Finding Phonoi

Some months earlier

"Well, well, well. So this is Megalo City." Meliodas commented as he looked over the side of a massive cliffside. Just below the cliff he could see a huge port town, one that was nearly three times the size of Hargeon Port. The streets and buildings were made of a similar white marble stone and the roofs of the building were painted blue. Towards the ocean was a jetty that extended out into the cove where a giant lighthouse stood. The docks were filled with many boats of varying sizes. In the distance, he could make out one particularly large cargo ship floating at sea.

Meliodas jumped down from the cliffside, landing firmly on one of the bare streets. A few passersby looked at him with surprise at the sudden entrance, but Meliodas paid no mind to them as he continued walking.

'If I remember correctly from the information Praetor gave me, it's right here.' Meliodas looked up at a white four story building that was in front of him. Just above the door was a wooden sign that read "Bishaal Inn." Meliodas entered the building and he was immediately greeted with the aroma of grilled fish.

The inside of the building was bright, in both lighting and atmosphere. To Meliodas' right, was a standard check-in area to book a room at the inn with two women standing behind the counter wearing white outfits. To Meliodas' left, was a restaurant area where several chefs cooked and cut their food right in front of their customers before serving. There was also a bar area with a glossy marble counter that was filled with people. Meliodas' eyes brightened up as he saw behind the bar, a large assortment of wines, ale, and liquor whose brands were unknown to him.

'The guy I'm supposed to meet...that Praetor guy put his image in my head vaguely…' Meliodas gravitated towards the bar, not only looking for the person he was supposed to meet, but also at the huge stock of booze out on display right behind it.

Meliodas immediately noticed the contact he was supposed to speak to sitting at the very end of the bar. He was a young man with spiky red orange hair styled into a fauxhawk. He wore a black high collared jacket decorated with red trimmings and two belts tied around the upper arms along with silver colored pants tucked into plated black boots.

Meliodas took a seat next to the young man and the bartender immediately approached Meliodas. The bartender was a buff, middle aged man with neatly combed black hair parted at one side. He wore glasses and had a thick black mustache that twirled at the ends. He wore a white collared shirt with rolled up sleeves, revealing his forearms and black vest over it.

"Welcome to Bishaal Inn. What can I get for you today sir?" The bartender asked. Meliodas looked at the menu in awe, not sure where to start.

"Get him the Magna Crystal Bourbon, on the rocks." The young man sitting next to Meliodas interrupted. The bartender looked at him before looking back at Meliodas and nodded.

"Right away sir."

As the bartender poured Meliodas his drink, the young man turned his attention to Meliodas.

"That drink's on me. So you're the one sent from Fiore huh? Meliodas right?"

"Yeah that's me. How did you know?" Meliodas asked.

"Praetor sent me your file. By the way, I'm Conwell." The orange haired man said as he began looking up and down at Meliodas. His attention immediately shifted towards the sword on Meliodas' back.

"That's quite the blade you got there. Mind if I take a look?" Conwell asked.

"Sure." Meliodas responded, unstrapping the scabbard from his back and handing it over to Conwell. Meliodas quickly turned back to the counter where he took a sip of his drink as the bartender slid it over to him.

As Meliodas enjoyed his drink, Conwell slid the sword out of its scabbard, holding it up out to the side. His eyes widened and a grin formed on his face.

"Incredible! This kind of craftsmanship is unbelievable! I don't think there's a single person in Pergrande who can forge a sword as great as this." Conwell commented. He continued scanning the sword and noticed the music note symbol carved into it.

"I have to know who made this." Conwell continued.

"Musica." Meliodas responded as he put down his now empty glass.

"Musica? That name rings a bell…" Conwell mused. "By the way, this sword must have a name? What's it called?"

"Neo Mel Force." Meliodas answered.

"Neo Mel Force? A name like that implies that this isn't the first sword of its kind." Conwell responded.

"Nope. This is the second, improved version since the first one broke." Meliodas answered.

"I see...anyway it seems we're getting off topic." Conwell said, the brightness in his voice becoming more serious as he sheathed the sword once again and handed it back to Meliodas.

"I'm one of the Head Captains of the Pergrande Royal Army. I've sent my troops out to scout within 50 kilometers of this area and we've located the base of operations for the Phonoi guild. I'm assuming since Fiore sent you and you alone, you must be strong enough to take this on by yourself, even if it is Phonoi." Conwell said.

"I'm surprised you're not taking them on. I'll be honest, you seem even stronger than me." Meliodas said with a cheeky grin. Conwell returned a surprised look to Meliodas before breaking out into a small laugh.

"Haha! You're quite perceptive if you're able to gauge my power even while I'm suppressing it like this. And as to why I can't deal with them myself…" Conwell paused and took a deep breath in.

"Follow me. It's gonna be a bit of a long story." Conwell said, getting up from his seat. Meliodas nodded and followed, as Conwell walked around the restaurant, leading to a sectioned off stairwell. Conwell and Meliodas climbed the stairs, leading to an area overlooking the entire restaurant portion of the hotel.

"Praetor told me something interesting. You're not of this world. Well neither am I." Conwell said. Meliodas' eyes widened at the revelation.

"Although the world I come from and the one you come from seem to be two different places." Conwell continued. "I can't tell you the circumstances in which I arrived here, but I come from a place that is called the "Mystic Realm." Magic in that place flows differently than here and as a result, our bodies had to adapt. However, my sister didn't adapt as well as I did and she fell ill with a disease this world calls "Magic Deficiency Disease." It's supposed to be treatable, but no matter what we've tried, her illness won't go away…" Conwell clenched his fists tightly and looked down at the ground, trying to hold in the tears before continuing.

"Now as to how this relates to Phonoi...they found out I was trying to take down their guild and they somehow found out about my situation. They offered me a bribe. They tell me they are able to cultivate a fruit that can heal all illness. If I left them alone, they would hand over one of the fruits they have growing."

"So what I'm guessing is that they aren't giving you the fruit in order to keep you away from their guild. Which is why you requested outside help so that they wouldn't retaliate." Meliodas said.

"Yes...they left me with no choice…" Conwell responded. "They know I can take down their guild at any time, so they threaten to destroy the fruit in response. But I can't just leave them alone. I need that fruit as my sister is running out of time."

"Do you even have proof that this fruit even exists?" Meliodas asked.

"I do. As a sort of "peace treaty" I was given a small portion of the fruit last year to feed to my sister. Her condition drastically improved but the effects have worn off and it's getting worse again." Conwell responded.

"If I do end up defeating them, then won't that keep you from getting the fruit?" Meliodas continued.

"No. I have a double agent in their guild. It is confirmed that the fruit tree bore two fruit. Even if you defeat them and they take one with them, my double agent will use the chaos you caused to take the other one." Conwell said.

"Well then. I guess you have things planned out. You can leave the rest to me." Meliodas said reassuringly. 'Besides...what they did to Schneider…'