selection; choice; choosing; picking; election
whitewashing; glossing over; lip service; deftly finishing up; putting on the final touches
common person; foolish commoner
bright person; talented student; prodigy
to install (a king, emperor, etc.); to appoint (to a post); to promote; to assign (to study under)
to conform to; to be in accordance with; to follow (rule, tradition, example, etc.)
reliability; trustworthiness; dependability
to incline toward; to slant; to lurch; to go down (sun); to wane; to sink
mediocrity; ordinary ability
sudden windfall; unexpected piece of good luck; (lit.) azuki-covered mochi (fallen) from a shelf
to roll in; to tumble into; to visit (esp. to stay overnight as an unwanted guest); to fall in one's way; to fall into one's lap
useless; worthless; absurd; baloney
angry voice; one's voice when shouting with anger
sound of footsteps; sense or sign that something is approaching
thanks to ...; owing to ...; because of ...
with a start; with a jump
body guard; military escort
much more; still more; single layer (or storey, etc.); (arch.) rather; (arch.) sooner
rather; sooner; preferably
monologue; soliloquy; talking to oneself
lone criminal; sole perpetrator; crime carried out by one person
capital crime; crime resulting in a death penalty
(doing something) in tears
to catch one's breath; to gulp; to have one's breath taken away; to gasp
biological younger brother
mischief; prank; pastime; hobby; playing with (a lighter, etc.); fooling around with
to be dying; to be about to die; to be close to death
favour; favor; obligation; debt of gratitude
to torment; to pain; to inflict (physical) pain; to harass; to cause (emotional) pain; to afflict
to prostrate oneself before
one's own judgement (judgment); decision made without consulting others; arbitrary decision; dogmatism
error; mistake; fault; sin; wrongdoing; offense
(criminal) punishment; penalty; sentence
being at cross-purposes from the start; getting off on the wrong foot; (lit.) doing up one's buttons wrongly
New Year's Eve; end of the year
to sigh; to breathe a sigh