The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt features a huge assortment of quests that Geralt can take on for money, resources, or just to help out where he can, and this guide will focus on one such quest. That quest being "Without a Trace."
In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Without a Trace tasks Geralt with tracking down a missing Herbalist Apprentice named Folkert. This Hearts of Stone expansion, and mainly takes place in and around Deadwight Wood.
Starting the Quest
In order to begin this quest, players will need to check the bounty board in Brunwich and pick up the contract. With the contract in hand Geralt will now need to head for the Herbalist's Hut, which can be found just northeast of Oxenfurt. The herbalist, Otto Bamber, will explain the details of the contract.
Essentially, Otto's apprentice has gone missing, and was somewhere near Deadwight Wood before his disappearance. Players should make a quick stop to check the basement of the Herbalist's Hut for a full set of New Moon Armor before heading out, no sense in leaving good loot behind.
Heading for the quest marker, players should look for a wagon and investigate it with Witcher Sense. This will expose a blood trail for Geralt to follow, leading north and stopping just short of Erde Village. The dense foliage in the area can make the blood trail a bit tricky to follow, but Erde Village is most definitely where it leads. Unfortunately, there isn't much to go on once Geralt arrives, since the village is abandoned save for an elderly couple.
Erde Village
Investigating Erde Village is rather tricky, though players can find some old bloodstains at the hut just to the right of the village gate. The elderly couple living here claim to have encountered Folkert when he was attacked by wolves, tending to his wounds and bidding him return home, but believe he might have ignored their advice and been attacked again elsewhere in the woods.
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At this point players have the option of returning to Otto, explaining what they've learned, and ending the quest here. This rewards 200 Crowns and 50XP. Alternatively, Geralt can dig a little deeper and uncover something far more sinister.
Head to the eastern gate to the village, near the couple's house, and Geralt will smell something rotten. Use Witcher Senses to track the scent and before long players will find the cellar entrance. Aard can be used to blast away everything blocking the door, and Geralt can enter the cellar and find some human meat, chopped up into pieces. Geralt can identify the body as Folkert but can't establish the cause of death, so it's time to ask the spooky couple what they're up to.
Asking them what the hell's going on will reveal that, according to them, Folkert was killed by wolves and they gathered his corpse, along with other corpses from the woods, to feed themselves. Allegedly too weak to farm, they seemingly had no difficulty dragging bodies back to their shack to chop up for food, and it's up to the player to decide whether to kill them or not.
If players spare them, on the promise that they don't eat any more people, it's still possible for them to end up dead depending on the next choice.
When reporting back to Otto players have the option of keeping the couple's secret or telling him the whole truth. If players tell him the truth the couple will still end up dead, likely as part of his plan to take revenge. If players found Folkert's body and lied to Otto about it, The wife will die of hunger before the village is visited again. If the player didn't find Folkert's body, then nothing changes at the Village between Geralt's visits.
Fully investigating earns Geralt a payment of 200 Crowns and 100XP, regardless of whether he tells Folkert the truth or not.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is available for PS4, PS5, PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch.
