The Promised Castilla

During the final years of the Tearmoon Empire, a continent-wide famine coupled with rampant disease and the senseless bloodshed of a civil war left the imperial capital of Lunatear in an absolutely wretched state. The very air smelled of spite and suspicion. Hunched forms walked with bated breath down crumbling roads, shooting wary, menacing glares at one another. Minor disputes often triggered violent altercations. No one ever stepped in to break them up. Neither did anyone ever cheer. Apathy ruled the hearts of the people, and irrational contempt for others filled their minds. Everywhere, there was nothing but cold antipathy. Everywhere except...a single cell in the underground dungeon where the atmosphere, in stark contrast to the rest of the city, was invitingly genial.

“It’s still ice candies for me,” said Anne Littstein, smiling fondly as she cupped her cheeks in her hands. “I’ve only ever tried them once, but they were so good. Grilled meat and soup and stuff are all pretty good, but nothing beats sweet things.”

The denizen of the dungeon cell, Mia Luna Tearmoon, let out a gentle laugh.

“Oh, we’re such kindred souls, aren’t we, Anne? I love sweets too.”

“What kind of sweets are your favorite, milady?”

“Hmm, it has to be cakes. Especially ones with lots of cream and strawberries on top.”

Just then, a thought occurred to Mia, prompting her to clap her hands together.

“Oh, I just remembered! There’s this thing called a castilla that I really like too. It’s a traditional Perujin specialty, and it’s very sweet. When you take a bite, it sort of crumbles and melts in your mouth, and it’s absolutely delicious.”

Mia echoed Anne’s hands-to-cheeks gesture, grinning at the memory.

“Really? I’ve never heard of it. Is it really that good?”

“Oh, trust me. Castillas are exquisite! They’re a favorite of father’s too. Once I get out of here, we should have some together. I’ll introduce you to father too, and everyone can say hi. In fact, we should make it a promise.”

“Huh? B-But...I don’t really want to meet—”

“It’s a promise! Because I said so! I’m going to have you meet him, and that’s that. I need to thank you properly, or it’s going to keep bothering me all the time.”

Flustered by Mia’s pushiness, Anne could do little but acquiesce to her demand.

This event was still early in Mia’s dungeon life, taking place not long after she was captured.

Time passed. Mia’s father, Matthias Luna Tearmoon, was brought to the guillotine, bringing a swift and brutal end to the emperor’s reign. Anne’s visit to Mia came three days later.

“Oh... Anne...”

She entered the cell to find an expressionless Mia. After a few seconds, however, emotion returned to her face.

“I’m sorry, Anne. My promise to introduce you to father... It doesn’t look like I’ll be able to fulfill it anymore.”

Mia smiled. It was such a sad smile.

“Milady...”

Anne’s throat tightened. She felt she should say something. Needed to. But nothing came. What could she say? Should she give her condolences? Offer sympathy? Or downplay the matter by pointing to the numbing prevalence of death in the world right now? After all, Anne’s sister Elise had passed away too. Few who lived in this empire were spared the pain of losing family. But was that reason not to grieve? To deny Mia even the comfort of commiseration?

Such callous voices were not at all uncommon, but Anne disagreed. Mia had been hurt enough. She was still hurting. To Anne, that fact alone was reason enough for her to offer compassion and condolence. So, she said, “We will eat those castillas, milady. Don’t you worry.”

Mia blinked a few times, baffled by this sudden change in topic.

“The castillas! You promised that we’ll eat them together, remember?” said Anne.

“...Oh, Anne. Don’t be silly. That’s clearly not going to happen. I have no way of getting out of here, and even if I did, how are we going to find any with the empire in this state?”

“Then I’ll make them myself. I’ll learn the recipe and bring them here.”

“Anne, please. You’re being unreasonable. Besides, what you’re proposing is entirely backwards. The point was for me to treat you as a way of showing my thanks.”

“Then... You can help me practice. I want to make castillas for my little siblings, but I need someone to taste test my first couple of attempts. You’ll be doing it for me. How’s that?”

Anne leaned toward her, fists balled in determination.

