Crimson Desert: How To Complete "Close Threat" (All Correct Answers)

2 hours ago 8

Speaking with the goblin Shakatu in Crimson Desert.

Published Mar 26, 2026, 2:00 PM EDT

Lee D’Amato is a writer born, raised, and based in Queens, New York. With collective thousands of hours in games like Final Fantasy, Metal Gear, Elden Ring, and The Legend of Zelda, he's now writes game features, guides, and reviews for Screen Rant, but has covered a wide range of topics, including ancient history, affordable travel, and overall health.

Crimson Desert's "Close Threat" is a prime example of one of the most frustrating types of quests you'll encounter in the game. First, you'll need to zip around a deceptively large corner of the map, investigating less-than-intuitively labeled clues. You'll need to absorb and compartmentalize a lot of information quickly, then report it accurately by navigating a dialogue tree.

Doing forensic accounting for a goblin merchant's guild isn't terribly exciting, and the unskippable dialogue and contradictory evidence slows the pace to a crawl. Below, we'll outline all the relevant evidence you must collect before returning to Shakatu, and the correct dialogue options you'll need to choose to complete the quest without a hitch, and move on with the main story of Crimson Desert.

All Investigation Targets & Clues In "Troubled Shakatu"

Who & What To Investigate

Below is a table containing all the investigation targets in "Troubled Shakatu," the clue-gathering stage of the "Extinguishing the Lost Flames" questline. You'll have to speak to each of these NPCs, then find certain clues to move onto the next step.

The clues relevant to your investigation are bolded in the table below. Each location also includes red herrings, which you can inspect if you want to be thorough, but they won't prove anything in your conversation with Shakatu.

Suspect

Location

Clue(s)

Blique, the Horse Manager	Bloomwood Ranch	All in the building behind Blique: Horse Hire Ledger Feed Ledger Old Saddle
Skrav, the Trade Manager	Goldleaf Trading Post	Trade Schedule Log (on a crate under the tent) Lantern (in the center of the trading post) Stacks of crates (in the center of the trading post)
Nogle, the Trade Manager	Goldleaf Guildhouse	Tavern Ledger (under the tarp) Fee Notice (under the tarp) Broken barrel (just west of the tarp)
Grimzle, the Ledger Manager	Coalvale Workshop	Proof of Stay (inside the small shed in front of Grimzle) Empty Ledger (in the larger building behind Grimzle) Merchant Delivery Seal (in the larger building behind Grimzle)
Kathan, the Goldleaf Private Soldier	Camp northwest of Goldleaf Guildhouse	Guard's Report (on a crate near the tent) Guard's Letter (on a crate near the anvil) Damaged Wagon (a short distance west)

Once you've investigated all of the above and completed the requisite subquests, return to Shakatu in the Goldleaf Guildhouse and speak with him to initiate the final phase of your investigation.

All Dialogue Choices In "Close Threat"

Correct Answers For Shakatu

The Shakatu dialogue menu in Crimson Desert.

During your conversation with Shakatu, you'll be confronted with this menu. The table below describes the correct answers to each of his questions, which, no surprise here, mirror the relevant clues we identified above.

Blique's Testimony

Skrav's Testimony

Nogle's Testimony

Grimzle's Testimony

Kathan's Testimony

Horse Hire Ledger

Trade Schedule Log

Tavern Ledger

Proof of Stay

Guard's Report

Once you've given all the correct answers, Shakatu will do the deduction, and send you after the culprit, which will lead to a brief and relatively easy boss fight. With that, you can move on and see the rest of what Crimson Desert's campaign has to offer.