The Ghost in the Well
Okiku and Aoyama
One of Japan's most famous ghost legends, the story of Okiku revolves around a loyal servant who is falsely accused of breaking or losing one of her master's (Aoyama) ten highly valuable plates. As punishment, she is brutally killed and her body is thrown into a well at Himeji Castle.
Plot twist: Aoyama, who had vigorously pursued Okiku, had hidden one of the plates then offered to overlook the missing plate if she finally agreed to become his lover. He had assumed she would accept him but once again Okiku refused, and in a vengeful rage, he killed her.
The Haunting: To this day, local legend dictates that you can hear her ghost rising from the well at night to count the plates: "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine..." Upon realizing the tenth plate is missing, she lets out a blood-curdling scream.
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