“Come on, that’s so...” Mia trailed off. A poignant silence passed between the two. Then, she said, “Well, if you put it that way, I suppose I can do you a special favor. It’s a promise. Just for you, Anne, I’ll try your castillas.”

“Thank you. Make sure you wait for me to bring them, milady. It’s a promise,” said Anne, voice infused with purpose.

From then on, Anne did everything she could to figure out how to bake a castilla. The process was by no means easy. Just finding the recipe was hard enough, but the sugar and flour it required was far beyond the ability of a common townsperson like her to acquire. When bread was scarce, cake was beyond luxury.

She never did manage to bake a castilla.

Mia for her part, never brought up the issue. Perhaps she’d forgotten. It was, after all, a pretty absurd promise. The fact that she’d been half-finagled into making it was awkward enough, never mind its impromptu verbal nature. Maybe she never actually expected Anne to make good on it in the first place.

All Anne knew was that the last words Mia had said to her were “thank you.” Simple but heartfelt words of gratitude. It left Anne wondering whether she’d earned those words. Had she truly done enough for her mistress to deserve that final gesture of appreciation? The question hovered in her mind for a second, then flitted away.

Anne Littstein, the woman who remained by Mia’s side throughout the Tearmoon revolution until the last moments of her life...had but one regret—a promise she couldn’t keep. It was a simple promise. Trivial, really. But it remained in her mind as a rueful memory, sinking ever deeper into the core of her soul.

And so spun the wheel of time...

“Mmm... Hm?”

Morning sunlight shone through her eyelids, rousing Anne from slumber.

“Hnnnnngh...”

She pushed her arms out as far as they would go, stretching her sleep-stiffened muscles. As she opened her eyes, she suddenly realized something wasn’t quite right.

“Why’s everything so blurry...?”

Struggling to parse this strange phenomenon, she wiped a finger across her eye. It came back wet. Shocked, she stared at her moistened finger as tears continued to well. A soft pang of heartache caused her chest to tighten. She felt like she had just woken from a very sorrowful dream.

“Oooh, no... No more... Can’t eat...”

A nearby voice caught her attention. She turned to find a blissfully sleeping Mia, lips curled into a grin with a faint line of drool down one corner.

“Milady...”

For some reason, the sight of Mia’s face filled her with relief. That relief then turned into confusion. Why did she feel this way? She hadn’t the faintest clue. Nothing had been different than usual when she’d gone to bed last night. They’d fallen asleep beside each other, so it was only natural for her to wake up to Mia’s face. So why did that carefree expression make her want to cry? And cry with happiness, at that?

“Mmmm... Mm?”

Mia’s mumbling suggested she’d woken up as well. Following a similar bout of stretching, she sat up.

“Oh, Anne. You’re awake.” She yawned. “Good morning.”

She rubbed her eyes, blinked a few times, then yawned again. Only then did she glance at Anne and all but freeze.

“A-Anne? What in the moons? You’re...crying? What’s the matter? D-Did something bad happen?”

Mia’s sudden panic prompted Anne to snap out of her reverie, at which point she realized that there were indeed streams of tears on her cheeks.

“Oh, no, it’s nothing. I’m fine.”

“B-But look at you! You almost never cry like this. How can it possibly be nothing? Tell me truthfully, Anne. What’s going on? Did somebody give you a hard time? Oh, I bet it’s the stupid four— I mean Ludwig. He said something mean to you, didn’t he?! If he did, then I’m going to go teach him a lesson with my foot! Hmph!”

Mia threw out a few practice kicks at an imaginary target, eager to unleash her special technique on a deserving rump. Anne, however, shook her head.

“No, it’s fine. I mean it. Nothing happened.”

“But...”

Anne grimaced at the look of deep concern on Mia’s face. Clearly, she’d made her mistress very worried.

“I just had a bad dream. A very sad one, to be specific.”

“A dream? Hm... Maybe it’s because you’ve been away from your family for such a long time... I’m sorry. You must miss them a lot...” mumbled Mia before an idea made her strike her palm.

“Oh, I know what we can do. We’re already in Perujin, so this is perfect timing...” A grin spread across her lips. “Anne, why don’t you take the day off? Consider it a bit of compensation for all the time you’ve spent away from home. It’s not nearly enough to make up for your dedication, but it’s a start.”

