Secret of the White Lily

Main story quest #82, level 28. 157th of 173 in play order.

Quest giver: Aethelmaer, North Shroud (X 19.7, Y 25.4).

Next: Skeletons in Her Closet ›

Steps

Show the lily button to Miounne.
Show the lily button to Bernadette.
Show the lily button to Ceinguled.
Show the lily button to Ursandel.

Journal

Aethelmaer wants you to hold on to the button.
Aethelmaer entrusts you with the lily button, thus far the most promising lead in the murder investigation, and suggests that you show it to Miounne at the Adventurers' Guild in Gridania. Perhaps she will be able to recognize the sigil it bears.
While Miounne appreciates the button's exquisite craftsmanship, she is unfamiliar with its sigil. She suggests you show it to Bernadette, the keen-eyed sentry who stands guard at the aetheryte plaza.
Unfortunately, Bernadette does not recognize the lily sigil. In her turn, she suggests that you have it examined by Wood Wailer Ceinguled, who stands before the Lancers' Guild.
Ceinguled recalls having seen a man named Ursandel wearing an identical button upon the breast of his jacket. You will find him by the entrance to the Gentry's Ward, northwest of the Lancers' Guild.
Ursandel instantly recognizes the sigil as that of the old and proud Dartancours family. With a sigh of resignation, he agrees to reveal the truth behind the mysterious murders...on the condition that you promise to help him with what will most certainly be an unsavory task.

Hidden

In-game text The

Lily Button's item text says it is made of ivory, a costly material. It is an early hint that its owner is rich, as Ceinguled

also notices.

Characters 5

Mother Miounne
Miounne is at the Adventurers' Guild in Gridania when you arrive with the lily button.
What you know from earlier quests 4
- #94 Call of the Forest: She first greets you as a diner, then is delighted to learn you are the adventurer Baderon sent. She offers to brief you when you are ready. She cries "The Matron be praised!" A chart note says the Matron is Nophica, Gridania's guardian goddess.
- #95 Fire in the Gloom: She describes the Tam–Tara Deepcroft, a Gelmorran settlement where Gridanians bury their dead. Afterward, she passes on Lewin's thanks. She says adventurer deaths are rising as untrained people take on too much, as one broken party shows. She then offers a job from Ul'dah.
- #96 Call of the Desert: She sends you to Momodi, who runs the Quicksand in Ul'dah, and calls her the sultanate's version of herself. She expects Momodi to send you into danger, but trusts you to come through unhurt.
- #97 Into a Copper Hell: Momodi tells you that you are every bit the adventurer Miounne said you would be.
Aethelmaer
Aethelmaer wants to solve the murders and sees the lily button as the best lead so far.
What you know from earlier quests 1
- #156 Power of Deduction: Aethelmaer is shaken by the body and never gets used to such sights. Aethelmaer says the victims are all young women with ruined faces, and the winged eyeball seems to move bodies. A lily button on the body matches one from another victim.
Bernadette
Bernadette is a keen-eyed sentry who stands guard at the aetheryte plaza in Gridania.
Ceinguled
Wood Wailer Ceinguled stands before the Lancers' Guild in Gridania. Bernadette says she makes a point of knowing all the citizens by their first names.
Ursandel
Ursandel is a man who sits on the bench by the entrance to the Gentry's Ward. He wants to be left alone with his thoughts.

What happens in this quest spoilers for this quest

Mother Miounne: Miounne admires the fine work on the button but is dismayed it came from a dead body. She does not know the sigil and sends you to Bernadette, who has sharp eyes.
Aethelmaer trusts you enough to bend the usual rules and lets you keep the button. Aethelmaer suggests you show it to Miounne in Gridania, whose many contacts may know the sigil.
Bernadette does not know the sigil. She says the button looks like those worn by old families, and the white lily is common in Gridanian culture. She sends you to Ceinguled at the Lancers' Guild.
Ceinguled doubts she can help, but tries. She says the owner must be wealthy, then remembers Ursandel, a man always seated on the bench by the Gentry's Ward, wearing a very similar button.
Ursandel knows the sigil of the Dartancours family at once. When he hears of the murdered woman, he says he had feared as much. He offers the truth about the deaths if you promise to end his lady's madness.

Dialogue 16 lines

Accepting the quest

Aethelmaer

I would have you hold on to the lily button. You will need it to continue your investigation.

DE Ich glaube nämlich, dass er dich auf deiner Suche nach dem Maskierten weiterbringen könnte. ‘I believe, you see, that it could help you further in your search for the masked man.’ English says you need it to continue your investigation; German says it could advance your search for the masked man.
JA この怪事件を追っていけば、お前が探している、「仮面の男」に近づくことができるかもしれん。 ‘If you follow this strange case, you may be able to get closer to the "masked man" you are looking for.’ English says you need it to continue your investigation; Japanese says it may bring you closer to the masked man.

While it isn't standard procedure to entrust key evidence to individuals, you have proven yourself reliable and resourceful in this matter. I see no reason why you shouldn't carry on your work.

