さまを示す is actually a really common way of explaining entires in a 国語 dictionaries. “Way of indicating the state of x”
I’d say it means to indicate the way or state of something. It’s not just indicating that it’s happening, but how it’s happening? The condition of it.
Eeehhh
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It’s just letting you know the voice changed again since names aren’t being used at this point. I’m pretty sure it’s still just the two of them.
Here’s a whole Wikipedia article on parts of a gun, for those interested.
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The hammer biting the string. I can’t square that in my mind either. But I was thinking, maybe this gun has a hammer with a very arched shaft. That way you could slip a string in between the hammer and the (is it called the “revolver”?) typically 6-bullet cylinder. So, the hammer isn’t really biting the string, but it’s still in the mouth, so to speak.
Someone ask a native! 
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@MissMisc
I thought it would be useful to have the stopping point for the week in the post, so I edited it to add it. Hope that’s ok!
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Yes just saw that, good thinking! Thanks ^^
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It should probably include the ratio into the chapter just like in the main thread (Prologue/Chapter 1 (1/2)). Just for the people who have ebooks, since the page numbers don’t match.
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Can we all agree that the first four lines of the prologue are absolutely beautiful?
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Of the prologue? I mean, they’re fine I guess
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I definitely recommend using floflo.moe as a quick way of looking up a bunch of vocab for this book!
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I’ve been using it for prestudying vocab, but it feels less useful for lookup while reading compared to a dictionary app on my phone where I can draw the kanji. I do wish I’d started studying the vocab earlier than a week before the start though.
Not sure if you already know this, but on your computer, your IME should also offer a handwriting option if that’s what’s stopping you.
The one below for example, is the Google Japanese Input one.
You could also just copy/paste from the spreadsheet into your dictionary…
Edit: I thought I was posting in the other thread! Although the same still sort of applies. I don’t like using floflo for vocab look-up either though, so, I feel @fuzzytipsy
My ability to draw/write with a cursor is really terrible unfortunately. The dictionary app I’m using on my phone is working well, especially when I think to check if something is a longer set expression rather than a few separate words. I’m going to continue using floflo for studying, though I wish there was a way to filter by chapter. Like, if a word appears twenty times, but only in the last chapter, I don’t necessarily want to take up time studying it now.
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OK a few more questions
Question 1
I get from context and the kanji that
前輪が路面のでこぼこにはじかれてバランずをくずしかけ
means the front wheel wobbles because ooff something to do with the road surface, but I can’t parse the sentence. Could someone help break down the long strong of kana?
Question 2
Is the モトラドcalled Hermes for is he a different character? I’m reading the sentence 「エルメスと呼ばれたモトラドがばやく」、as the former.
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Question 1
でこばこ means roughness or unevenness 弾かれる or はじかれる is to bounce off. So the front wheel bounces due to the roughness of the road and crumbles the bike’s balance so to speak.
Question 2
Yeah, Hermes is the モトラド
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Question 1
でこぼこ(凸凹) is unevenness, concave and convex (and the worst kanji that exist). The wheel is bring bounced off (弾かれて, passive of はじく )of the uneven terrain and the バランス (not バランず) almost かけ crumbles 崩し (かけ is added to another verb to mean that something was on the edge of happening)
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Thanks @QuackingShoe and @TamanegiNoKame. With many of these sentences I feel like I am right on the edge of understanding but not quite getting there with confidence.
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So I finished reading this. I forced myself not to lookup every single thing I didn’t know, the perfectionist that I am, this worked much better than I expected! I think it was even more important because of all the gun lingo… I know most people here are the same and can’t stand not understanding every single thing, but it can work well sometimes 
(Well, I’m considering キノ a second priority reading right now because I want to focus on Kiki, so that might have helped with the ego a bit)
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Well, I will say this for week one’s reading…
You certainly get exposed to the various ways that there’s nobody there is written. 
Also, I don’t know if it’s the 多読 challenge or I’ve just gotten more used to reading in general and novels especially, but I found I got through this relatively quickly. This is huge for me, since the last time I tried to read it I didn’t make it much further than the prologue and the first few pages of the first chapter. I even made it through the prologue this time with minimal confusion between what character was saying what.
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