Taking Care of Business

Taking Care of Business
The Cistern of The Ragged Flagon, headquarters of the Thieves Guild.
Quest Giver	Brynjolf
Location	Riften
Prerequisite	A Chance Arrangement
Next Quest	Loud and Clear
Faction	Thieves Guild
Reward	Membership into the guild Thieves Guild Outfit Access to Fences
Type	Thieves Guild main quest
Quest ID	TG01

Taking Care of Business is a quest available in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. This is the second quest pertaining to the Thieves Guild, acquired from Brynjolf.

Background

Brynjolf has promised me more work if I'm able to locate him at a tavern called the Ragged Flaggon. Judging from the dangerous nature of it location, it seems as though he's having me perform some type of initiation, but I can't be certain.

Objectives

1. Locate Brynjolf at The Ragged Flagon
2. Collect Keerava's debt
   1. Use Talen-Jei to get to Keerava (optional)
3. Collect Bersi Honey-Hand's debt
   1. Smash Bersi's prized Dwarven Urn (optional)
4. Collect Haelga's debt
   1. Steal Haelga's Statue of Dibella (optional)
5. Return to Brynjolf

Walkthrough

The Ratway

"Well, well... color me impressed, lad (If the Dragonborn is female: "lass"). I wasn't certain I'd ever see you again!"

―Brynjolf

The Ratway's entrance is located on the lower levels of Riften. Once inside, there will be two bandits, Drahff and Hewnon Black-Skeever. After they are dealt with, the Dragonborn will enter into a room. They must either pick the lock on the door to the left or take the path to the right. The Ragged Flagon can be entered after continuing down the path; Brynjolf can be found conversing at the bar here.

Vekel the Man: "Give it up, Brynjolf... those days are over." Brynjolf: "I'm telling you, this one is different..." Dirge: "We've all heard that one before, Bryn! Quit kidding yourself." Vekel: "It's time to face the truth, old friend. You, Vex, Mercer... you're all part of a dying breed. Things are changing!" Brynjolf: "Dying breed, eh? Well what do you call that then!"

At this point Brynjolf will turn around and, if you are close enough, approach to say, "Well, well... Color me impressed lad/lass. I wasn't certain I'd ever see you again!"

And you'll have three options. If you say that you got through the Ratway easily, he will be doubly impressed, saying, "Reliable and headstrong? You're turning out to be quite the prize!" If you claim you nearly died or point out the less-than-lovely state of the Guild, he will be annoyed, saying, "No risk, no reward. That's the way it goes, so you better get used to it." or "If you were expecting a palace, then maybe you're not cut out for this line of work. Our methods involve secrecy and discretion.", respectively.

He will instruct the Dragonborn to collect debts from three business owners in Riften. If one chooses to ask Brynjolf for advice, he will suggest some alternative ways to collect the debt. Exit the Ragged Flagon by the front door, then go through the second archway on the right wall. Pull the lever to drop the draw bridge across the gap and follow the path to exit the Ratway.

Collecting the Debt

The Dragonborn may collect the debts in any order, but will quickly discover that none of the business owners are willing to pay up; the Dragonborn may opt to brawl the owner for the money, or negotiate a more peaceful solution using Brynjolf's advice. Additionally, the final business owner may hear about the Dragonborn's activities in advance and decide to pay off their debt immediately, without conflict or need to perform the optional objective.

Keerava's debt in The Bee and Barb

Keerava is the female Argonian behind the counter at the Bee and Barb. Bringing up her debt to her will result in her becoming upset, telling the Dragonborn to go away, and that Brynjolf will not be getting anything; the Dragonborn may leave the conversation or choose to brawl her. Talking to Talen-Jei, a male Argonian and Keerava's lover, will reveal information about Keerava's family's farm in Morrowind. Going back to Keerava and threatening to visit the farm will convince her to pay the owed gold. If she is visited third after dealing with Bersi and Haelga, she will pay up without having to use the threat against her.

