This story concludes with a medium obtaining the testimony of a dead man. For 10 points each:
[10m] Name this Ryūnosuke Akutagawa short story about the conflicting claims of witnesses surrounding a murder of a samurai.
ANSWER: “In a Grove” [or “Yabu no Naka”]
[10e] Another Akutagawa story titled for this animal’s “Thread” features the criminal Kandata attempting to climb out of Hell using a piece of web woven by one of these eight-legged animals.
ANSWER: spider [accept “The Spider’s Thread” or “Kumo no Ito”; prompt on bugs or insects or arachnids]
[10h] This Akutagawa story ends with the narrator’s plea for “someone [to] gently and kindly strangle me in my sleep.” The narrator of this story is tormented by visions of the title objects.
ANSWER: “Cogwheels” [accept “Spinning Gears” or “Hagurama”]
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