JA 人探しのためとはいえ、お前は近隣の魔物討伐にも一役買ってくれたからな。 ‘Even if it was for your search for someone, you also played a part in slaying the fiends nearby.’ English praises you as reliable and resourceful; Japanese cites your help slaying nearby fiends.

If I might make a suggestion, you may wish to take the button to Gridania and have it examined by Miounne. Mayhap someone in her vast network of contacts can shed light upon its sigil.

Show the lily button to Miounne.

Miounne

Good evening/day to you, [name]. By your grim expression, I suspect you aren't here for scones and herb tea.

Well, isn't this a lovely little button. The engraving is quite exquisite─artisan-level quality, I would say. Where did you say you found this? ...On a dead body? Lovely.

Anyway, I'm afraid I do not recognize the lily sigil. You will have to find the answer the old-fashioned way─by asking around. You could do worse than beginning with Bernadette, over by the aetheryte plaza. She has a sharp pair of eyes, that one.

Show the lily button to Bernadette.

Bernadette

Need help tracking down the owner of a button? That's certainly not a request I receive on a regular basis. Well, go on, then─show me what you have.

JA ここを行き来する冒険者なら、大抵は覚えているけれど。 ‘I remember most of the adventurers who come and go here, but...’ English calls it an unusual request; Japanese says she remembers most adventurers who pass through.

Hmmm... Seems to be some manner of decorative button, reminiscent of those worn by the families of old, though I cannot claim to know its sigil. However, I can say with certainty that the white lily is a recurring theme in Gridanian culture.

Alas, I do not know who would make a personal sigil of it. If there is a soul in Gridania who does, it would be Ceinguled over at the Lancers' Guild. The woman makes a point of knowing all the citizens on a forename basis.

FR Cette garde est très calée sur les us et coutumes de la cité. ‘This guard is very knowledgeable about the city's ways and customs.’ English says Ceinguled knows every citizen by first name; French says she knows the city's customs.
DE Was gridanische Sitten und Bräuche betrifft, ist meine Kollegin Ceinguled sehr belesen. ‘When it comes to Gridanian manners and customs, my colleague Ceinguled is very well-read.’ English says Ceinguled knows every citizen by first name; German says she is well-read in Gridanian customs.

Show the lily button to Ceinguled.

Ceinguled

Bernadette believes that I can help you? Well, that is a rather bold assumption to make. I will try to assist, never you fear, but whether aught comes of it is another matter. Now, then, what do you require of me?

FR (soupire) Bon, faites vite alors, je n'ai pas toute la soirée/journée... ‘(sighs) Fine, be quick then, I don't have all evening/day...’ English is modest but willing to help; French sighs and impatiently tells you to hurry.
JA はぁ……どんな用件なんだ。 ‘Sigh... What is it you want?’ English asks politely what you need; Japanese sighs wearily before asking.

Fascinating... Work of this quality is rarely seen in the hands of ordinary Gridanians. The owner of this button is most certainly well-to-do. You may wish to take your search to the Gentry's Ward, northwest of here.

Wait. A memory comes to me. Of late, there has been a man who is perpetually seated at the bench by the ward's entrance. His name is Ursandel, and I distinctly recall seeing a markedly similar button upon the breast of his jacket. I daresay he can tell you a thing or two about it.

Show the lily button to Ursandel.

Ursandel

I do not believe we are acquainted. Pray leave me to my thoughts.

FR Je vous prierais de tourner les talons et d'aller voir ailleurs si j'y suis. ‘I would ask you to turn on your heels and go see elsewhere if I'm there.’ English politely asks to be left alone; French rudely tells you to get lost with a mocking idiom.
DE Was kann ein alter, gebrechlicher Mann für Euch tun, mein Kind/mein Sohn? ‘What can an old, frail man do for you, my child/my son?’ English sends you away to be left alone; German warmly asks what he can do for you.
JA わたくしに、何かご用でしょうか。 ‘Is there something you need of me?’ English sends you away to be left alone; Japanese politely asks what you need.

The sigil of the Dartancours family! How...how is it that you came to be in possession of this button?

...From the body of a murdered woman? H-Her face...was it marred in any way?

JA ああ、その答えだけは、聞きたくありませんでした！ ‘Ah, that is the one answer I did not want to hear!’ English asks whether her face was marred; Japanese says that was the one answer he did not want to hear.

I had feared as much... I can no longer feign ignorance. I shall reveal to you the truth of the deaths, but on one condition: you promise to put an end to my lady's madness and free her from her torment.

DE Seid Ihr so gut, einem alten Mann Gehör zu schenken? ‘Would you be so kind as to lend an old man your ear?’ English sets a condition: end his lady's madness; German only asks you to listen to an old man.
JA 哀れな娘たちの死の真相と、ダルタンクール家の……アマンディヌお嬢様の悲劇について、お話しましょう。 ‘I shall tell you the truth of the poor girls' deaths, and of the Dartancours family's... Lady Amandine's tragedy.’ English sets a condition: end his lady's madness; Japanese only offers to tell of Lady Amandine's tragedy.