I Am a Max-level Priestess in Another World - Ch. 5 - That Will Be the Day She Meets Her End!

[kodenir]

Got interested in the web novel version after last chapter. It's fairly entertaining. Slightly-edited-MTL-level translation, but it's not annoyingly bad. Binged it fast. Almost at the end of the third volume now.

Sadly, the source made me dislike this adaptation. There's just so much context lost, and so many things changed. I'll just enjoy it for the visuals. Which, apart from the characters, are terrible. But hey, they aid the imagination.

Side note: I'm actually enjoying reading the comments from Seanna Quah on the translator's site. I've never encountered such a delusional and unpleasant person in my entire life. It's quite refreshing. I've burst out laughing quite a few times. It's a whole experience on its own, so I recommend reading those comments as well. Though rare, Seanna Quah does have some insight at times, so it's not always pure delusion. What an interesting person. Would never want to be friends, but makes for a funny sitcom of sorts.

First 2 volumes had different translator, later it's same translator as this manga version

 

[MostlyHumanTLs]

First 2 volumes had different translator, later it's same translator as this manga version

A bit better, sure, but still feels like an MTL. There are constant errors, like gendered words changing arbitrarily, since Chinese is genderless. Also, pluralization is messed up all the time, too. These are typical in MTL that lacks context to decide which is the correct translation.

These errors show a lack of either care or skill by the translator. Like, if you're translating (or at least editing the MTL), you're clearly following the story, right? Then, it boggles my mind how you can switch "he" and "she" for the same character constantly. Sometimes in the same sentence.

Anyway, it's readable. At this point my mind automatically corrects the errors without much active input from me. It's actually kinda eerie.

 

[NinjaGoemon]

Not a man will remain by the end of this. All is yuri. All is life.

 

[littletangerines]

Got interested in the web novel version after last chapter. It's fairly entertaining. Slightly-edited-MTL-level translation, but it's not annoyingly bad. Binged it fast. Almost at the end of the third volume now.

Sadly, the source made me dislike this adaptation. There's just so much context lost, and so many things changed. I'll just enjoy it for the visuals. Which, apart from the characters, are terrible. But hey, they aid the imagination.

Side note: I'm actually enjoying reading the comments from Seanna Quah on the translator's site. I've never encountered such a delusional and unpleasant person in my entire life. It's quite refreshing. I've burst out laughing quite a few times. It's a whole experience on its own, so I recommend reading those comments as well. Though rare, Seanna Quah does have some insight at times, so it's not always pure delusion. What an interesting person. Would never want to be friends, but makes for a funny sitcom of sorts.

There are inconsistencies in half of volume 1, all of volume 2, and half of volume 3 because four different translators worked on it. (I’ve been retranslating 30% of those chapters for the past two weeks, and it should be done by next month.)

I can assure you it’s not machine translation (MTL), as that would be nearly impossible here. You can use MTL for the free chapters, but not for the paid ones.

It’s a bit hard to explain, but if you buy the paid chapter, you’ll understand why I say it’s impossible.

I don’t mind being accused of MTL, but please don’t do that to others. I know someone who was accused and quit because of it. These translators put in so much time and effort, and it’s frustrating to be accused of using MTL. I hope you don’t do this to other translators. Thank you~

 

[TokenOtaku]

The art of this is soo good. However, the story is unbearable.

 

[littletangerines]

Just saying it won't prove anything. I’m going to record the entire process of translating the next chapter from start to finish, with no edits and no cuts, to show that there's no MTL involved. I’ll also give verbal explanations about the translations as I go along. I will upload the video later. I hope this proves that I'm not using MTL.

 

[eng1]

That sick general didn't fight in the war, his strength was actually weak. He excels in the brains department as a competent commander

How long this fight? I just wanted to see the dragon girl and in this chapter she just appear in the end 😔

The dragon girl has very little scenes not just this fight but pretty much the entire volume. Mostly because she is overkill and isn't very good at self control yet. But the manga can change things, who knows. And at this pacing I wouldn't be surprised if they finish vol 1 quickly despite it being very long

 

[Wachtail]

Thanks for the chapter!

 

[Izaya_Onisai]

Did you damage the art with a edit? If so please stop with that edit... checked the raws so can now honestly say, yes you did... Dunno, if it was to increase the resolution or lower the weight of the images but please stop, if you truly like this series and want to make some cash with it, do not damage the art.



@littletangerines

 

[Spectrum]

Poor Violet, every named character in this version was changed to have bigger breasts than her.