Bersi Honey-Hand's debt in The Pawned Prawn

Upon entering the Pawned Prawn, one will be greeted by Bersi Honey-Hand. Talking to him and bringing up his debt will result in him becoming defensive. One can choose to either walk away from the conversation or brawl him for the gold. If one chooses to walk away, they can then destroy Bersi's dwarven urn under the window. After it has been destroyed, he will agree to pay. If he is visited third, he will immediately pay up without having to destroy the urn or brawl him for it after learning of what happened with Haelga and Keerava.

Haelga's debt in Haelga's Bunkhouse

Upon entering Haelga's Bunkhouse, the Dragonborn will be rudely greeted. Speaking to Haelga and bringing up her debt will make her angry. The Dragonborn can either walk away or brawl her. If one chooses to walk away, Haelga responds by saying that she will not pay. To solve this, in the right corner is a statue of Dibella, the goddess which Haelga devoutly worships. Stealing and presenting the statue to her will result in Haelga begging the Dragonborn to not damage the statue and agreeing to pay. The Dragonborn can also commit a crime that forces them to go to jail, and talk to her afterwards. She will ask the Dragonborn to stop committing crimes and will agree to pay. If she is visited third after dealing with Bersi and Keerava, she will pay up without a fuss and needing to steal her statue to bribe her.

Getting back to Brynjolf

Once the debts have been collected, return to Brynjolf in the Ragged Flagon. He will invite the Dragonborn to follow him to the cistern, where the Guildmaster, Mercer Frey, will give the next quest, "Loud and Clear," and welcome the Dragonborn to the guild.

Rewards

After completing the quest and accepting the follow up, "Loud and Clear," a few perks are gained:

• Membership into the Thieves Guild.
• Speak with Tonilia in the Ragged Flagon to receive the Thieves Guild Armor.
• Tonilia becomes available as a fence for selling stolen goods.
• If one collects from Haelga last, her unique statue of Dibella can be stolen again. It will no longer be marked as a quest item, so it can freely be stored or sold.
• Vex and Delvin will be available to speak to for radiant quests/jobs to help rebuild the Thieves Guild's influence in Skyrim, and after that, as an easy way to earn extra gold at any time.

Journal

Taking Care of Business – TG01
ID	Journal Entry
10	Brynjolf has promised me more work if I'm able to locate him at a tavern called the Ragged Flagon. Judging from the dangerous nature of its location, it seems as though he's having me perform some type of initiation, but I can't be certain. Objective 10: Locate Brynjolf at the Ragged Flagon
20	After successfully locating the Ragged Flagon, Brynjolf has given me a new assignment. Three business owners in Riften are proving to be a thorn in his side and I'm supposed to teach them the error of their ways. I should speak to Brynjolf about these townspeople in the event that they prove to be as stubborn as I'm expecting them to be. Objective 20: Collect Keerava's debt Objective 21: (Optional) Use Talen-Jei to get to Keerava Objective 30: Collect Bersi Honey-Hand's debt Objective 31: (Optional) Smash Bersi's prized Dwarven Urn Objective 40: Collect Haelga's debt Objective 41: (Optional) Steal Haelga's Statue of Dibella
50	Objective 50: Return to Brynjolf
200	I've dealt with the three troublesome business owners in Riften as Brynjolf had specified. Perhaps now that I've proven my worth to Brynjolf, I can discover more about this mysterious organization that he represents. Quest completed

Bugs

This section contains bugs related to Taking Care of Business. Before adding a bug to this list, consider the following: Please reload an old save to confirm if the bug is still happening. If the bug is still occurring, please post the bug report with the appropriate system template  360  /  XB1  ,  PS3  /  PS4  ,  PC  /  MAC  ,  NX  /  PS5  ,  XS  , depending on which platform(s) the bug has been encountered on. Be descriptive when listing the bug and fixes, but avoid having conversations in the description and/or using first-person anecdotes: such discussions belong on the appropriate forum board.

