Skyrim:Delayed Burial

Convince an unwilling farmer to help fix a stranded jester's broken wagon wheel. Quest Giver: Cicero Location(s): Loreius Farm Reward: Leveled gold ID: DB01Misc

A wagon needs four wheels to move.

Quick Walkthrough

1. Speak to Cicero on the road leading to Loreius Farm.
2. Speak to Vantus Loreius at the Loreius Farm.
3. Make your decision:
   • Persuade Vantus Loreius to fix the wheel.
   • Turn in Cicero to the wandering guard.

Quest Conflicts

Beginning Innocence Lost or With Friends Like These... will create some minor restrictions on your options in this quest. Entering the Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary or starting Destroy the Dark Brotherhood! will cause this quest to fail. However, none of these contingencies are of significant consequence to progression through the Dark Brotherhood questline or through the game in general, as this quest is a relatively minor one.

Detailed Walkthrough

Stranded Jester

The Stranded Jester

On the road north of Whiterun and near Loreius Farm, you will encounter a very odd jester named Cicero. He claims that he is from Cyrodiil and is moving to Skyrim. His wagon, which he says contains the remains of his mother, has broken down by the roadside. He asked Vantus Loreius, the owner of the nearby farm, to help him fix his wheel but Loreius refused. Cicero will ask you to convince Loreius to help him so he can move on.

Speaking to Vantus Loreius will reveal that he was unwilling to help because of Cicero's odd behavior, and he speculates that Cicero's box likely contains Skooma or other illegal cargo, and doesn't want to chance aiding him in any illicit activity. Vantus asks that you convince a patrolling guard—either a Roadside Guard or Pale Hold Guard—to arrest Cicero.

Helping Cicero

To help Cicero, you must pass a very easy level Speech check to persuade Vantus to do the right thing and fix the wagon wheel. Vantus will reconsider and promise to help Cicero on his way. After you notify Cicero, he will thank you and give you a certain amount of gold depending on your current level.

Turning in Cicero

To turn in Cicero, you need to find the guard that patrols the roadway near the farm. He patrols very close to the wagon and is frequently within sight of the wagon. The guard will place Cicero under arrest. Cicero promises to make Loreius pay and chastises you for not being of assistance. After notifying Vantus, he thanks you for bringing him peace and gives you gold.

Consequences

"So many knife wounds."

Cicero is an assassin and the Keeper of the Dark Brotherhood. The coffin he is transporting contains the remains of the Night Mother. Choosing to help Cicero will lead to him showing gratitude if you join the Brotherhood. If you turn him in and later return to the farm, you'll find that Vantus Loreius and his wife, Curwe, have been slaughtered (although if you wait too long the bodies will be gone). A passing guard will remark "You don't want to go up there, citizen. It's a terrible sight. The farmer and his wife murdered in the middle of the night. So many knife wounds." If you later join the Dark Brotherhood, Cicero will be slightly upset with you for not helping him. Whichever attitude he shows toward you will carry no practical implications if you join the Brotherhood.

Reward

Regardless of how you resolve the quest, you get the same amount of gold:

Levels	Reward
1–9	250
10–19	400
20–29	500
30–39	600
40+	750

Notes

• The quest was supposed to be initiated by overhearing a conversation between Uthgerd the Unbroken and Skulvar Sable-Hilt in front of the Whiterun Stables, but the scene was cut from the game.
• If you do not interact with Cicero prior to joining the Dark Brotherhood, there will be alternate dialogue options when you meet him in the Falkreath Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary.
• Even after you've convinced Loreius to help, Cicero and his broken wagon may remain on the road indefinitely unless you join or destroy the Dark Brotherhood, in which case he will move on regardless of whether you convinced Loreius or not.

Quest Stages

Delayed Burial (DB01Misc)
Stage	Finishes Quest	Journal Entry
5		Apparently there's a strange jester near the Loreius Farm, on the road north of Whiterun. It would seem he's transporting a coffin in a cart, but one of the wheels has broken of [sic]. It might be worth investigating. Objective 5: Talk to the strange jester
10		I met a strange jester named Cicero, who is transporting his mother's coffin. One of the wheels of Cicero's wagon has broken off, and he wants me to ask a farmer named Loreius for help. Objective 10: Convince Loreius to fix the wheel
20		I have agreed to help the farmer Loreius get rid of the strange jester named Cicero, who keeps asking for his help. I'm to report Cicero to the nearby guard, and lie about his offense. Objective 20: Report Cicero to the guard
30		The jester Cicero wants the farmer Loreius to fix his broken wagon wheel, but Loreius just wants Cicero to leave. I can either convince Loreius to fix the wheel, or report Cicero to the nearby guard. Objective 30: Convince Loreius OR report Cicero
40		I have reported Cicero to the guard, and lied about his offense. I must now speak to Loreius, and let him know I have assisted him. Objective 40: Talk to Loreius
50		I have spoken to Loreius, and convinced him to repair Cicero's broken wagon wheel. I need to report back to Cicero, and let him know help is on the way. Objective 50: Talk to Cicero
200	Finishes quest	I have resolved the conflict between the jester Cicero and Loreius the farmer.
210	Fails quest	I have resolved the conflict between the jester Cicero and Loreius the farmer.
215		I have resolved the conflict between the jester Cicero and Loreius the farmer.

• The following empty quest stages were omitted from the table: 0, 255.

Notes

• Any text displayed in angle brackets (e.g., <Alias=LocationHold>) is dynamically set by the Radiant Quest system, and will be filled in with the appropriate word(s) when seen in game.
• Not all Journal Entries may appear in your journal; which entries appear and which entries do not depends on the manner in which the quest is done.
• Stages are not always in order of progress. This is usually the case with quests that have multiple possible outcomes or quests where certain tasks may be done in any order. Some stages may therefore repeat objectives seen in other stages.
• If an entry is marked as "Finishes Quest" it means the quest disappears from the Active Quest list, but you may still receive new entries for that quest.
• On the PC, it is possible to use the console to advance through the quest by entering setstage DB01Misc stage, where stage is the number of the stage you wish to complete. It is not possible to un-complete (i.e. go back) quest stages, but it is possible to clear all stages of the quest using resetquest DB01Misc.