“Huh? You mean...you don’t want me to be around you today?”

“Uh, it’s not that I don’t want you around. It’s just that, um... I have to engage in some private discussions with His Majesty, so you might as well get some rest in the meantime.”

Frankly, Anne would much rather stay beside Mia today, especially after the disturbing experience she’d woken up to, so she couldn’t help but feel a tad disappointed.

“It’ll be all right,” Mia continued. “I’ll be fine on my own. You know I can handle myself. Just relax and enjoy some peace and quiet.”

Anne, having been given an appreciative smile, along with a handy sum of gold and advice to “go get yourself something tasty with this,” had no choice but to respectfully comply.

“Okay, understood. I’ll relax.”

She smiled back at Mia, whose expression never quite lost that tinge of concern.

After bidding goodbye to Mia, Anne headed out to the town...and promptly ended up at a loss.

“Well, here I am. What now?”

Perujin’s capital, Auro Ardea, was buzzing with activity. The once-a-year Thanksharvest Festival, combined with the excitement surrounding the “Golden Slope” episode with Mia and Rania, had stirred up a great deal of commotion that continued to fuel passionate discussion. There was a tangible sense of anticipation in the air, as if this year’s festival was somehow going to be different. The town bustled with talk about good omens.

That didn’t make her any less lost, though.

“Wow, I honestly have no idea what I should do.”

She had so much time on her hands and nothing to pass it with. Normally, she’d be off making more connections with the locals, but for some reason, she just couldn’t muster the drive right now. The liveliness, the festive atmosphere—it all felt...empty. She glanced at the gold coins Mia had given her and sighed. She was supposed to get herself something tasty, but what? There wasn’t anything in particular that she wanted to eat.

“Wait... Castillas? What were those again?”

The name came to her out of the blue. She remembered being told by the person in her dream that they were a Perujin specialty. In the dream, the person had said that they were delicious and promised to go eat them together.

“The person in my dream... Wait, who was it? Hmm...”

There was a blank in her memory. She couldn’t recall the person’s identity. Figuring it was the usual fleetingness of dreams, she shrugged and shook her head, putting it out of her mind.

“I wonder what castillas are like? Some sort of cake, I think, but...”

Despite the thing being from her dream, she felt strangely compelled to see if she could find one. Wondering if she could find some being sold, she started walking. Just then, she heard her name called.

“Hey, is that you, Anne?”

Turning around, she came face to face with Princess Rania Tafrif Perujin and another girl serving as her attendant.

“Princess Rania... Good morning.”

“Good morning to you too. What are you doing out here? And where’s Princess Mia? Is she not around?”

Rania glanced around curiously.

“No, Her Highness said she is seeing His Majesty for a private discussion today.”

“A private discussion with father? Really? Huh... Does that mean you’re off for the day? Or are you running some errands for her?”

“A bit of both, I guess. By her order, I’m supposed to relax for the day, so I’m trying to figure out how to pass the time. There’s this cake called...a castilla, I think? And I was thinking of trying one...”

It then occurred to Anne that the word “castilla” had come from her dream. Was it actually a Perujin specialty? Heck, did the thing even exist?

Rania quickly put her fears to rest.

“Oh, castillas? Wow, I’m surprised you’ve heard of them. As far as I know, they’re not really seen outside of here. You sure know your Perujin foods, Anne. Hm... In that case, let me treat you to some.”

“Huh? I can’t possibly—”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. Besides, if I can get you to like them, they’ll find their way into Princess Mia’s mouth sooner or later. And once that happens, they’ll have a whole new market in Tearmoon.” Rania gave her a clever wink and gestured at her attendant to lead the way. “All right, let’s go.”

With a grin, she pulled Anne along.

The three of them walked through the town, eventually arriving at a house off the main road.

“Telha lives here,” Rania explained, “and she’s an expert at baking castillas.”

As they walked in, a woman greeted them with a warm smile. Judging by her lack of surprise, a messenger had already informed her that they’d be coming.

“Ah, Princess Rania. Welcome.”

