#vocaloplus

[askicemountainteru]

ボカロPlus Vol.2 ICE MOUNTAIN Short Story / ICEMANGA 1

My friend has offered to translate some of the ICE MOUNTAIN manga and short story! There are 3 in total in Volume 2 of VocaloPlus. This is the first one! Translation under the cut

Revealing A Little Bit of the Story!

Let's start with the opening.

The protagonist of the novelized version of "ICE MOUNTAIN" is Hiyama Kiyoteru (vocals), with the others of the trio being Hiyama Akito (guitar) and Hokaze Natsuki (drums). Childhood friends Kiyoteru and Akito go to the same university, but the day after the entrance ceremony, Akito has a shocking encounter with Natsuki.. Akito mistakes Natsuki for a girl and hits on him. But... I asked Aosei Kimama to draw such a scene for us.

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"Ow ow ow ow! Why'd you have to hit me in the nuts out of nowhere?!" Landing flat on his back, Hiyama Akito shook in head in disbelief at his own situation. But at that moment— The other person's knee smacked right into is solar plexus, and a hand grabbed his collar, rendering him unable to get back up. "Well, redhead? What about me is a 'lady', huh?" "Gh-hhh?" For all he could tell, the person straddling him and attacking him verbally was clearly a girl. He'd only seen her profile when he'd called out to her, but she was even cuter than he'd expected. See? My intuition's pretty spot-on, he thought, before realizing that this wasn't the right time to be thinking about things like that so leisurely. He was in big trouble. His solar plexus was being held down by her knees, and she was tightly squeezing his carotid artery. One could call this a completely incomprehensible scenario. Only two minutes prior, Akito had been relaxing with Hiyama Kiyoteru in the plaza in front of the school cafeteria. It was one day after the entrance ceremony, i.e. orientation day, when they would be lectured on administrative topics such as university life rules and credits. It was hard to deny that he was in good spirits after having been released from all of those long explanations. And so, he'd thought about hitting on a girl, something that was completely uncharacteristic of him. Before he'd left the house, his younger sister had thoroughly lectured him, saying "all of the cute girls will get snatched up fast, so you shouldn't hesitate! If you spend too much time dawdling around, you'll never get a girlfriend!"… which contributed rather significantly to his behavior. And on top of that, as he was on his way out, he'd received some incomprehensible encouragement (read: curse): "If you miss this opportunity, you'll be stuck as a virgin for the rest of your life! I expect you to put in your best efforts -- no, make sure you bring results back by the end of the day!" She wasn't joking around. That definitely had to be a curse. Only one minute prior, he'd impulsively called out to a passing girl, around 160 centimeters tall with shoulder-length hair in a shag cut, wearing a pink hoodie and black denim jeans… "Hey, pretty lady. Are you free later today?" …but it felt like an inordinately long amount of time had passed since she'd pinned him down. It was definitely a curse. His younger sister had cursed him. And now a crowd was forming around the scene. Was this supposed to be how his university life was going to start? It was horribly embarrassing. With the crowd forming around them, the girl snapped back to her senses, released Akito, and ran off. "Akito-kun! Are you okay?" Hiyama Kiyoteru squatted down next to Akito in order to check on him. "The hell was that just now?" "I have no idea either. Did you do something to her, Akito-kun?" "Do something? I just talked to her." "She was very nimble, like a cat." "Yeah, seriously. Turned right around while hitting me with a right hook, and then, ba-ba-ba-ba-bam!" "But she was definitely very cute." "Being cute alone isn't gonna do it. The hell was she even? A new type of yokai? I've already got my hands full with my sister." "I'm sorry I couldn't help you." "Oh, come on! I wasn't expecting you to help me." Akito dusted off his rear and stood up. It really was a sudden attack. His athletic abilities were his one and only pride, and he'd been attending a karate dojo since childhood and had never lost a fight, and yet he was so outmatched that he was rendered completely powerless.

