The Blood of Dawnwalker: How to Solve the Mysterious and Initial Instructions

Two hidden quests in The Blood of Dawnwalker send Coen hunting for stashed papers scattered across Svartrau City. Neither the Mysterious Instruction nor the Initial Instructions triggers a marker when you find the first clue, so it is easy to walk past them. Both revolve around the same eight collectible papers, and each ends with a stash of high-value loot.

Quick answer: Grab the green book Searching for Manumit Caches from a soldier, collect all eight “From Life of St.” papers in Svartrau City, then either decode the phrase “North of Svartrau Into Waterfall by Great Bridge” to loot the waterfall stash, or place the papers in the marked tree at St. Rudel’s Cemetery to skip decoding and collect a reward the next day.

Image credit: Bandai Namco Entertainment

Find the Searching for Manumit Caches book first

Before any stash icon appears, you need a green book called Searching for Manumit Caches. It drops randomly from soldiers, and a guard patrolling the city is a common source. Once you have it, the eight Manumit Caches become collectible around Svartrau City.

You gather eight papers in any order. The Initial Instructions note appears in one of the stashes at random, while the Mysterious Instruction can turn up in a stash or at one of a few fixed spots described below.

All eight paper locations in Svartrau City

Each cache holds one saint’s paper. Use Focus Mode to spot hidden nooks under rocks, in wall tiles, and inside crates. The table lists where to find every one.

Paper	Where to find it
From Life of St. Benezet	Southwest of Silberstein, inside a crate decorated with potted plants.
From Life of St. Cuthbert	Near The Cathedral Complex entrance, next to a set of stairs, hidden under a rock marked with the rebel symbol.
From Life of St. Tobias	South of the Medic store in Altenmarkt, tucked into one of the wall tiles.
From Life of St. Mihai	Just north of Altenmarkt, near the blacksmith, in a small alcove.
From Life of St. Gregory	Southwest of the North West Gate, up a small set of stairs, under a rock.
From Life of St. Teotim	Southwest from the St. Gregory spot, in a cache near some thugs.
From Life of St. Tyna	West of Neustadt, in a stash at the end of an alley.
From Life of St. Anthony	North of the Svartrau West Shrine, inside a hay cart.

Note: A separate random stash sits under a rock on the stairs near the Svartrau North East Shrine, close to the St. Tobias tile. It can hold equipment, silver, and a potion, but it does not count toward the eight papers.

Where to find the Mysterious Instruction

The Mysterious Instruction can appear in more than one place. It may drop in one of the stashes, sit on the northern side of Svartrau City under the Curious House symbol, or wait east of Neustadt. For the eastern spot, start at the Silberstein Shrine and head west until a ledge appears to the southwest. Jump over it, drop down, and search the stash to collect the note.

Decode the Mysterious Instruction

The solution is the phrase North of Svartrau Into Waterfall by Great Bridge. Each saint’s paper points to a single word by its position in the text, and stringing them together in order builds the location. The table below shows the word to count on each paper and the result it produces.

Paper	Which word	Result
From Life of St. Cuthbert	13th word	North
From Life of St. Tyna	9th word	Of
From Life of St. Mihai	2nd word from the end	Svartrau
From Life of St. Tobias	12th word	Into
From Life of St. Teotim	22nd word from the end	Waterfall
From Life of St. Anthony	31st word	By
From Life of St. Gregory	7th word	Great
From Life of St. Benezet	15th word	Bridge

Reach the waterfall stash

The spot the code describes is northwest of the Sandy Gorge Shrine. Head northwest until you reach the river, then turn west to find a waterfall. Inside is a large haul for Coen, including epic-quality armor, a legendary amulet, rare consumables, and enough silver to sell for a solid payout.

Complete the Initial Instructions at St. Rudel’s Cemetery

If you would rather skip the counting puzzle, the Initial Instructions offer a shortcut. Take all your papers to St. Rudel’s Cemetery, northwest of Svartrau City, and deposit them in a marked tree.

Travel to St. Rudel’s Cemetery, northwest of Svartrau City, and head inside.

Look for a tree carrying the Manumit symbol. Switch on Focus Mode and it will glow gold, making it easy to pick out.

Interact with the tree to place the papers inside. Coen receives the Final Instructions, which tell you not to bother decoding the Mysterious Instruction.

Return to the same tree the next day to collect the reward, which includes money, silver items, and a recipe such as the Recipe for Potent Keen Eye Potion.

You will know the Initial Instructions worked when the tree hands you the Final Instructions after depositing the papers, and the reward becomes available at that same tree once a day has passed. Whether you decode the waterfall clue yourself or let the tree point you to a payout, both paths close out these hidden quests with worthwhile loot.