“I’m sorry for showing up on such short notice, Telha. I’ve got a guest with me from Tearmoon, and I’d like her to try some castillas. Can you make some for us right now?”

“No need. I’ve got some I prepared for the festival, so I can bring you those right away. Come in and make yourselves at home.”

As they entered the room and seated themselves at a table, Telha reappeared with a plate. On it sat a tantalizing yellow cake.

“This...is a castilla?”

Anne scooped out a bite-size piece and held it up with her fork. She stared at it for a moment, food and fork trembling together with the motion of her hand. Then, she put it in her mouth.

This is the flavor the person from my dream wanted to share with me...

It was so sweet! The second it touched her tongue, she tasted the rich sweetness of honey. Immediately after, the fresh fragrance of floral fields rushed through her nose. Biting into the cake revealed it to be mostly soft yet punctuated by an occasional crunch that was followed by the taste of caramel.

“It’s delicious.”

It was sweeter than sweet—the kind of euphoric flavor that brightens the day and makes the heart soar. With the world dazzling, her eyes teared a little at the luster of what could have been. Her chest, absent its heart, tightened in the resultant void. If only they could have eaten this together... Surely, they would’ve thrown their heads back laughing at how ridiculously sweet it was. The scene was all too easy to imagine, which made it all the sadder.

I don’t know who that person is...but I really wish we could have shared this...

Why did a fleeting figure from her dream move her so? It confounded her to no end. The person was a figment of her imagination, and yet... After the puzzlement receded, anxiety emerged. It grew and grew, pushing her closer and closer to panic. Never again, she thought against her own understanding, did she want to feel this way. If she could be with that person just one more time, she’d do anything to have a castilla ready. Anything.

Wandering through a forest of thoughts, she eventually happened upon an idea.

“Um... Miss Telha? Can I ask you a question? It’s probably going to sound weird...and very shameless...”

“Whether it’s shameless is for me to decide. You just have to do the asking. Go on. What is it?”

Telha arched an eyebrow at her, prompting her to continue.

“Could you...teach me how to make castillas?”

“Sure. I don’t see why not.”

Despite Telha’s prompt approval, Anne felt a pang of guilt, for she knew that her request didn’t end there. What she was about to say next was, in her opinion, nothing short of insulting. But she had to say it. Something inside compelled her to do so.

“And...I know this is very disrespectful, but...could you make them without using sugar?”

The words flowed from her seemingly without her conscious control. She didn’t even understand why she asked such a thing. All she knew was that at the center of this strange compulsion was that terribly sad dream she had. For some reason, she felt that even if she were to learn the proper way to make castillas, it wouldn’t work there. In the world of her dream, she had no way of obtaining sugar or wheat. She needed to find a recipe that could be used there. Somehow, she knew it was crucial...

“Without using sugar? What a strange request. Why would you want to do that?”

Telha’s bewilderment was hardly surprising. Anne opened her mouth, only to close it again in frustration. She had no idea how to explain herself.

That was when, to her astonishment, Rania came to her aid.

“Ooh... I know what you’re trying to do. It’s because of what that girl said, right? Tatiana, I think?” Rania smiled, evidently convinced that she’d deciphered Anne’s intention. “Frankly, I agree. Princess Mia does have a sweet tooth, so I get where you’re coming from. It’s probably not good for her to eat too much sugar.”

She nodded contemplatively to herself.

“If the recipe can work with less sugar, it’ll make for a healthier product. Hmmm...”

Finally, she grinned.

“I think it’s a great idea. In fact, I’ll help.”

Telha, likewise, was intrigued by the idea.

“A new recipe, huh? I’ve never even considered such an idea, but it sounds fun.”

Unlike what Anne had expected, she didn’t seem to take offense at all. With everyone on board, the three of them moved to the kitchen and began experimenting with the castilla recipe.

“I’m sorry to have troubled you over this...” said Anne.

“Oh don’t worry about it. I care a lot about Princess Mia too, so I also want her to stay healthy. I need her to. Besides...” Rania gave a toothy grin. “I love it when people take a hammer to existing conventions and make something new out of it. Who knows? Maybe this is the beginning of a new Perujin specialty.”

She pulled up her sleeves.

