Yukinoshita’s Method of Correction [33]

When they passed by the Film Club room, Hojo was still drawing.

Sasaki handed Miki the keys to the prop room, instructing her to put the Ao Oni models back and lock the door before leaving.

After Miki gave her assurance, Sasaki left without another word.

Tanaka followed behind, filming. In the footage, Sasaki was walking slowly, seemingly fiddling with his phone.

[Sasaki,] Tanaka asked hesitantly, [are you okay?]

Sasaki suddenly stopped, remaining silent for a long moment. Finally, he spoke, his voice unusually calm: [I’m fine. Couldn’t be better.]

[R...really?]

[What else would I be?] Sasaki abruptly turned around, his expression dark and almost ferocious, before quickly settling into calmness. [It’s just like waking up from a dream—once you're awake, it's over.]

[Ah… I see...] Tanaka responded awkwardly.

Sasaki’s phone vibrated slightly. He glanced at it and continued toward the exit. [Let’s go.]

[Right.] Tanaka followed behind, silent for a moment before trying to start another conversation, indirectly probing Sasaki’s mental state.

Sasaki’s replies were sparse and indifferent, a casual "mm," "ah," "uh-huh," or "hm," as if he were just making polite noises at a comedy routine he wasn't interested in.

As they spoke, the two had already left the Special Building and walked further away.

Tanaka tentatively brought up the topic of Sasaki’s girlfriend, becoming gradually bolder as Sasaki showed no significant reaction.

Then came the scene the group had initially seen—Sasaki pushing the camera aside, Tanaka discovering the twisted blue face hidden among the tree branches outside the Special Building.

Sasaki grabbed Tanaka, and the footage abruptly ended.

“Tanaka went to school for extra filming and encountered Miki. After filming a while, he went upstairs to find Hojo and Miki in the Film Club room, then headed to the prop room to get Sasaki’s help. They filmed with the props for a bit, went upstairs again to swap out props, and then Sasaki returned to the prop room first. Tanaka followed because he was worried. They eventually left together, encountering the strange blue figure.” Yukinoshita Yukino succinctly summarized, then looked at Komachi.

“You want to know what that thing is and who put it there, correct?”

“Nope.” Before Komachi could speak, Higashigumo answered first. “Komachi wants to dispel Tanaka’s fear.”

“Right, exactly!” Komachi nodded eagerly.

“So,” Yukinoshita crossed her right arm over her chest, supporting her left elbow as she curled her left index finger thoughtfully beneath her chin, “we just need to find out what that was and who placed it there, and why.”

Higashigumo sighed helplessly. “No, that’s not—”

“Huh? What's the difference?” Yuigahama glanced between them in confusion. Noticing Higashigumo’s awkward expression, she quickly caught on. “Oh! Higashigumo, you already figured it out, didn’t you?”

This girl’s intuition is terrifyingly sharp.

“Just to be clear, I only have a vague guess—it might not be the only explanation.” Higashigumo clicked his tongue slightly.

“According to what Komachi said, Tanaka’s terrified, Sasaki just broke up, Miki’s gentle and sensitive, and Hojo’s buried in his work. It’s tricky to investigate openly. Right now, we're just guessing blindly based on what little we know. If we're wrong, it's useless. If we're right... it might not be much better.”

“You mean... your guess would hurt someone?” Yuigahama blinked. “But even if your guess is right, we can find ways to verify it indirectly, without hurting anyone.”

“If the truth hurts,” Yukinoshita said coolly, pulling out her notebook, “lies will never save anyone either.”

She wrote down a few names:

Tanaka — cameraman/editor, witness

Miki — actress, Hojo’s childhood friend

Hojo — president/director, Miki’s childhood friend, poster illustrator

Sasaki — prop artist, poster illustrator

“At this hour, few people remain at school,” Yukinoshita circled the last three names. “Our culprit should be among these three.”

“And Sasaki’s girlfriend,” Yuigahama reminded. She then turned to Komachi. “Oh right, Komachi, what about you?”

Komachi stuck out her tongue playfully. “I'm just the scriptwriter. I finished my part at home, ages ago.”

“You must’ve thought about this a lot too,” Higashigumo lightly squeezed his soda can. “Komachi, who do you think it is?”

Yukinoshita’s gaze turned icy, her voice even colder: “Are you already preparing a lie?”

Higashigumo avoided Yukinoshita’s glare. “Just a casual question.”

“I think…” Komachi paused thoughtfully. “Maybe Sasaki’s girlfriend?”

“Hmm,” Higashigumo nodded, “someone outside the club.”

“Well, I don't want to suspect anyone inside the club, so that leaves her.” Komachi smiled awkwardly. “Actually, I only recently found out Sasaki had a girlfriend. They were probably in the honeymoon stage, eager to spend all their time together… But due to filming, Sasaki was always busy. His girlfriend even had to come help.”

“Makes sense,” Higashigumo continued Komachi’s line of thought. “She got frustrated because they rarely saw each other, so she wrapped a foam piece with blue cloth and hung it outside to scare Tanaka out of spite.”

“But…” Yuigahama raised a question, “why scare Tanaka specifically?”

“Because he interrupted their private moment,” Higashigumo gestured toward the console. “Remember Sasaki’s disheveled shirt?”

Yukinoshita’s cold gaze sharpened, clearly irritated by Higashigumo’s attempt to rationalize Komachi’s guess. “Then why break up?”

“Because after Sasaki left, Miki went into the prop room and ran into Sasaki’s girlfriend,” Higashigumo adjusted the video playback. “I’m not sure why exactly, but Sasaki and his girlfriend clearly didn’t want others to know about them. Being discovered like that, they simply chose to end it.”

For example, if Sasaki’s girlfriend was actually a teacher, as Tanaka guessed earlier.

“The prop room’s round window was covered. Sasaki’s girlfriend could’ve easily prevented Miki from entering by holding the door shut or just speaking from inside without revealing her identity,” Yukinoshita narrowed her eyes. “Disguising one’s voice isn't difficult. Your lie doesn’t hold up.”

“Oh... true,” Higashigumo replied pointedly. “People’s voices can vary greatly—sometimes they even produce sounds they can’t believe themselves.”

Yukinoshita: “…”

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This is a fan translation of 雪之下的矫正方式 by 微凉温热 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!