The Bittersweet Toast: finish the ritual and reach the duel

Take the optional meeting before the duel

During The Gilded Gauntlet, follow the optional lead to Iulian at Codrin’s Hunting Lodge in Maragir Wealds. Hear his plan and agree to visit Vera, the poisoner.

You can follow him immediately or arrange to meet later. PowerPyx records an extra time segment for lighting the meeting-point campfire if you choose the latter. Preserve a manual save before accepting if you want to compare the story consequences.

Follow the traps and tracks to the ritual scroll

1. Follow Iulian, clear the wolves and inspect the body along the path.
2. At Vera’s hut, examine her witchcraft work and salamander trap, then discuss the findings with Iulian.
3. Search west toward the water for traps. Continue past the poisoned rabbit to the trap beside a tree stump and inspect the tracks.
4. Use Focus to follow Vera’s route to her body at the ritual altar.
5. Continue along the blood and slime trail to the clearing. Inspect the scattered notebook material and collect the ritual instructions.

The scroll is the required return item. The nearby extra pages lead to the optional gland decision, so check them before leaving if you want that branch.

Decide whether to add the Tatzelwurm Gland

The extra pages describe using a Tatzelwurm Gland to help Iulian survive the poison. Follow the slime trail northeast into the rock gap, defeat the Pale Ravager and loot the gland if you want that option.

Return the instructions to Iulian. When finishing the brew, add the salamander skins; the gland can also be added if you obtained it. Iulian objects to being saved, so the gland is a story choice rather than a required ingredient for completing the basic ritual.

Perform the ritual during the day

The ritual uses Astral Communion, so perform it during the day. Start with the pillar marked by one X and follow the highlighted sequence around the altar.

1. Light pillars one, two and three.
2. Defeat the spirits that appear after the third.
3. Light pillars four and five.
4. Defeat the next spirits and the Fallen Witch.
5. Return to Iulian and make him finish the brew, then complete the final hex.

PowerPyx identifies killing Iulian or leaving him during the final ritual as failure choices. If your objective is quest completion, continue the ritual despite his request to stop.

To identify the next target, hold Focus: PowerPyx says only the currently valid pillar is highlighted in gold. The first bears one X; move counterclockwise to the second, which bears two Xs. Continue using the next gold highlight for the remaining pillars, casting Astral Communion at each. The game does not accept lighting them out of order.

Follow the three-day duel objective, not the seven-day estimate

After the ritual, track Show up for the duel on time under The Gilded Gauntlet. PowerPyx reports that it fails after 48 time segments—three in-game days, even though Iulian says seven days.

The duel is at night. The same source says it must begin at least two segments before sunrise on the third day for the poison plan to work. Make the duel your next commitment and inspect the journal’s remaining time before learning skills or waiting through another cycle.

This deadline governs the poison setup, not a claim that every Gilded Gauntlet route expires after three days. PowerPyx’s parent-quest guide makes the same distinction.

Track optional time separately

The sources identify multiple time-consuming interactions, including the hut investigation, the scroll pickup and the ritual’s final three segments. A delayed meeting and collecting the optional gland add their own costs.

Check each hourglass prompt in your save rather than budgeting this as a single interaction. Waiting for daytime and the later nighttime duel are separate from the ritual’s listed costs.

Related guides

• Quest directory
• Ambrus and bosses
• Time segments