“Still, I know we’re not using sugar, but it should be at least a little sweet, right? Seems a little too bland otherwise. Hmm... Hey, what if we used fullmoon corn instead of wheat?”

“Fullmoon corn... That’s what they use to make those tahkoes things, right?”

“Yes. Flour from fullmoon corn is a little sweeter than regular wheat. If we’re not going to use sugar, that natural sweetness might be just right.”

Telha nodded in agreement.

“Very interesting. I wouldn’t have thought of that. It’s a bit of a blind spot for us, honestly.”

“What do you mean?” asked Anne.

Telha smiled. “The folks here in Perujin don’t really eat wheat. Almost all of it is exported, so we mainly eat fullmoon corn. Castillas are made for special occasions, though, so we traditionally use premium wheat flour to make them. Fullmoon corn flour is sweeter, but when you bake it, it ends up stiffer and not as pleasant to eat. The general consensus is that it’s not good for making cakes.”

“Which is why,” added Rania, “if we can figure out a way to improve the texture of fullmoon corn after it comes out of the oven, we’ll essentially have invented an entirely new kind of castilla. Let’s give it a try!”

Under Telha’s guidance, the three of them began making their experimental castilla. After numerous attempts of trial and error, they managed to bake a castilla whose mild sweetness lent a certain depth to its flavor. Both Rania and Telha gave it a thumbs-up, so Anne thanked her fellow innovators and headed back with their creation in tow.

“I’m so glad we managed to get this made. Milady will be delighted to see—”

Her own words gave her pause.

“Wait... Why am I trying to give milady this castilla?”

Standing motionlessly, she pondered this odd thought. The one she’d promised to eat castilla with was the person from her dream. Which was weird enough—people generally didn’t go around trying to fulfill imaginary promises—but even weirder was how she’d somehow convinced herself that said promise had been made with Mia.

“If I just show up and give her a cake all of a sudden... She’s going to give me funny looks...”

That wasn’t the only concern. Mia had an undying love for sweets. She was also extremely well-informed. Anne couldn’t imagine her sweets connoisseur of a mistress could be unfamiliar with castillas. Despite that, she’d never seen Mia eating one.

Maybe she doesn’t like them...?

She walked the rest of the way back to Mia’s room feeling considerably less confident in the whole idea. Upon entering, she was greeted by a worried voice.

“Anne! You sure spent a long time out there,” said Mia. “I was starting to think something might’ve happened to you. What were you doing?”

“I’m sorry for coming back so late, milady. It’s because I was making this.”

Anne held out the fruit of their extensive experiments—the custom-made castilla.

“My! Is that...a castilla?” Mia’s eyes widened in surprise. Then, she burst out giggling. “My, aren’t we just two peas in a pod!”

She picked up a bag that had been sitting on the table in the room and opened it up. Anne peered in, where she found the very thing she’d had earlier in the day—a tantalizing yellow castilla.

“I got this because I want us to eat it together. We can’t come to Perujin and not have one of these, after all.”

Anne breathed out a sigh of relief at Mia’s smile.

“Phew. So you don’t hate these. That’s good.”

“Huh? Why would I hate them?”

“I’ve...never seen you eating one of these before, so...”

“Ah, well. I actually love these. It’s just that... I, uh, hm...”

Mia fumbled for words, then spent a few seconds with her lips pursed in silence.

“I made a promise,” she eventually said. “There was a person who said she’d make one for me, and I agreed to eat it. However, I can never see her again. I never got to fulfill my promise, so I always feel hesitant to eat these...”

“A promise...?”

Anne’s heart skipped a beat. It couldn’t possibly be... That would be ridiculous. It was just a dream. Plus, she and Mia saw each other all the time. It was all so confusing that she pressed a hand to her temple.

“Anne? Is something wrong?”

“Oh... No. But, um... If it’s such an important promise, then you don’t have to force yourself to eat this. I don’t mind,” Anne said hastily.

Mia chuckled. “I wouldn’t have gotten one myself if I didn’t intend on eating it. Besides, I have a feeling that she’d love to have you fulfill the promise in her place. Come on, then. I want to try the one you brought.”