This is an ICEMANGA by Aosei Kimama. Aosei Kimama won the Bronze Dragon Award at the Ryujin Awards, a manga award sponsored by Monthly Comic Ryu (Toukuma Shoten). She won the award with her first book and debut work, "Kinoko Inu". What is the story about? Story: Picture book author Yuuma Hotaru is heartbroken after losing his beloved dog, Hanako. While gazing at a pink mushroom in his garden, ke notices something moving and squirming. It turns out to be a dog, "Kinoko Inu"... With the help of kis childhood friend and editor, Komako, and the gay mycologist, Itsuki-kun, Hotaru's time, which had been stopped, begins to move forward again... A mysterioius, cheeky, and cute creature, "Kinoko Inu" is sure to heal you! Aosei Kimama's mentor, Higashimura Akiko wrote a recommendation saying, "Ahh... this is exactly the kind of thing I wanted to read right now..." and "I want to be Hotaru's wife and live with Kinoko Inu." If you are looking for some healing right now, this is the book for you! Please give it a read. Kinoko Inu (Ryu Comics) Aosei Kimama Release date 2011/10/13 630¥

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TN: So I was using the term ICEMANGA and the actual word was "アイスマンガ" (aisumanga) which is a portmanteau of "アイスマウンテン" (aisumaunten aka ICE MOUNTAIN) and "漫画" (manga). It's silly.

Also fun fact: Kinoko Inu (literally: Mushroom Dog) got an anime in 2024!

[askicemountainteru]

ボカロPlus Vol.2 ICE MOUNTAIN Short Story / ICEMANGA 2

My friend has offered to translate some of the ICE MOUNTAIN manga and short story! There are 3 in total in Volume 2 of VocaloPlus. This is the second one! Translation under the cut

Revealing A Little Bit of the Story!

This time, the meeting between Kiyoteru and Natsuki.

Natsuki punches the red-haired Akito, who hit on him when they first met. Because of his feminine appearance, he is fed up with men hitting on him on campus. This time, we introduce a scene a week after this encounter. Natsuki, irritated and on edge, is approached by Kiyoteru, who exudes a kind aura from his entire being... This is the scene that Hirao Auri drew for us.

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It had been a week since the entrance ceremony, and the whole campus was in even higher spirits.

Starting from today, long tables for club recruitment would be set up between the school buildings, making it look like a festival. Kiyoteru was starting to understand what Akito had meant when he'd advised "Be careful about everyone trying to recruit you."

His first class was German. But when he was only around fifty meters from the school gate, he was approached by a club called the "Folklore Culture Research Society". Unable to bring himself to turn down a female club member who had begged him "it'll only take five minutes!", Kiyoteru sat down in a chair and ended up being subjected to a ninety-minute lecture that, if he had to give it a title, would be something like "Mizuki Shigeru's Achievements and the Lineage of Japanese Yokai".

On his way to his second class, biology, he was abducted by the "Cheer Squad Club". A man in a student's uniform approached him and told him "why don't I teach you a vocalization method that's good for your health?", and when Kiyoteru spoke up as he was told, he was barraged with "You've got a good voice! It's so clear! Most importantly, it pierces well through the air! You're a once-in-a-decade talent. You were brought to our university so you could join the Cheer Squaed Club!" -- and so on and so forth. Kiyoteru frantically declined an offer to be treated to a meal at the school cafeteria, and by the time he reached his biology classroom, the lecture had just ended, and the students were already pouring out of the room.

Akito-kun, I'm seriously in trouble.

Sitting in the back seat of the empty classroom, he was on the verge of tearing up at how helpless he was without Akito.

Suddenly, he noticed that there was one student still remaining in the front row. It seemed to be a girl that Kiyoteru vaguely remembered having seen before. She immediately stood up and walked towards Kiyoteru, who was near the exit at the bottom of the bowl-shaped classroom. A girl who had pinned Akito down with the agility of a cat... Kiyoteru suddenly realized something on instinct as he watched the approaching figure.

Akito-kun, that student is a man.

He'd gotten upset at Akito for mistaking him for a girl and had beaten him up.

