Off the Pilfered Path is a side quest in Dragon’s Dogma 2. After capturing Hugo in the quest Mercy Among Thieves and arriving at Bakbattahl, a beastren named Benjamin will enlist your help to speak with Hugo in Bakbattahl Gaol. Going to Bakbattahl Gaol after this will start the quest Off the Pilfered Path.
Off the Pilfered Path WALKTHROUGH
After capturing Hugo in the quest Mercy Among Thieves and reaching Bakbattahl, you may overhear guards talking about a captured Coral Snake being interrogated. Eventually, a beastren named Benjamin will call for your help to talk to Hugo in the Bakbattahl Gaol.
The quest doesn’t get marked yet in the quest list, but you can start it when you go to the Bakbattahl Ward then approach the guard by the Bakbattahl Gaol entrance past the Forbidden Magick Research lab entrance.
Offer Hugo Guidance
When you reach the entrance of Bakbattahl Gaol, a guard will recognize you as the man Benjamin called for and lead you to Hugo. Follow the guard inside the Bakbattahl Gaol.
Once you are inside, Hugo can be found in the middle cell just at the entrance. He may be too far from the cell door to talk to. So, head left until a quick cutscene plays out.
A guard seems to be disgruntled about a prisoner and walks away. Move forward and the prisoner in question will call out to you, recognizing you as the person who stormed their hideout. He then talks about Hugo, and how he had it coming for becoming too big for Lanzo. The same guard who walked away suggests that there seems to be more to the story. Keep talking to the prisoner.
Repeatedly talk to the prisoner, whose name is Breft, by interacting with him, and he will eventually tell you of the Coral Snake’s new hideout.
You learned of the coral snake’s new hideout
The new hideout of the Coral Snake gang seems to be in the Ancient Battleground over in Vermund.
Now, return to Hugo’s cell and try to speak to him. You can tell him what Breft said about the new hideout of the Coral Snake gang. Hugo then learns the truth that his parents were killed by Lanzo. Hugo then questions if all the kids in the gang also had their parents killed. He is in disbelief and can be visibly seen as angry.
Return to Hugo’s cell in Bakbattahl jail a day after telling Hugo what Breft said, and a guard will inform you that Hugo has escaped. Breft seems to have been killed as well, and the guard assumes that Hugo did it.
The next sequence of events is timed, so choose what you should do carefully.
Hugo and Lanzo: Find Lanzo before Hugo does or Let Hugo Find Lanzo First.
You can head to the Ancient Battleground immediately and beat Hugo to Lanzo or let Hugo reach Lanzo first.
Choosing the second option will lead to both Hugo and Lanzo’s death, while choosing the first option will allow you to help Hugo in his future.
Regardless, head to the top of the Ancient Battleground. If you’ve done the Tolled to Rest quest, you may remember that the enemies here are undead. With Lanzo and the Coral Snake gang in the area, bandits will now be waiting for you as well.
Make your way up to the top, and depending on how much time has passed, you will either find Lanzo and his crew or both Lanzo and Hugo dead.
If you complete this mission quickly enough and reach Lanzo before Hugo does, Lanzo will warn you to leave, and you will have to defeat him.
After defeating Lanzo and the Coral Snakes he has in tow, Hugo will show up. He will question if the fight was finished by you and will be disappointed that Lanzo has been killed. Hugo intended to pursue Lanzo and defeat him himself as revenge for what he did to his life.
However, now that Hugo has no more purpose, he questions what he should do in life. You can tell him to “Live an honest life,” to which he questions if he can really do it. You can reassure him that he can, or not.
Hugo’s Future: Borderlie in Vernworth or Store in Bakbattahl.
Reassuring Hugo, you’ll then ask what kind of work awaits for a man such as himself who has only lived picking pockets.
If you’ve completed the Borderlie questline with Wilhelmina or achieved the bad outcome of Isaac’s questline in Bakbattahl, you can tell him, “I know of a place that might.” Saying “I wish you luck.” will end the quest, but Hugo will be nowhere to be found later on.
If you say you know of a place where Hugo can work, you’ll be provided with options to direct him to potential employment.
Borderlie in Vernworth
If you finished the Borderlie questline, you can tell him about “The Myrmecoleon” in Vernworth where he can be found in the future.
Abandoned Store in Bakbattahl
If you finished Isaac’s questline and obtained the bad outcome, you can direct him to the now abandoned store in Bakbattahl, where he can be found in the future.
Regardless of which option you choose, he will be thankful, and the quest Off the Pilfered Path officially ends.
Alternate outcome
While Hugo is still in gaol, you can speak to the head gaoler named Ekratt and seek Hugo’s release. He acknowledges your desire but requires you to uphold your “integrity.” He then asks you to pay 1000 G, and if you pay, he will tell you that he will release Hugo, but it will take some time.
You can do this repeatedly until Hugo is released, and the sequence about him asking you about what to do in the future will commence. You can then tell him of a place to work at or leave him alone.
