The Blood of Dawnwalker: How to Romance Anca From Prologue to Inn Scene

Anca is the herbalist from Coen’s own village, and she sticks around as a companion for a large chunk of the early game in The Blood of Dawnwalker. Her arc runs across five quests, spends most of that time hovering in will-they-won’t-they territory, and only pays off if you keep picking the warmer reply every single time she gives you the option. Miss enough of them and the game quietly files the relationship under “friends.”

Quick answer: Take the flirtatious option in every Anca conversation from the prologue onward, sacrifice Coen’s hand at the blood pillar in Stronger Than Achilles, say “I’d do anything for you” and “I love you,” then answer “Screw decency. I want you, too.” back at the inn to trigger the romance scene.

How the Anca romance unlocks

The scene itself happens at the very end of Stronger Than Achilles, once Coen and Anca return to the inn. Everything before it is setup. The chain runs Withering Away in the prologue, then Echoes of Silenced Bells, Between the Words, Where Old Devils Lie, and finally Stronger Than Achilles.

None of the earlier quests hand you a visible relationship meter, so there is no bar to watch. What matters is that you never take a reply that pushes the pair back toward friendship, and that you clear Echoes of Silenced Bells, because it gates the quests that follow it. Note that Echoes sits far from the village and expects a considerably higher level, so it is worth exploring and levelling before you go.

There are two hard fail states. Anca can die if Coen talks to her while in vampire form on low health, which ends the arc outright. And Coen can simply choose to stay friends, which locks the scene out even if every prior choice was perfect.

Every dialogue choice before Stronger Than Achilles

These are the replies that keep the romance track open across the four build-up quests. Several of them cost Time Segments, which is the game’s limited daily resource, so budget for them.

Quest	Moment	Pick this
Withering Away	Meeting Anca by the river	Ask about her scars, then pay 50x denarii for the ingredients
Withering Away	Entering her hut	Say you’ve missed studying Latin with her (2x Time Segments)
Withering Away	Picking a book	Take the red-cover book and keep insisting on the Catullus poem
Withering Away	Poem replies	“kisses,” then “grains of sand”
Withering Away	After she is injured	Tell her to take off her shirt, tend the wound, then “I enjoy the company more than the books.”
Withering Away	After Brencis takes Coen’s family	Apologise for raising your voice and say you didn’t mean to scare her
Withering Away	Leaving for home	“I really have to go.”
Echoes of Silenced Bells	When she opens up about her scars	“It must’ve been painful.”
Echoes of Silenced Bells	After Leonica in the catacombs	“Pity we couldn’t do more for her.”
Echoes of Silenced Bells	The ritual for the nuns	“This won’t end well.” then “There, take them.” (1x extra Time Segment). Do not burn the notes
Between the Words	Comparing notes	“Hope you had more luck than me.”
Between the Words	Optional warm drink	Brew the tea (1x Time Segment), then “It’s my pleasure.”
Between the Words	After the tea	“There are better sources of joy than herbal brews.”
Between the Words	Reading the blank book	“Always? What do you mean?” then “Your feelings toward me – it’s more than just faith.”
Where Old Devils Lie	At the map in the inn	“Who knows what else I have in store for you.”
Where Old Devils Lie	When she offers help	“Thank you for trying to help me.” then “That’s what you see me as – a friend?”
Where Old Devils Lie	Sitting by the water	“Something troubling you?” then “I care about you.”
Where Old Devils Lie	In front of the ruins	“Nice to see you smile” and “I’m enjoying your company, too.”

Prologue notes worth knowing

The storm that traps Coen in Anca’s hut is what opens the Latin study option, and taking it doubles the cost of the errand. It is also the moment the writing starts leaning romantic rather than neighbourly, so skipping it to save time costs you the best early material.

Anca speaks to Coen about the storm during the prologue conversation in her hut — Anca talks through the storm during Withering Away. Image: Rebel Wolves

Choosing “I really have to go.” is the reply that gets the medicine home in time to save Coen’s mother, and that outcome feeds into one of the game’s seven endings. It is the one prologue pick with weight beyond Anca herself.

The ritual choice in Echoes of Silenced Bells

Anca insists on performing a rite for the souls of the nuns she lived with. Voice the doubt, hand over the notes anyway, and let her finish. Burning the papers instead does not end the romance, but it annoys her and changes a small piece of the epilogue.

Time to Decide dialogue wheel with the reply This won't end well highlighted — The timed dialogue menu with “This won’t end well.” selected. Image: Rebel Wolves

Waiting for Where Old Devils Lie

Anca’s next quest does not appear immediately. Let a day or two pass in-game and it will show up, at which point the tracker points you back to her before the trip to the ruins.

Quest tracker showing the Return to Anca objective inside a dim cabin — The tracker flags “Return to Anca” once the quest becomes available. Image: Rebel Wolves

The flirt line at the map (“Who knows what else I have in store for you.”) comes before you set out, and the two quieter picks happen once the pair stop by the water on the way.

World map screen with location markers and the family rescue objective tracked — Planning the route from the inn map before heading out with Anca. Image: Rebel Wolves

Stronger Than Achilles: the sacrifice and the confession

Push deeper into the ruins with Anca until you reach the blood sacrifice pillar. One of you has to pay for the passage, and the game gives Coen the option to take it on himself.

Let Coen’s hand be the one that gets maimed, then answer “Better me than you.” Sacrificing Anca instead is the point where the romance stops working, so do not offer her up.

When Anca admits she wanted the Font for herself, respond with “You were hoping to use the Font yourself” and “I would, too, in your place.” This keeps the conversation open rather than shutting it down.

Follow up with “I’d do anything for you” and then “I love you.” Under no circumstances take the reply that calls her a friend, because that single line is the friends-only fail state.

The Font of Life decision and what it changes

In the final chamber only one person can take the Font’s power. Coen can drink it himself, step aside for Anca with “Go ahead. Do what you will with it.”, or destroy the structure entirely for a legendary item. All three leave the inn scene available.

Anca mid-conversation with Coen as the Font of Life discussion plays out — Anca argues her case for the Font of Life in the final chamber. Image: Rebel Wolves

The difference is tone rather than access. Drinking it yourself grants Coen a health regeneration perk and leaves Anca noticeably more hesitant about where the relationship is going. Letting her use it makes her far more enthusiastic afterwards.

The inn conversation that triggers the romance scene

Return to the inn to close out Stronger Than Achilles. Anca reopens the conversation the two of you left hanging in the ruins.

Take the reply that pushes back on her hesitation rather than agreeing with it. Depending on your earlier picks this reads as either “I beg to differ.” or “There’s a conversation we need to finish.”

Confirm you meant what you said in the ruins, using “I meant what I said.” or “Let’s do something fun for once.” Both keep the conversation moving toward the same place.

Answer “Screw decency. I want you, too.” This is the decisive line and it appears regardless of which variants came before it.

After the kiss, ask for more with “Not sure I got that. One more time?” or “Leaves me hungry for more.” The romance cutscene plays immediately afterwards, which is your confirmation it worked.

Note that this final exchange still contains friends-only options mixed in among the flirtatious ones. Read each prompt rather than mashing the top choice.

Why the Anca romance fails to trigger

If the inn conversation ends without a cutscene, one of a short list of things went wrong.

Coen approached Anca in vampire form on low health at some point, which can kill her.
A friends-only reply was taken during Stronger Than Achilles or at the inn.
Echoes of Silenced Bells was never completed, so the quests after it never became available.
Anca was chosen for the blood sacrifice at the pillar instead of Coen.

The romance is entirely optional and does not redirect the main plot, so nothing else in Vale Sangora breaks if you skip it. Anca also is not the only option available to Coen across the campaign, and the choices that build her arc run parallel to the rest of the story rather than replacing any of it.