Basim pursues the Branching Out questline after completing the Old Wounds mission and meeting with Nehal. This is part of the The Harbormaster Investigation in AC Mirage and starts as a sub-case of “An Old Friend” Investigation. Basim reunites with his long-lost friend, Kong, at the Bazaar.
The Harbormaster Investigation starts with you helping Kong get back his belongings. After getting information about him through different clues, you are tasked to assassinate the Harbormaster. This guide will provide a complete walkthrough of the objectives involved in this investigation.
An Old Friend Quest
At the start of the Breaching Out quest, you will head to the Assassin’s Bureau to discuss the situation in the Karkh region.
Roshan will inform you about an influential figure who forcefully controls things in the district. When the conversation ends, she asks you to meet her outside for some important business.
As you follow Roshan through the Karkh streets, she presents you with two options:
- Meet your old friend
- Investigate merchant’s troubles in the Bazaar [Of Oil and Taxes Investigation]
We will go with the first option for this walkthrough and visit an old friend. By doing this, you will see a new quest marker on your map.
Keep following the marker by running toward the northwest of the Bazaar. At the end of your path, you will see a tea merchant arguing with a native salesperson at his stall.
Wait for the arguments to stop, then approach the merchant with a familiar face. Kong, the merchant, will greet you excitedly and take you to his stall for further friendly conversation. As expected, he will ask you for a favor before informing you about goods being seized in the area.
Coin, Corruption, and Tea Walkthrough
You must start searching for his confiscated crate of tea leaves at Kong’s request in the Harbormaster Investigation in AC Mirage. Go to the outpost building pointed out by Kong at the end of the street. Use your Eagle Vision to spot any threats inside the building. You will see four guards inside.
You can assassinate them one by one and reduce your headaches. The tea crate is on the second floor, with one open window on the opposite side of the outpost. Use your Eagle Vision to ensure no guard is on the second floor, and then head inside through the window. This will save you the trouble of engaging in any fight in the area.
Approach the moveable shelf on the right and pull it to reach the area behind it. Kong’s crate of leaves will be placed along with other goods there. Unbar the door that leads outside, carry the crate on your shoulders, and jump down on the street from the wooden landing.
Retrieve Kong’s tea leaves and put them in the storeroom
Return the tea leaves to Kong and put the crate in the storeroom, where he pointed out. Once the task is done, you can ask Kong if he can help you attend the Grand Auction. He happily agrees but on one more condition. You will have to retrieve his wares from a Warehouse.
Find the Warehouse (Case 1)
Start your journey by heading to the east gate of Karkh, which leads out of Baghdad. The warehouse is near some cranes visible from a high vantage point. As you reach the building beside the crane, climb to have a clear view of the surroundings.
There are three clues we need to find about the Harbormaster. Each clue unfolds some part of his plans and closer us to know him better.
Find information about the Harbormaster
March toward the other side of the building to spot a guard on the balcony. Jump down to assassinate him, then enter the building’s upper floor from the open doorway. By using your Eagle Vision, you can see that a guard is present on the lower floor. You will also see a letter glowing in orange beside the guard.
Now, carefully walk through the stairs and remove the guard. Read the letter on the desk to get your first clue about the Harbormaster. The instructions in the letter say that all guards have to search for every piece of foreign goods to obtain a special Chinese Hairpin.
Return to the upper floor and use the door opposite the entryway we used to enter the building. Drop down on the landing ahead to reach the next building. Assassinate the guard on the upper floor and use the window in this room to come outside the building. Climb the roof to get to the rope and use it to reach the crane on the other end. Kill the guard there before entering the building on his left.
A guard is standing on the right in this room. Kill him, and then read the letter to find the second clue. This clue reveals that the goods confiscated from different merchants are not to be released before they are thoroughly checked.
Return to the previous building’s roof using the same rope path from the crane. Look to your left to spot a red tent. The third and final clue is in a Sweetly Scented Letter under this tent. Drop down from the roof and approach the desk to read the letter. You will find that the Harbormaster’s name is Al-Kullulu, who appears to be a top member of The Order.
Assassinate the Harbormaster
With all clues uncovered and the identity of the Harbormaster unveiled, it’s time to confront him at his Warehouse. Open your world map for a new quest marker showing the Harbormaster’s location. If you somehow lose the marker, you can use your Eagle Eye to see further locations, specifically The Harbor Camp in Sharqiyah.
Keep a guard on the next journey, as this area is Restricted. Your Eagle Vision will show you the position of all guards in the area and the Harbormaster’s position. He will be chilling alongside his guards on the topmost floor of the building at the shore’s starting point.
Use the two blocks on the building’s wall to climb to the top, but don’t step on the floor yet. Wait for the other guard to walk away, and then silently take out the one standing near the wooden cover.
Keep hiding behind the cover until the second guard walks toward you. When the right time comes, kill him and drag him to the cover to avoid any unwanted attention. Now, sneak behind the third guard to your right while he is looking to the other side. Then, prepare yourself to do the final deed.
Use the mechanical lift to take a good jump and reach the topmost floor. Al-Kullulu will be standing in the middle of his loyal guards, unaware of your arrival. Assassinate the Harbormaster and immediately leave the site to save yourself from ambush.
Return to Kong
Once you are done with the Harbormaster, return to Kong’s stall and give him his wares back. If you’ve forgotten where it is, open your world map and locate the new quest marker. After returning his wares, Kong will invite you to the Grand Auction. With that, you can now attend the auction and see what that ancient hairpin is all about. This will complete the Harbormaster Investigation in AC Mirage.
