Old Man and the Candle

An old voice shivers behind a door in Edith. The village is gloomy and the light from the sky is too weak, and all the old man asks is a candle. The data and the item texts show he is more than a beggar: he is Vincent, a former noble of the Blessedland whose daughter gave up her name and her title to join the Demiurges. His story finishes in a different chapter, in Die or Become the Sendril; both halves are also told from the NPC side on Vincent and Eleanor.

Walkthrough#

1. Find a Candle for the Old Man (log 20802). Speak to him; his question ("do you have any candles?") starts the line (flag 45048).
2. Bring some warmth to the Old Man (log 20803). Find a Greasy Candle (key item 10016, a candle made from animal fat; the pick-up sets flag 42301). Return and choose "Give him a Greasy Candle". The option is shown only when flag 42301 is set. He is grateful, introduces himself as Vincent, says he is not a traitor and not a Demiurge, and laments that his daughter left him. For this you receive 2 Anti-Sendril Elixir (item 20019) and the Witness / War and Destiny count.
3. The hidden follow-up. After you have dealt with Eleanor in Blessedland (see below), you can return with a Blood-stained Will (key item 10053, found after her fate is sealed). A new option "Give him the Blood-stained Will" appears in his dialog. Vincent thanks you and you receive Formula: Anti-Sendril Elixir (item 79010), the alchemy recipe for the elixir he first gave you. See Alchemy.

The follow-up has no entry in the quest log, so it is easy to miss.

Hidden mechanics#

• Two reward events. The elixirs (flag 45071) are given with the first hand-in; the recipe (flag 45076) with the Will. The Witness / War and Destiny flag (95042) is set with the first one, so you do not need the Will for the achievements.
• Leaving has no cost. "Leave" simply ends the talk; you can come back with the candle later.
• The Will needs the candle first. The Will option requires both the Will pickup (62085) and the earlier hand-in (45045), and is hidden once given (45075).
• The Will has to be found first. Item 10053 is placed in the Blessedland (pickup 6085) and is shown once flag 65084 is set, which happens when Eleanor's death scene is over on either sword path (see Die or Become the Sendril#The choice). The item text shows it is a letter from Eleanor to her father Vincent; flag 62085 is set when it enters your bag.
• After the candle his idle line (dialog 41126) asks when two people he calls "Albertus" and "Kassandra" will return; the data does not say who they are.

Sources#

• UIQuest 20801-20803; StoryQuest 45048 (start), 42301 (candle picked up), 45045 (delete item 10016), 45071 (give item 20019 x2), 95042 (Witness and War and Destiny), 62085 (Will picked up), 45075 (delete item 10053), 45076 (give item 79010).
• StoryDialog story 4, ids 41120-41128, 42119-43121; StoryItem 6085 (story 6); ItemData 10016, 10053, 20019, 79010.
• See Side Quests.