 

[littletangerines]

Did you damage the art with a edit? If so please stop with that edit... checked the raws so can now honestly say, yes you did... Dunno, if it was to increase the resolution or lower the weight of the images but please stop, if you truly like this series and want to make some cash with it, do not damage the art.
View attachment 8280


@littletangerines

What are you talking about?
What did I edit?
Did I leave out any parts of the story, or cut any original sentences?
Or, are there any images that I changed here?

Please don't make baseless accusations!

I have never edited any images here.

Don’t make accusations like this without any evidence!

Also, I don't understand what you mean by "make some cash with it." I’m pretty sure you don't know anything about me.

Some readers of my novel translations can back me up on this.

I've translated thousands of chapters, over 95% of which are paid chapters, including the novel version of this manhua.

I won’t mention the amount I spend to buy those chapters, but the donations I receive don’t even cover 50% of that.
So, you could say I'm at a loss (though not really, since my goal isn’t to make money here).

If you’re not making money, why do the translations?
I do it simply because I enjoy it. Regardless of whether I receive donations or not, I’ll keep updating.

 

[MostlyHumanTLs]

That sick general didn't fight in the war, his strength was actually weak. He excels in the brains department as a competent commander

I'm pretty sure you're mistaking him for the marshal of the south border, since that's who you're describing. Pretty sure this one was almost legendary level.

 

[monkey123]

At least the loli kemonomimi survived! 😭😭😭😭

 

[MostlyHumanTLs]

Just saying it won't prove anything. I’m going to record the entire process of translating the next chapter from start to finish, with no edits and no cuts, to show that there's no MTL involved. I’ll also give verbal explanations about the translations as I go along. I will upload the video later. I hope this proves that I'm not using MTL.

If you want to prove yourself, fine, but that doesn't change my complaints. You didn't address my comment here, where I explain the most common errors I find:

A bit better, sure, but still feels like an MTL. There are constant errors, like gendered words changing arbitrarily, since Chinese is genderless. Also, pluralization is messed up all the time, too. These are typical in MTL that lacks context to decide which is the correct translation.

These errors show a lack of either care or skill by the translator. Like, if you're translating (or at least editing the MTL), you're clearly following the story, right? Then, it boggles my mind how you can switch "he" and "she" for the same character constantly. Sometimes in the same sentence.

Anyway, it's readable. At this point my mind automatically corrects the errors without much active input from me. It's actually kinda eerie.

I do find your translation much better the than previous volumes. But, if you really do a manual translation, you make some weird mistakes that are usually found in MTL. Actually, your comments here have pretty much perfect English, so it just makes me more doubtful.

I don’t mind being accused of MTL, but please don’t do that to others. I know someone who was accused and quit because of it. These translators put in so much time and effort, and it’s frustrating to be accused of using MTL. I hope you don’t do this to other translators. Thank you~

As a retired translator, my advice is this: if you don't like being accused of releasing MTLs, then improve your skills to make the translation not read like one. Whining about criticism won't improve anything. And if criticism is something you can't handle, then either toughen up or avoid online discussions. People are much more brutal online than face to face. Ask a friend to proofread. You'll get better feedback like that anyway, even if they're not much better than you.

Here's the thing, I actually don't mind edited MTLs. Especially with the stuff you can get out of the current AI models. With a bit of editing by a human who has at least a basic understanding of the original language so they can compare the results, you can get an incredibly good translation. I don't care about the process, I care about the end product.

 

[eng1]

I'm pretty sure you're mistaking him for the marshal of the south border, since that's who you're describing. Pretty sure this one was almost legendary level.

If I remember correctly, a typical general is legendary level.

 

[MostlyHumanTLs]

If I remember correctly, a typical general is legendary level.

Dunno where you got that from. I binged through the first three volumes in about a week, so it's pretty fresh in my mind. Unless you mean the general of the military, who is legendary and his son is a legendary adventurer. The thunder weapons master, the flirty one.

[Vol. 1] Chapter 19: A Blessing From the Sky

Lilya approached the elderly man and looked at his sunken features, rough and wrinkled skin, and his emaciated frame. She couldn’t believe her eyes.

After all, this was a peak Sky-level, almost legendary. Even if he were on his deathbed, he shouldn’t have become this frail.

Found where they meet the general. And I'm pretty sure somewhere is mentioned that he's one of the stronger ones.

