over 3 hours by now. She spitefully mentions how he must be the kind of person who does not mind wasting others’ plans but doesn’t like it when his own are ruined.
“Thank you for the praise.”
“Nobody was praising you!” She almost shouted. She asks what he needs to do.
“Secret.”
“Do you enjoy making fun of me?” Aoko asks as she slowly steps forward with a smiling, violently shaking face. He folds and explains how he has a part time job. Although he received permission for one job, he has more than one. Actually, he already dropped 2 of them, so it is not as bad as it sounds. Indeed, between tuition and living expenses, it can be hard to afford all of that. Aoko allows him to go despite Yamashiro saying they needed to come see him when they were done, and her opinion of him has slightly improved.
“Then, see you.” He entered a classroom. “Wai—” She followed him in. It took an instant for her to understand the situation. Waitwaitwait! Soujuurou had opened a window, letting in the cold November wind and rain and placed a foot on the window sill. He explains he is going to his part time job with a confused look. He does not understand what stairs are for. Did he want to die? She gets him to close the window and use the stairs this time. She watches his back running outside the school grounds and wonders if he will be alright.
Aoko also heads out, skipping a final talk with Yamashiro that she agreed to. It was revenge for this day. There was still a light rain, so she took out her red umbrella. Her flashy red umbrella was viewed poorly by others and at one time had its own ghost story about being white in the past.
Misaki City had undergone rapid development in the last 10 years. The town had made plans to develop many parts and while there were outcries to “save the nature,” the mayor shut down the minority. However, being a town nestled in the mountains, it could not be developed as desired, and so, it was still relatively the same. Misaki Private High School actually had two other buildings deep in the forest. However, eventually, the forest road became a place for animals, and it was closed down. Thus, a third building was erected and Misaki High reopened to the public. The old road was all but forgotten. As Aoko approached the new station, she was tempted to rest her body at the coffee shop but it would be a waste to go alone.
And then.
In an instant.
The passage of time slowed.
The blinking crosswalk light.
In the corner of vision, she saw a suspicious character dressed in red. … A big sigh. Time moved as before. It must be her imagination.
The road was like a mountain trail. An endless road of dirt and asphalt with a vending machine placed dead center that acted like a border between the town and the mountain. The children viewed this road like a playground but never crossed that border. Who knew what lay ahead? No, they knew. It was a haunted house. “Huh? It’s locked. …Alice isn’t back yet.” The heavy iron gates quietly opened for the young girl the moment she touched it.
A haunted house on top of the hill. It was an old tale passed down that had been modernized into rumors. For example, a deserted house that had rotted away for many years would suddenly light up in the middle of the night. For example, a countless number of crows would gather to the house only to disappear in an instant. For example, on a misty day, lost children would be spirited away. People no longer approached this house. This Kuonji House, the house of a witch. A Western-styled house whose lineage had come from Great Britain. With its extreme extravagance, the town inhabitants viewed its unnatural magnificence as something eerie and strange. Yet, the only two people living here were not the kind to complain about being treated as vampires.
Aoko put her hand on the double bronze doors to open them. The lobby was ashen grey just like the weather. The entrance, at fault of the designer, lacked electric lights and the only light came from moonlight or sunlight through the high ceiling windows. Her room was along the wall at the end of the hall on the second floor. This Kuonji House had a West and East Wing. Aoko was permitted to use the East Wing. She had chosen her room, which was not too spacious, not out of restraint but simply because it would require less effort to keep clean. The room had a large bed and a mahogany desk. A wardrobe lined with coats and jackets and 2 bookshelves. It was all luggage carried from home. The proof that she was a young girl of 16 years.
“That’s right, I should go check on it.” She wanted to ascertain the results she had worked on last night until early this morning. A den separated from her room by a single wall. She had been working here for less than a year but. It’s gone. The results…disappeared. No matter. Average talent yet precious, hard work. Aoko was optimistic about these things.
She opened a door on the East Wing and went down the stairs and through the long, dark corridor into the living room. She had plans to change the room to be more modern. As of now, only an out of place 30 inch TV stood amongst a luxurious patterned wall, a large and dignified sofa, and a Persian carpet. The owner of the mansion was reluctant to get it, but Aoko convinced her it was a necessity for a commoner. Somehow, her mood became cheerful as she brewed some tea with perfection. She sips the black tea once, then twice. She sinks into the sofa with joy. The soft feeling of that sofa, she could not resist the impulse…
A girl with an old book was sitting across from her.
