"That was the magic we sensed earlier…" Meredy said silently.
"That magic...that explains why someone even as strong as Nyx in Dragon Force would hesitate for an instant." Ultear remarked.
"Meliodas...you're still that strong even after creating a large blast like that from earlier…" Jellal commented.
The two Phonoi assassins looked at each other then back at Meliodas. The one on the right suddenly raised his hands up in the air.
"Alright I'm done." The assassin said as he turned around and started walking away.
"WHAT?!" The other assassin exclaimed.
"Listen, I'm not going to risk my life fighting a losing battle. Look at his body. He doesn't even have a single scratch after fighting Rezeria. "The Blond Demon?" No. He's not a demon, he's a monster. You can fight him alone. I'm just going to pretend that I was never here. Would you let me go if I chose not to fight you, Meliodas?"
"If you're going to leave, leave now." Meliodas responded.
"You're as merciful as you are powerful. I feel bad for whoever tries to go after you next." The assassin said as he walked out the door. Meliodas glared at the other assassin who was left standing in front of them.
"Y-you know what, your bounty's not worth this. I'll just...be on my way…" The assassin said nervously, quickly following after his partner.
"Well then, let's head back to town shall we?" Meliodas said as he turned back around to face Jellal, Meredy, and Ultear, his face back to his normal lively self.
---
Having checked in Ultear into Silva's medical facility, Meliodas, Meredy, and Jellal sat at Ultear's bedside. As Ultear was peacefully sleeping, Meliodas glanced out the window. They were on the third story of the hospital, giving Meliodas a large field of view of the city square. Standing in the middle of the city square was who appeared to be the head of the city guard. Surrounding him were a group of city guards that pushed back the oncoming wave of disgruntled citizens. Meliodas could hear their shouts of dismay through the window.
"What was that explosion earlier?!" One of the citizens shouted.
"I saw a huge pillar of darkness shoot up into the sky!" Another citizen exclaimed.
"Does this have to do with the dark guild?!" Another questioned.
"I bet there's a relation between what happened to the Mage's College and that black pillar!"
"Calm down. I understand your frustrations. I assure you there is nothing to be alarmed about. All you need to know is that the situation is under control. We will have answers for you by the end of the week." The city guard head said, doing his absolute best to hide the distress on his face. 'Who the hell could have destroyed Astral Duchess?! There's not a single mage in Bosco who could even stand up to them!'
The angry voices of the citizens continued as Meliodas looked away from the window and back at Jellal and Meredy, both of whom had somber looks on their faces as they stared at Ultear. Meliodas looked at Jellal in particular. His whole body was tense as he clenched his fists.
"Well, well, well." Meliodas said, breaking the silence. Both Meredy and Jellal looked up at Meliodas. "Why don't we go into town and get something nice for Ultear for when she wakes up."
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." Meredy responded.
"I'll stay here with her." Jellal said.
"Alright then." Meliodas said as he and Meredy walked out of the room.
---
Meliodas and Meredy walked through the streets of the Castellan District, as they recalled a particular sweets shop when they had first arrived. The angry mob had already dispersed and the town was back to its normal flow.
"Jellal's taking this badly." Meredy commented. "I know we could consider this mission a "win," but it doesn't really feel like it after we-"
Meredy paused as she bumped shoulders with an individual who was walking by them. The individual turned around and looked at both Meredy and Meliodas. He was a dark skinned individual of average height with very short hair. He wore well decorated fine clothes that were golden brown in color with golden seams.
"Watch where you're going!" The man said with an irritated look on his face.
"O-oh sorry! I didn't mean to." Meredy apologized as she bowed her head.
"Didn't mean to?!" The man scoffed. "Do you know who I am?! I am Rhazim, a distinguished merchant of this city! I own one of the greatest farms just outside the walls of Silva. Although…" Rhazim took a closer look at Meredy and Meliodas before continuing.
"Hmm...I don't recall seeing either of you before. Do you get to the Cloud District very often? Oh what am I saying, of course you don't." Rhazim said in a condescending tone.
"No...we're new in this city…" Meredy replied.
"Then I supposed I shouldn't be wasting time with-" Rhazim's words were cut off as Meliodas appeared right in front of him, grabbing him in the mouth.
"I'll take you to see the cloud district." Meliodas said with a cheeky smile.
"Mmmpphhh!!!" Rhazim tried speaking but his words were muffled. Without a second thought, Meliodas threw the man clear over his head and straight behind him. Meredy watched silently as the man went soaring through the air, landing in a nearby tree.
"Come on Meredy." Meliodas said gleefully as if nothing had happened.
---
An hour passed as Meliodas and Meredy arrived back at the hospital again. Ultear was now awake while Jellal was staring silently out the window.
"Welcome back you two." Ultear said as she noticed Meliodas and Meredy approach.
"We got you some sweets!" Meredy said as she held a bright pink colored bag up. She placed the bag on the table and took a large box out filled with various pastries.
"Thank you both, I appreciate it." Ultear said warmly before turning to Jellal. "You're not going to sulk around all day are you?"
"No…" Jellal said sternly. He turned around and faced Meliodas, whose mouth was already stuffed with pastries.
"Meliodas." Jellal continued, his long blue hair falling over his face as he looked down at the ground, clenching his fists at his side.
"This mission has opened my eyes to my own weakness. I grew complacent and thought I would be strong enough to subdue any dark guild we come across. But with Astral Duchess, that definitely was not the case, and my weakness nearly got Ultear and Meredy killed. This mission is also the second one that I've witnessed your power first hand. Please...I ask that you train me."
Meliodas walked up to Jellal, patting him on the shoulder. Jellal looked to Meliodas and saw a wide grin on his face.
"Sure. I do need a training partner as I'm pretty rusty myself." Meliodas said as he held an apple strudel up to Jellal.