The Sleeping Beauty side quest guide is probably the most self-contained side quests that you would have come across in the game. This one begins, and ends in the same area, without requiring you to collect anything across other chapters or areas – in fact much like the In the Name of Art side quest in Chapter 5 in Valor Mortis.
The developers do manage to add a nice bit of story telling in this short time though, and it helps that you get a pretty important upgrade material at the end of it; though, no Ambers. This is also one of the few quests that has you making a decision in the end.
Here is how to start, progress and complete the Sleeping Beauty side quest in Valor Mortis, and the rewards that you get on either of the choices at the end.
How to Start The Sleeping Beauty Side Quest
The Sleeping Beauty side quest unlocks on reading a Note lying in the open area just opposite the tree with all the Spewers in Chapter 6. Either coming from the Village Church or the Deep Water Lantern, you will fight an Iron Marshall, and then come across an area with a tree on one side, and an area that you can crouch and get to on the other side.
As you crouch through, there will be a blue Echo. Note the cabin on the right with the locked door. Listen to the blue Echo, and move ahead. Take the ramp in front of you, jump to the next building, and continue into the clearing with a shrine against the tree.
Read the note to begin The Sleeping Beauty side quest. The note has been written by the Headman’s Daughter, who is praying to the Shrike, and is worried about her father who looks to have been making her do work all day long.
Take the Nephtoglobin Vials along the way, ignore the enemies and make a run for the cabin.
Finding The Key
Now, enter the cabin and read the note. It tells about a spindle that is finished, and with a rather sinister purpose. In the next room, waiting for an ambush is a Red Eye Shambling Civilian. A (Fire + Blunderbuss/ Rapier) should be good enough to kill him. You get a neat 7000 Catalysts plus the Headman’s Key.
With this done, exit from the other side, and use the Nephtoglobin Wall to carefully land on the plank. From there, jump across back to make it back to the cabin with the locked door.
Using the Headman’s Key
You can now open the locked door in the cabin that we saw earlier. Read the note, and the Headman’s Daughter’s Diary. It looks like the Red Plague was used to counteract her consumption disease, and though it worked in the beginning, she feared turning into one of those mindless creatures, and begs for mercy from the Shrike. and interact with the Spindle.
Here, William will comment that setting the Spindle in motion will make those threads thicker, while removing the Spindle will cause the threads to fade away, and awaken her. You then get presented with two options – either wake her, or let her drift into a forever slumber.
Let Her Sleep or Wake Her Up – Sleeping Beauty Quest Decision
Letting her sleep looks to be the more humane out of two morally grey choices. Here, at least, you are fulfilling her prayer to the Shrike to not turn her into those mindless creatures. If you do wake her up, she will transform into the very mindless creature that she was afraid of turning into, and you will have to kill her. But that does remove the Plague and her suffering does come to an end. Given her state, that may not necessarily have been a bad choice.
In terms of rewards, if you choose to
- Let Her Sleep – you get 2000 Catalysts and Distilled Transmutation Material;
- Wake Her Up – you get 3000 Catalysts and Distilled Transmutation Material
Either way, once you make this decision, the Sleeping Beauty side quest is complete, and you can proceed along the main quest in Chapter 6 in Valor Mortis.
