Club Zodiac

“ — Yoshizaka. You have any interest in transitioning to middle-distance races?” I can barely even remember the face of my middle-school coach, but that remark and voice are the only things that remain clearly in my memory. Probably because I was asked so many times. Since I’d done well enough as a short-distance runner in middle school, it seemed like my coach was adamant about having me become a star mid-distance runner. I continued to decline. It didn’t suit me. Practice is too demanding. I don’t have the stamina. What came after that again? I had multiple excuses prepared. I can’t remember them all. After awhile, my coach stopped bringing it up. I’d break my own record over and over again anyway. Around the time I moved on to high school, I’d been burdened with the title of “Rising Star of the Track team”. I loved the instant a race started. From the moment I got into starting position, the surroundings and colors would blur out like an old photograph. The only thing I could...

Anna Yoshizaka, a former short-distance runner with a promising future ahead of her, had to give up her athletic pursuits after a hit and run accident and has lost all hope for the future. She left school mid term and lives an apathetic life, but one day she comes across Joker, a mysterious figure from rumor spread around the city. Joker tells her he wants her to join the Masked Circle, an offer Anna can’t refuse. Then, before Anna appears the positive, strong willed Yukino Mayuzumi. While she resents Yukino for interfering with the Circle’s schemes, she also finds herself drawn to her somehow. If all goes according to the plans of the Masked Circle, the town will succumb to destruction and all order will collapse… This novel, first in the series, presents a new perspective to the hit video game Persona 2. Character Profiles Anna Yoshizaka: Once a short-distance runner with a promising future, an injury from a traffic accident cuts her athletic career short. U...

Hello! I started this translation as a personal project to practice translation from Japanese to English, to see if I might be interested in pursuing it in the future. I figured I'd share it publicly too, since it's never been translated and it presents the events of the game from a different perspective. Persona 2 is one of my favorite games, and I'd love to help share as much of the lore/story as I can. Speaking of the story, this novel is told from the point of view of Anna Yoshizaka, an NPC. I don't think this novel is intended to be a substitute for playing the game, but more of a supplement material. I highly recommend you familiarize yourself with the events of the game before reading it. I cross-reference the game in both English and Japanese to ensure consistency when I can. For the most part, I try to use terms established in the English translation ("Cuss" and "shadowman" for example). I may use terms from the original Japanese where I...