Japanese with Manga

Human magic won't stand a chance with 〜まい

Grammar Explanation: Negative conjecture with 〜まい

Draht, his face half hidden by his hair, holds a taut thread wound around his fingers and stares coldly ahead.
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The demon Draht has slipped into the town jail where Frieren is held, intending to kill her. He wrapped invisible threads of mana around her neck and pulled to behead her, but she blocked the cut by concentrating her mana in her neck. Draht admits she kept her cool and warns that an ordinary mage would have lost their head before realizing what was happening.

ドラート:
「だがこの糸(いと)の強度(きょうど)は魔族(まぞく)の魔法(まほう)の中(なか)でも随一(ずいいち)。」
“But this thread is stronger than anything else in demon magic.”
「人類(じんるい)の魔法(まほう)ではどうにもなるまい。」
“Human magic won't be able to do a thing against it.”

Key Points

1どうにもなるまい, “surely nothing can be done”
  • どうにもならない means “nothing can be done” or “it’s hopeless”. Replacing ならない with なるまい turns it into a guess: “surely nothing can be done”.
  • まい is an old-fashioned negative that works like ないだろう here. Its subject is human magic, not Draht’s own action, so it’s a guess and not a vow.
  • The literary まい suits Draht, a demon who speaks in a stiff, menacing way.
2人類(じんるい)の魔法(まほう)では, “with human magic”
  • で marks the means: 人類(じんるい)の魔法(まほう)で is “with human magic”.
  • は sets it apart from demon magic. Human magic, unlike demon magic, won’t be enough.
  • Demons in this story see humans as a separate, weaker race. 人類(じんるい), “humankind”, draws that line between Frieren’s side and his.
3魔族(まぞく)の魔法(まほう)の中(なか)でも随一(ずいいち)
  • 〜の中(なか)でも means “even among”. It singles out one thing from a group.
  • 随一(ずいいち) means “the best” or “second to none”. Draht says his thread’s strength ranks first even among demon magic.
  • The line drops the copula at the end. 随一(ずいいち)。 stands for 随一(ずいいち)だ, a terse style that fits his boast.
4だが to turn the conversation
  • Sentence-initial だが means “but” or “however”. Draht has just conceded that Frieren survived his first attack, and だが turns to why she still can’t win.
  • だが is stiffer than でも or だけど. It suits a formal, dramatic speaker.

Vocabulary

(This)

この means “this” or “these” and comes directly before a noun. It points to something near the speaker or something the speaker is referring to in the conversation.

(Strength)

強度(きょうど) is how strong something is, such as how well a material holds up against force, or the intensity of a feeling or effect.

(Demons)

魔族(まぞく) is a race or clan of demons, usually in fantasy stories.

(Magic)

魔法(まほう) means magic, sorcery, or a magical spell.

(Above all)

中(なか)でも means “especially” or “above all”, singling out one thing from a group. After a noun with の, it means “even among”.

(Humanity)

人類(じんるい) refers to the collective group of all humans on Earth, or, biologically speaking, the genus Homo (Homo sapiens) within the order Primates. It represents the entire human species as a single entity, transcending differences in nationality, race, culture, and other factors.

(In no way)

どうにも means “in no way” or “no matter what” with a negative, as in どうにもならない “nothing can be done”. With a positive, it means “really” or “terribly”.

(To become)

なる is to change into a different state or become something. It also means something turns out a certain way. It is also written 成(な)る.

(Probably not)

まい is an old-fashioned negative ending. It guesses that something probably won’t happen, like ないだろう, or states a decision not to do something, like ないつもりだ.

See Also

葬送のフリーレン © its respective creators. It is used here for educational commentary.