Japan’s most famous fortress, Himeji Castle, carries the chilling legend of Okiku, a servant girl accused of breaking one of ten valuable dishes. When she refused her master’s advances, he framed her, then threw her down a well within the castle grounds. Locals say her ghost rises from the well each night, counting dishes from one to nine before letting out a piercing scream at “ten.” Visitors still report hearing phantom counting or sobbing near the Okiku Well, now marked inside the castle complex. The story has inspired countless retellings in kabuki theater and Japanese horror cinema, cementing Himeji as both a cultural treasure and a haunted landmark.