Mia motioned for Anne to join her at the table. As soon as Anne cut up the castilla, Mia forked a piece into her mouth. Her eyes immediately doubled in size.

“My... It tastes...”

“I-I guess you don’t like it very much...”

Mia shook her head at Anne’s anxious remark.

“As a matter of fact, I think it’s quite delicious. It’s certainly less sweet than regular castillas, but that little touch of sweetness it does have makes for a very soothing flavor. But what exactly is this?”

“It’s, um...something that I made, actually. I didn’t put any sugar in, and the flour isn’t wheat... It’s made from fullmoon corn.”

“You made this? And without using the regular ingredients? What in the moons? Why?”

It was a question Anne had trouble answering. How could she explain? Should she make up an excuse? A moment’s indecision quickly solidified into an answer. Anne decided to tell Mia the truth. She couldn’t stomach the thought of doing otherwise.

“It’s like...a precaution. In case something goes wrong. This way, even if we end up in a situation where we can’t find any wheat or sugar anymore, I’ll still have a way to make these.”

“No wheat or sugar...?”

“Yes. Of course, I’m sure that as long as you’re here, things will never get that bad. But...I just felt like I should. I had to. I’m not even sure why myself... Aha ha, I apologize. I must sound like I’m crazy.”

Feeling a little silly, Anne laughed at her own expense to lighten the mood. She soon frowned, however, when she realized her humor wasn’t being shared.

Mia did not laugh; she didn’t even smile. Instead, she wore a most peculiar expression. Her eyes were narrowed, and her gaze was distant. It was as if her mind had drifted away to some faraway place...as if she were recalling fond memories of an old friend...

“Thank you, Anne...”

“Huh?”

For the second time today, Anne’s heart skipped a beat. The words, the way they were said... They were all so familiar. All of a sudden, she was back in her dream. Someone was in front of her. Someone with whom she’d made a promise.

A promise...with Mi—

Before she could finish the thought, Mia’s laugh pulled her from her reverie. It was a small, wry laugh.

“Sorry. I was... Never mind. Forget what I said.” Mia turned her gaze toward the remaining portion of Anne’s castilla. “Say, Anne... This castilla you made is very good. It really is. I’d love to have father try some. Would it be all right if you baked one for us at the capital some time?”

Then, she smiled. There was something poignant and profound in that smile. In that moment, Anne had the curious feeling that something had finally fallen into place, and it made her want to cry. She wasn’t sure how, but she knew that at long last, the castilla had reached the person in her dream. Overcome by a rush of emotion, she opened her mouth to say yes, but a subsequent rush of mental clarity pushed the word back down her throat. She paled as the implications of the request dawned on her.

Her castilla recipe was fundamentally a substitute meant to be used during times when sugar and wheat were impossible to come by. It was by no means a creation of sufficient quality to present to the emperor.

“I-I couldn’t possibly... Why don’t we ask the head chef inst—”

“Oh, I know!” Mia clapped her hands together, interrupting Anne’s apprehensive response. “I should get involved too. We can make it together. How’s that?”

She nodded to herself, evidently impressed with her own idea.

“We’ll get father to eat it. Then we’ll get Abel, Sion, and Sapphias too. All the boys in the student council will get to appreciate my cooking skills. My, what an excellent idea, if I do say so myself.”

Somewhere in the distance, a couple of boys experienced a sudden bout of stomach discomfort, as if their organs had an inkling of what was to come.

“Make one together... In that case, I guess it’s okay...”

Faced with Mia’s enthusiasm, Anne could hardly say no. In the end, she capitulated and agreed to attempt another making of her castilla.

Some time later, Anne was summoned by the emperor to receive compliments in person. Many compliments. The emperor all but showered her with praise. He even gave her a special monetary reward for her service, the whole sum of which she promptly sent to her family. She was paid enough as is, so holding onto it would have made her feel greedy. Anne, you see, felt plenty blessed already.

I wonder why...just getting to make a castilla with milady made me so happy. Like a wish had finally been fulfilled...

Thus ended a short epilogue to a sad dream—a peek past the ending of a story about a simple but broken promise...to see it fulfilled in a different but endearing way.