Once he was about a meter away, Kiyoteru stood up and called out to him.

"Excuse me, um, I'm Hiyama. I couldn't make it to the lecture in time..."

Hokaze Natsuki, a boy who looked so lovely that he could easily be mistaken for a girl, stopped and stared directly at Kiyoteru. He'd been hit on dozens of times since the entrance ceremony, and at this point he was constantly irritated and distrustful of people, but Kiyoteru was giving off a warm and gentle aura with a bit of awkwardness mixed in, and it gave Natsuki a sense of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

"I'm terribly sorry to bother you, but would it be all right if I looked at your notes from today's lecture?" This probably wasn't the right time to be speaking in such an excessively polite manner, but Natsuki could tell how sincere he was.

"Sure. Should I make you a copy?"

"Thank you very much, um..."

"I'm Hokaze. I'm a business major. What about you?"

"I'm studying education. I'm planning on becoming an elementary school teacher."

Natsuki wanted to retort "no, no, I didn't ask you about your future dreams!", but Kiyoteru had such a refreshing demeanor that Natsuki couldn't bring himself to criticize him. On the contrary, it made Natsuki feel like he should start talking about his own future dreams.

"Hiyama-kun, have you eaten yet?"

"No, I still haven't... But I haven't been to a single class today. Is it really okay for me to be going to the cafeteria right now?"

"Oh, come on! It's break time right now. Nobody's having classes in any of the classrooms!"

Natsuki burst out laughing and yanked Kiyoteru out of the school building. Thinking back on it, for the entire week since the entrance ceremony, he'd been extremely physically and mentally tense because he'd adopted a defensive and offensive strategy (as if in retaliation against Akito) against all of the guys who'd been mistaking him for a girl and trying to hit on him. And on top of that, this was the first time he'd gotten to have a proper conversation.

And of course, the first time he'd laughed.

This is an ICEMANGA by Hirao Auri. Hirao Auri won the Silver Dragon Award at the 2nd Ryujin Awards in 2007! She is a female mangaka who made her debut as a major new talent, receiving high praise for her style from judges Azuma Hideo and Yasuhiko Yoshikazu. Her debut and representative work, "How to Make Manga," is a new type of GL story that depicts the delicate relationship between two girls, a junior and senior pair, working hard as manga artists. What kind of story is it? Story: Kawaguchi Asuka made her debut as a manga artist at age 13 but was unsuccessful, and is now 19 years old hoping to make a come back. Morishita is a popular manga artist who works under the be name "Sachi." Morishita is devoted to her senior Kawaguchi. However, Kawaguchi begins dating her with impure motives: "Girl's love is popular, so maybe it could be a good topic for my next manga..." Natsuki has been drawn in an incredibly cute way. Please be sure to pick up a copy of "How to Make Manga," which is currently on sale and receiving rave reviews! Comic "How to Make Manga" volumes 1 to 5 are now on sale! "How to Make Manga 5 (Limited Edition) (Ryu Comics) Hirao Auri Release date 2011/06/30 with separate supplement "Original Doujinshi" 880¥, Regular edition 620¥

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TN: Same translator note as last time; I was using the term ICEMANGA and the actual word was "アイスマンガ" (aisumanga) which is a portmanteau of "アイスマウンテン" (aisumaunten aka ICE MOUNTAIN) and "漫画" (manga).

Also fun fact: the mangaka Hirao Auri primarily contributes to GL anthologies. Her manga, "If My Favorite Pop Idol Made It to the Budokan, I Would Die" recently ended on November 28th, 2025 and got an anime adaptation in 2020 and a live action drama in 2022.

[huebris808]

WHY DIDN'T ANYONE SCAN THE DWC ARTICLE

[sailorenna]

Okay, translated and typeset the KagePro character chart from the newest VocaloPlus. Thank you kokonose for sharing these scans!

Hopefully this is kind of useful in learning the characters if you're new to KagePro, along with the KageProfiles translated from the Children Record booklet. All the yellow questions are just a bunch of plot points to think about when following the story in Kagerou Project.