アルバート・リーヴズ 作 / パトリシア・リーヴズ 絵 / 平松和利 訳
Once upon a time, a man was walking along the seaside at midnight when he met a mermaid.
人魚は、
The mermaid was sitting on a large rock, looking at the moon.
男が人魚の
As the man admired her beauty, she turned to him and smiled.
男はふらふらと人魚へ
He went towards her as if he were being sucked in and sat down next to her.
男が
For the people in the village where the man lives, mermaids are a precious foodstuff.
もしも
If they find a mermaid, they are determined to catch it and eat it with everyone in the village.
もちろん、男はわかっていました。しかし、
Naturally, he understood this. But when he actually saw the mermaid, he had no desire to catch her at all, he just felt that she was too beautiful.
男は、
The man told the mermaid about the view of his village.
The clear stream running through the village, the hills with lovely coloured flowers and the big windmill there.
人魚はうっとりしてその話に
She was entranced and listened to his story.
そして「ぜひ、そこへ
Then she said, "Please take me to your village."
男はあわてました。村のみんなに人魚が見つかったら、食べられてしまいます。
He was flustered. If other villagers find her, she will surely be eaten.
男は「
He said to her, "It is very dangerous for you."
しかし、人魚は村の景色を見たがって聞きませんでした。
But she insisted on seeing the village scenery.
しかたがないので、男は人魚を
Having no choice, he decided to take her to his village.
When he picked up her, he was surprised at how light she was.
「まるで、いないようなものじゃないか」と男は言いました。
"It's as if you don't exist," he said.
「わたしはね、
"The mermaid can never truly be lost," she laughed.
男は、人魚を抱きかかえて、
The man walked through the village at midnight with the mermaid in his arms.
ふたりは、月の
They looked around at the streams shimmering in the moonlight and the petals wet with night dew in the shade of the windmills.
They had a very wonderful time. But, when they came near his house, they came across a young villager.
その村人は、男を見て「人魚を捕まえたのか?」と言いました。
The villager said to him, "You caught a mermaid?"
「いい人魚じゃないか。よくやった!」
"This is a very nice mermaid. Well done, you!"
そして、その村人はさっそく
And, the villager immediately called the other villagers.
村人たちは
They praised the man and looked expectantly at the mermaid.
男はあせりました。「捕まえてきたわけじゃないんだ」
The man panicked and said, "I didn't bring her here to eat her."
しかし村人たちは聞く耳を
But the villagers did not listen to him. They quickly took the mermaid away from him.
男は人魚を取り
He tried to bring her back, but the powerful male villagers prevented him from doing so.
When the man woke up, he was lying in his bed in his own house.
あちこちにひどいけがをしているようで、
He tried to get up, his whole body ached. He seemed to be badly injured here and there.
ひとりの
An old blind villager was by his side, tending to him.
「人魚はどうした?」と男は言いました。
"What did those villagers do to the mermaid?" The man said.
しかしその村人は
But the villager did not answer his question.
「あなたは
"You fell on the shore last night and fell into the sea. That's how you got hurt so badly and slept until now."
「人魚はどうしたんだ?」と男はまた言いました。
"What did those villagers do to the mermaid?" The man said again.
けれども村人は「なんのことでしょうかね。夢を見ていたんじゃあないですか」と言うばかりでした。
"I do not know what you are talking about. Perhaps you were dreaming." That was all the villager said.
男には、あの人魚の
But the man could not believe it. He couldn't believe that the mermaid had been a dream.
男は痛む体を
He got out of bed. He felt great pain all over his body.
村人は男を
The villager tried to stop him, but he ran out of the house.
男の
All he could think about was the mermaid.
Strangely, the village was practically devoid of people.
The sky was clear and very bright, but there was nobody. When the man visited every house, no one was there.
男は人魚を
He ran around the village looking for the mermaid. He finally reached the village headman's house.
From inside the house he could faintly hear the joyful laughter of the villagers.
どうやら、みんなここに
It seemed that everyone had gathered there. He opened the door of the house.
そこでは
A lavish party was held there.
There was a large table in the centre of the room with various feasts on it.
とてもおいしそうに見えるそのごちそうは、すべて人魚の
They all looked very tasty. Yes, they were all made of the mermaid meat.
人魚はすでにすっかり
She had already been completely dismantled.
男は、はしゃぐ村人たちを
The man waded through the throngs of the villagers and entered the kitchen at the back.
人魚の頭だけが、
Only the parts of her that could not be eaten, from the neck up, were left on the kitchen table.
それを見た
The moment he saw it, he cried out loud.
人魚の頭をかかえて外へ出た男は、傾き
The man took it in his arms and went outside. The sun was beginning to set. He walked slowly. He wept and moaned all the way.
やがて男は海に
Eventually he reached the sea.
大きな
The big sunset was reflecting off the water and he felt very dazzled.
He went right up to the lapping waves and kneeled on the ground.
ふと、かすかな
Suddenly a slight breeze blew and the hair of the mermaid he was holding fluttered a little.
そのとき、
Then something wondrous happened.
髪の
When the ends of her hair touched the seawater, she instantly returned to her original beautiful appearance.
「ああ、よかった!」男は
"Incredible!" He shouted and was delighted.
「
"It's really good to see you again. I'm sorry for the terrible things the villagers did to you."
人魚はそっと海のほうへ
She gently turned towards the sea.
「いいのよ、あなたはとってもすばらしい
"No, it doesn't matter, the scenery you showed me was wonderful. It was a beautiful world, for you."
男は人魚を抱きしめようとしましたが、彼女はするりと
He tried to hug her, but she ducked and smiled sadly.
それから、人魚は
She then quietly returned to the sea, never to be seen again.
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