I also remember Lilya mentioning that they chose generals based on what's necessary, not pure strength. That's why the western general is more of a strong, defensive figure against the simple beastmen, while the south general is a more strategic and ambitious sort because of the many small countries down south that may be turned into vassal states. More context here:
https://fanstranslations.com/novel/...en-i-reach-the-maximum-level/vol-3-chapter-6/

 

[littletangerines]

If you want to prove yourself, fine, but that doesn't change my complaints. You didn't address my comment here, where I explain the most common errors I find:

I do find your translation much better the than previous volumes. But, if you really do a manual translation, you make some weird mistakes that are usually found in MTL. Actually, your comments here have pretty much perfect English, so it just makes me more doubtful.

As a retired translator, my advice is this: if you don't like being accused of releasing MTLs, then improve your skills to make the translation not read like one. Whining about criticism won't improve anything. And if criticism is something you can't handle, then either toughen up or avoid online discussions. People are much more brutal online than face to face. Ask a friend to proofread. You'll get better feedback like that anyway, even if they're not much better than you.

Here's the thing, I actually don't mind edited MTLs. Especially with the stuff you can get out of the current AI models. With a bit of editing by a human who has at least a basic understanding of the original language so they can compare the results, you can get an incredibly good translation. I don't care about the process, I care about the end product.

Ah, I understand now. What you were referring to from the beginning wasn't actually "MTL."
What you meant was that there are inconsistencies in the use of certain words in a sentence, right?
You should have said the novel wasn't "proofread". MTL is something else dude.

Because we were talking about two different things, we ended up debating.

So why are there inconsistencies in certain words in this novel?
I already mentioned that there are different translators here. This results in different word choices.

Here's the explanation: for example, there is a word that has many versions but essentially the same literal meaning, such as "sacred" and "holy."

Another example is a word that has 2-3 different meanings. Like (兽人), which can be translated as "Orc" or "Beastman." However, in English, these two words are different, right?

Simply put, from a translator’s point of view, for example, Translator A translates “兽人” as orc and Translator B translates it as “beastman.” Both are correct, right?

But if you look at it from a reader’s perspective, you might say one of them is a mistranslation, wouldn’t you?

This is what you were actually discussing from the beginning, right? The inconsistencies in words. This isn't MTL. MTL is something else entirely.

Besides that, I also know there are sentences that are convoluted and hard to understand. I don’t deny that.

I completely understand the point you were trying to make.

I’m very aware of the differing perspectives of these different translators, which cause bad reading experiences.

I'm not denying that. What I take issue with is your accusation that these translators are using MTL, but your point isn't actually about MTL. You're just making baseless accusations. I understand your point though.

And why am I insisting that there is no “MTL”? Because it’s impossible to do so. It’s hard to explain, but the point is, “paid chapters” on SFACG cannot be copied by any means, whether through browser extensions or AI, etc. I get that what I’m saying might be a bit confusing, but I’m being honest. You can buy the paid chapter and see for yourself.

But I’m also at fault here. I’m not justifying myself. There are many shortcomings in that novel, and I’m currently fixing them.

Well, I'm pretty sure after this you'll still defend yourself and refuse to admit your mistake. But I won't respond anymore because this will never end if we keep doing this.

I apologize if I said anything offensive or harsh. And also, thank you for sharing your perspective.

 

[MostlyHumanTLs]

Ah, I understand now. What you were referring to from the beginning wasn't actually "MTL."
What you meant was that there are inconsistencies in the use of certain words in a sentence, right?
You should have said the novel wasn't "proofread". MTL is something else dude. Because we were talking about two different things, we ended up debating.

As I said, I don't care if machine translations were used or not. The problem is that the translation reads like the result of MTL. Basically, if it looks like MTL, then it's MTL, regardless of whether it actually is or not. Effort is meaningless. Results are everything.

So why are there inconsistencies in certain words in this novel?
I already mentioned that there are different translators here. This results in different word choices.

Here's the explanation: for example, there is a word that has many versions but essentially the same literal meaning, such as "sacred" and "holy."

Another example is a word that has 2-3 different meanings. Like (兽人), which can be translated as "Orc" or "Beastman." However, in English, these two words are different, right?

Simply put, from a translator’s point of view, for example, Translator A translates “兽人” as orc and Translator B translates it as “beastman.” Both are correct, right?

But if you look at it from a reader’s perspective, you might say one of them is a mistranslation, wouldn’t you?

This is what you were actually discussing from the beginning, right? The inconsistencies in words. This isn't MTL. MTL is something else entirely.

Besides that, I also know there are sentences that are convoluted and hard to understand. I don’t deny that.

I completely understand the point you were trying to make.

No, it seems you don't understand what I'm talking about. And I'm not talking about the previous translations, just yours. Also, I'm aware of everything you said since, like I already mentioned, I'm a retired translator, though from Japanese.

I wasn't talking about those. I literally spelled out two of my major problems, which you failed to address again. I'll use an example I just came across a few minutes ago.

Although she didn’t raise her voice much, the divine consciousness of the Goddess of Life had long covered every corner of this area. As long as she did this, naturally, He would notice.

- https://fanstranslations.com/novel/...-i-reach-the-maximum-level/vol-3-chapter-173/

Here, "He would notice" clearly refers to the Goddess of Life, who is a woman. This is the type of error I'm taking about. A logical failure, something that happens often in machine translations since they lack the context to figure out which gender to use.

This is a constant issue in your translation, which is why I say it reads like a machine translation. Since current AI models are advanced enough to formulate completely native-sounding translations, what actually gives them away are these logic failures due to lacking context.

Also, another thing machine translations tend to do is use different meanings of words. For example, in your translation I encountered both "Leviathan's offspring" and "Leviathan's son". A human translator would have the context of the decision they made previously and stick to using the same terms, but an AI would make the choice each time, seemingly at random.

I’m very aware of the differing perspectives of these different translators, which cause bad reading experiences.

I'm not denying that. What I take issue with is your accusation that these translators are using MTL, but your point isn't actually about MTL. I understand your point though.

I like how many times you said you understood what I meant, while completely ignoring what I said.

Again, I already said the translation improved a lot since you took over, acknowledging those previous inconsistencies. So what I was clearly talking about is just your translation.

I absolutely don't care whether you're using machine translation tools or not. What I want is a polished end product that feels nice to read.

This is exactly why I pointed out the errors I did, since once those have been fixed by proofreading, the translation would actually become fairly good.

And why am I insisting that there is no “MTL”? Because it’s impossible to do so. It’s hard to explain, but the point is, “paid chapters” on SFACG cannot be copied by any means, whether through browser extensions or AI, etc. I get that what I’m saying might be a bit confusing, but I’m being honest. You can buy the paid chapter and see for yourself.

I know what you mean by impossible to copy. I've encountered all kinds of DRM before. That has never stopped me, though. Where there's a will, there's a way. Nothing can ever be impossible to copy. If your eyes can see it, then it's not impossible, you just lack the knowledge of how to do it.

I've never used SFACG but just googling "copy paid chapters from SFACG" showed a lot of people capable of doing just that. Imperfect, sure, but not impossible.

But I’m also at fault here. I’m not justifying myself. There are many shortcomings in that novel, and I’m currently fixing them.

I apologize if I said anything offensive or harsh. And also, thank you for sharing your perspective.

Nah, man. Don't feel the need to apologise. As long as you're actively improving, everything's good.

I actually know one translator that has been at it for about a decade and their English hasn't improved at all. You're already infinitely better.

You might've actually fixed these issues in your translations by now, since I only finished the 3rd volume and you're already on the 5th. I could've waited to comment, but the previous translations would still be what they are now, so my criticisms are still valid, even though the feedback itself may not be relevant anymore.

Actually, I wouldn't mind proofreading for you, since I'm liking the novel so far. I'm pretty good at noticing these kinds of errors. Tell me if you're interested. I wouldn't mind fixing up stuff starting from the 4th volume, since I didn't start it yet.

EDIT: Never mind. Lost interest in proofreading. I continued reading and was a bit more focused on fixing stuff in my mind. Apart from the occasional errors, I ended up wanting to change a lot in terms of phasing, structure and even translation. Since that's going into the realm of editing, it became too much work to do for free.

I'm not really the type to be able to hold myself back from improving something I'm able to, so trying to only proofread will just lead to constant frustration for me.

I'll just keep reading passively (not getting hung up on what I would change), hoping the quality improves. Though, I actually took a look at the latest chapter from another series on the site and found the same level of quality with the same errors. So...

 

[OnewingedMasios]

the background people A-posing constantly is so distracting

 

[OnewingedMasios]

There are constant errors, like gendered words changing arbitrarily, since Chinese is genderless.

Mandarin (which is what you meant) isn't genderless at all. Spoken mandarin they all sound the same but in written mandarin it's very easy to dicern 他 (he), 她 (she), and 它 (neuter, and often used for animals too). If this was cantonese then you would be right as in cantonese there is only 佢 for third person at which point you give up and guess (trust me all us canto speakers just guess on context and get it right 70% of the time...).

So anytime you see in a yiyin a character being referred to as both male and female what it actually was is the translator not proof-reading (even edited MTL if you proof-read you would immediately notice the erreur and can fix it since 9/10 times all it was a dropped pronoun due to the character being established as a woman and as such referring to her as a woman over and over being redundant in mandarin (they do this in japanese too))