“Did I fall asleep?”
“Yes.” The girl had slender limbs and pale, white skin. Jet black hair, darker than Aoko’s. Eyes that were a cold color looked over her page with quiet grace. Aoko asks how long she was asleep and determines it had been about 2 hours. Thinking back on her exhausting day, that was plausible. She complains that her tea had been allowed to cool, but by the time the girl had arrived, it was already cold. She swallows it in a single gulp. She welcomes Alice back, her housemate who she had been living with for almost 2 years. They had learned to treat each other with respect by now. Aoko explains how she had been called to school and forced to guide Soujuurou around. She then mentions her broken experiment and how the results disappeared, asking if Alice is angry about it. Alice does not show any care and points out Aoko is the one who is angry. Unusually harsh. The conversation continues as Aoko reflects on her anger toward Soujuurou or commenting on the book Alice is reading.
Then Alice mentions there is another topic. A torturing silence.
“If school is your priority, that is fine.” Aoko understands the implication. Do you have the resolution? The failure of today was not the issue. She knew this decision had to be made eventually. It was why she came to this house. …Alice is unrelated. This is. My. My decision to make… She tells Alice she will decide within a week, so get the preparations ready again as she still can’t do it herself. With the topic over, they go back to usual: Aoko watching TV while Alice’s reading eyes seem to drift to the TV screen.
Suddenly, Alice let out a voice. Aoko recognized this as a time when Alice wanted to say something that wasn’t important. She asks Alice what it was while looking at her with eyes that shined like a mischievous cat’s. Alice says how it’s nothing and probably something boring but Aoko insists. Finally.
“I saw a human shaped cat delivering food.” Alice was not the type to make jokes; her sense of humor was zero. Aoko explains how there are many strange people in this world, such as a fellow who had lived deep in the mountains, isolated from the world and electricity.
Then Aoko asks what they will do for dinner. The two had no real system for meals and they occasionally ate out. If it was past 8, they would not be able to cater food as traveling up this hill at this hour would elicit a dismal feeling for the caterer. Barely in time! It’s not quite 8. Aoko pulls out a list of services and gleefully looks through the list.
“Sorry, but I already finished dinner.” Words that froze Aoko’s body.
“You traitor! So that’s why you came home so late!? I should’ve known since you finish at 5pm and it’s a 20 minute walk one way.” Aoko complains Alice should have at least brought something back for her, like Aoko did for Alice last time.
“Do you possibly mean, the time you went out for sushi and brought me back a bag from the convenience store?” Aoko stutters and argues it was better than nothing but eventually calls it even; however, Alice makes no motion of agreement or disagreement. Scary. Aoko decides to practice her cooking skills and then asks Alice where she ended up eating. Alice abruptly closes her book and walks up to Aoko.
“You want to hear?” Aoko hesitantly nods at the intensity. “The cat brought me it.”
This ends chapter 1 of 13. It took me 5 weeks to get through it. My reading speed has increased a lot since I first started, mainly due to reading hiragana and recognizing grammar much faster but also due to the fact I stopped trying to learn every kanji that appeared as it was too much of a waste of time. Since chapter 2 is half this length, I’m hoping to get it done in another 2-3 weeks. After school ends, I expect to read a lot more so I might actually finish before summer ends.
Anyway, this chapter was obviously just a lot of character and setting introduction. Aoko is shown to have a very harsh personality despite usually not having ill will, and Soujuurou’s ignorance of the modern world is made apparent many times. If you didn’t realize already, Alice actually is a witch and is/will be teaching Aoko magic. The decision they refer to is whether Aoko will live a normal life or continue on the path of magic. One thing I’ve enjoyed most and was quite biased about with the pictures was Aoko’s facial expressions which have really made the reading easier for me. The exposition can be fairly boring and I did cut out details that I hope are not relevant to the story later. I struggled with how much dialogue to include versus summarize but I wanted to be as detailed as possible without it just being a copy of the script. Summarizing dialogue was the hardest because I had to create my own description rather than pick and choose lines. Let me know what you think (or prefer, more/less text? More/less pictures?) so I can improve future chapters.