Click to show

During this quest, it is possible that, after failing to collect Keerava's debt during the speech options, she will run off and disappear. To fix this, reload from an autosave. If the brawl option is selected, the Dragonborn's opponent may draw a dagger and attack. This usually only happens with the first character being shaken down. Lowering one's fists will stop the attack and the brawl can be restarted. However, if this occurs with Keerava, bystanders will kill her immediately, causing the quest to be blocked from further progression. Loading a previous save and selecting Bersi Honey-Hand as the first encounter may fix this. One must be sure that no one other than his wife are in the shop, as she will also attack, but will stop along with Bersi when one's fists are put down. Brynjolf may continue to stand in the stall in the same manner as during the quest "A Chance Arrangement." To fix this, clear the system cache. This can also be resolved by going to the Ragged Flagon and using the console command player.placeatme 1b07d. This will put him in front of the Dragonborn and allow the quest to progress. Alternatively, punching Brynjolf while unarmed once and immediately stopping may fix this. The Dragonborn may also have to open the secret entrance to the cistern by simply going through the fake storage closet and opening the hatch to Riften, then pulling the lever. One might also have to wait for him to enter the cistern. After waiting for an hour, the quest will continue normally. If hitting him causes him to become hostile, one should lead him to the entrance of the Ratway, then beat him down, unequip a weapon and heal him using Healing Hands. After being healed, he will no longer be hostile. To get him through the door, initiate conversation and then exit before he finishes talking. Then, enter the Ratway and repeat to get him to follow the Dragonborn to the Ragged Flagon. Another alternative way for the Dragonborn to do this is to sprint into Brynjolf and make him step back. Repeat until he is at the door to the cistern, then open the door. Once the door is opened, one will need to immediately talk to Brynjolf, which will make him appear in the Ratway. Afterwards, punch him once and proceed to run to the Ragged Flagon and enter the bar. Once in the bar, use Unrelenting Force to knock him down. If this does not work, the Dragonborn will need to raise and then lower their fists, then quickly talk to him. Also solved by punching Brynjolf out of sight from a guard, then attacking a townsmember where a guard can see the Dragonborn. Upon entering the cistern after Brynjolf asks the Dragonborn to follow him, the thieves inside may become hostile and attack. To fix this, once Brynjolf has told the Dragonborn to follow him, use the console command setstage TG03 10 to skip the quest "Loud and Clear" and begin "Dampened Spirits." However, if the guild members continue to attack, use the command player.addfac 29da9 1. This will make the Dragonborn a member of the Thieves Guild.  360   When the Dragonborn is walking with Brynjolf at the end of the quest, the cistern door may be locked. Reloading fixes this. The quest "Rescue Mission" previously prevented this quest from being completed. As of Skyrim Patch 1.5, this problem is resolved. While collecting Keerava's debt, it is possible to choose an option to say that it does not matter for the Dragonborn to collect the debt. Once the Dragonborn exits and talks to her again, the dialogue bar will not appear, making it impossible for the quest to be finished. Sometimes, likely due to discovering the Ragged Flagon beforehand, the Dragonborn will be considered as a trespasser upon entering the cistern, thus rendering it impossible to complete the quest.  360   After the quest, Bersi Honey-Hand will not mention about the debt, as if it had never happened.  PS3   Too long of a delay after killing Haelga and not giving Brynjolf the owed debt can effectively void that section of the quest. The only solution found is to load an earlier save file. After completing "A Chance Arrangement" Brynjolf asks the player to find him in the Ragged Flagon, but he is nowhere to be found there. When he is found somewhere else and interacted, he only says "hmm?" This might happen if Drifa is missing/killed. She may have died due to vampire attack. DG  PC (Fix:)   Going to Riften, then using console commands Prid 00019DCF and moveto player, brings her near the Dragonborn. Finally using recycleactor console command should fix the bug and Brynjolf should be at the mentioned location.

Appearances

• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim