一人二役 Hitoriniyaku, part 4: Caught in His Own Trap

さあ、そうなると、以前いぜんはさ程ほどでもなかった細君さいくんが、この世よに二人ふたりとないものに思おもわれて来くる。Well, once things came to that, the wife, who had never meant all that much to him before, began to seem like the one woman in all the world.

その細君さいくんを、他人たにんに（正まさしく云いえば自分じぶん自身じしんにだが）奪うばわれたかと思おもうと、くやしさは一通ひととおりではない。And when he thought that this wife of his had been stolen by another man (or, strictly speaking, by himself), his chagrin was beyond anything ordinary.

細君さいくんがぼんやり物思ものおもいに耽ふけっている。His wife would sit vacantly, lost in thought.

アア、彼女かのじょは今いま、もう一人ひとりの男おとこのことを思おもっているのだな。Ah, she's thinking about that other man right now, isn't she.

そう考かんがえると、もうたまらない。Once that thought struck him, it was simply unbearable.

Ｔは実じつに取返とりかえしのつかぬことをやって了しまったのだ。T had truly done something that could never be undone.

彼かれは自分じぶん自身じしんの仕掛しかけた罠わなにかかったのだ。He had been caught in a trap of his own setting.

慌あわてて、仮装かそうを中止ちゅうしして見みたところで、今更いまさら何なんの甲斐かいもなかった。Even if he hurried to give up the disguise, it was far too late now to do any good.

夫婦ふうふの間あいだには、いつの間まにか妙みょうな隔意かくいを生しょうじていた。Before they knew it, a strange distance had grown up between husband and wife.

細君さいくんはともすれば憂欝ゆううつになった。The wife was all too often sunk in gloom.

恐おそらく彼女かのじょは姿すがたを見みせぬ男おとこのことを、諦あきらめ兼かねているのに相違そういない。No doubt she could not bring herself to give up the man who no longer showed himself.

Ｔはそれを見みるのがつらかった。It was painful for T to watch.

と同時どうじに、それ程ほど心こころにかけている男おとこというのが、実じつはもう一人ひとりの自分じぶんであることを考かんがえると、それは満更まんざら嬉うれしくないこともなかった。At the same time, when he reflected that the man she cared for so deeply was in fact his own other self, it was not altogether unwelcome to him.

一層いっそう一伍一什いちぶしじゅうを打うち開あけて了しまおうか、だがそうすることは、何なんとなくいやだった。Should he simply confess the whole thing from start to finish? But somehow he didn't want to do that.

一ひとつは余あまりに馬鹿馬鹿ばかばかしい自分じぶんの行為こういが恥はずかしくもあったし、それに、もう一ひとつは、実じつはこれが最大さいだいの原因げんいんなのだが、生うまれて始はじめて経験けいけんした、忍しのぶ恋路こいじの身みも世よもあらぬ楽たのしさを、Ｔはどうにも忘わすれ兼かねた。For one thing, he was ashamed of how utterly ridiculous his conduct had been; and for another, and this was really the chief reason, T could not for the life of him forget the all-consuming delight of a secret love, which he had tasted for the first time in his life.

彼かれは、そこに、本当ほんとうの恋こいを見出みいだした様ように思おもった。He felt that he had found true love there.

本来ほんらいのＴに対たいしては、世間せけん並なみの女房にょうぼうに過すぎなかった彼女かのじょが、その心こころの奥底おくそこにあの様ような情熱じょうねつを隠かくしていようとは。To think that she, who to the real T had been nothing more than an ordinary wife, should be hiding such passion in the depths of her heart!

Ｔは全まったく意外いがいであった。It came as a complete surprise to T.

そして逢瀬おうせが重かさなれば重かさなる程ほど、そのことは明あきらかになって行いった。And the more often they met, the plainer this became.

今更いまさら、あれは狂言きょうげんだったなどとどうして云いえるものか。How could he possibly tell her now that it had all been a play-act?

併しかし、この二に重じゅう生活せいかつをいつまでも続つづけることは、煩わずらわしいばかりでなく、細君さいくんに真相しんそうを悟さとられる虞おそれがあった。Still, to keep up this double life forever was not only a nuisance; there was also the danger that his wife would see through to the truth.

これまでは、いつも夜更よふけを選えらんで、暗くらい電燈でんとうの下したや、多おおくはその電燈でんとうさえもない闇やみの中なかで逢あっていたのだし、一方いっぽう明白めいはくなアリバイが用意よういしてあったから、まず安全あんぜんであったけれど、そんな異常いじょうな会合かいごうがそうそう続つづけられるものではない。Until now they had always chosen the dead of night and met under dim electric lights or, more often, in darkness without even that much light, and on top of that he always had a clear alibi ready, so he had been fairly safe; but such peculiar meetings could hardly go on for very long.

とするとそこには三みっつの方法ほうほうしかない。That being so, there were only three courses open to him.

第だい一いちは仮想かそうの人物じんぶつを葬ほうむって了しまうこと、第だい二にはトリックの一伍一什いちぶしじゅうを打明うちあけること、そして第だい三さんは、実じつに変へんなことだけれど、彼かれが、細君さいくんに愛想あいそをつかされた、いわばこの世よに用ようのないＴという人物じんぶつを辞職じしょくして、その代かわりに一方いっぽうの仮想かそうの男おとこになり切きって了しまうこと。The first was to bury the imaginary man for good; the second was to confess the trick from start to finish; and the third, odd as it sounds, was to resign from being T, a man whose wife had grown tired of him and who, you might say, had no further use in this world, and instead to become that imaginary man completely.

今いまも云いう通とおり、仮想かそうの人物じんぶつとしての、細君さいくんとの、謂いわば初恋はつこいを発見はっけんした彼かれは、どうにも、第だい一いち第だい二にの道みちを選えらぶ気きにはなれなかった。As I've said, having discovered with his wife what you might call a first love, in the person of the imaginary man, he simply couldn't bring himself to choose the first or the second road.

そこで非常ひじょうに難むずかしいことだとは思おもったが、遂ついに、第だい三さんの方法ほうほうを採とることに決心けっしんした。So, though he knew it would be extremely difficult, he finally made up his mind to take the third course.

つまり、Ａという男おとこが、ＡＢの二役ふたやくを勤つとめ、それから今度こんどは、始はじめのＡをすてて、まるで違ちがったＢの方ほうにばけて了しまうのだ。That is to say, a man called A plays the two parts of A and B, and then this time he throws away the original A and turns himself entirely into B, who is quite a different man.

嘗かつてこの世よに存在そんざいしなかった一人ひとりの人間にんげんを拵こしらえるのだ。He would be creating a person who had never before existed in this world.

そう決心けっしんすると、Ｔはまず旅行りょこうと称しょうして、一ヶ月いっかげつばかり家いえをあけ、その間あいだに、出来できる丈だけ顔形かおかたちを変かえようとした。Having decided on this, T first went away from home for a month or so on the pretext of a journey, and in the meantime he tried to change his looks as much as he could.

頭髪とうはつの刈かり方かたを違ちがえ、口髭くちひげを生はやし、眼鏡めがねをかけ、医者いしゃの手術しゅじゅつを受うけて、一重眼瞼ひとえまぶたを二重ふたえにし、その上うえ顔面がんめんの一部いちぶに、小ちいさい傷きずさえ拵こしらえた。He had his hair cut a different way, grew a moustache, put on glasses, underwent an operation by a doctor to turn his single eyelids into double ones, and on top of all that he even gave himself a small scar on part of his face.

そして、髭ひげが伸のびた頃ころに、態々わざわざ九州きゅうしゅうの方ほうまで出掛でかけて行いって、そこから、細君さいくんの所ところへ一通いっつうの絶縁ぜつえん状じょうを送おくったものだ。Then, once his moustache had grown in, he went all the way down to Kyūshū on purpose and from there sent his wife a letter breaking off their marriage.

細君さいくんは途方とほうに暮くれた。His wife was at her wits' end.

相談そうだんを持込もちこむ親戚しんせきとてもないのだ。She hadn't so much as a relative she could turn to for advice.

幸さいわい、夫おっとが多額たがくの金かねを残のこして行いったので、その方ほうの不自由ふじゆうは感かんじなかったが、そうかといって、じっとして居いる訳わけには行いかぬ。Luckily her husband had left her a large sum of money, so she felt no hardship on that score, but even so, she couldn't just sit still and do nothing.

こんな時とき、あの方かたが来きて下くだすったら。If only he would come to me at a time like this.

きっと彼女かのじょはそう思おもったに相違そういない。She must surely have thought so.

丁度ちょうどそこへ、仮想かそうの男おとこになり済すましたＴが、ヒョッコリとやって来きた、最初さいしょは、細君さいくん、その男おとこをＴだといって聞きかなんだが、Ｔの友人ゆうじんが訪たずねて来きても、まるで話はなしが合あわなかったり、（それはＴが予あらかじめ頼たのんだこの芝居しばいの脇役わきやくなのだ）仮装かそうの男おとこの身許みもとが明あきらかになったりしたので（これもＴが拵こしらえて置おいたのだ）つい、彼かれ等らが全まったく別人べつじんであることを信しんずる様ようになった。Just then, along came T, now fully turned into the imaginary man, popping up out of the blue. At first the wife insisted the man was T, but when T's friends came to call and couldn't hold a conversation with him at all (they were supporting players T had engaged beforehand for this little drama), and when the disguised man's background was clearly established (this too T had arranged in advance), she came, almost in spite of herself, to believe that they were entirely different people.

これが、何なんかそうする理由りゆうでもあったのなら、いくら何なんでもだまされはしないのだろうが、Ｔ自身じしんの心持こころもちを外ほかにしては、まるで理由りゆうというものがないのだ。If there had been some reason for doing such a thing, she would surely never have been fooled, however things stood; but apart from T's own feelings, there was no reason for it whatsoever.

まさか、こんな馬鹿馬鹿ばかばかしいお芝居しばいが演えんじられようとは、誰だれにしたって、思おもいも寄よらないからね。After all, nobody in the world would ever dream that such an absurd play would be put on, you know.

Ｔの細君さいくんは案外あんがい易々やすやすとだまされたのも、これは無理むりもないよ。So it's really no wonder that T's wife was taken in more easily than you'd expect.