Red Dead Redemption 2 is a long game. Its world is huge and its narrative is sprawling to an epic degree. Don't be fooled by the fact that it is divided up into six chapters. Each one is extremely beefy and the main story alone can take around 50 hours to complete. How else would the writers be able to get so many well-drawn character studies in a single narrative?
That runtime isn't even accounting for the numerous side stories the player can engage with throughout the wild west. There are tons of them and each is worth looking into not just for whatever rewards Arthur Morgan might get, but for the little narrative nuggets of gold as well. There are lots of big moments in Red Dead Redemption 2, but some of the smallest are the most impactful. One the best is the quest, "Do Not Seek Absolution," although it can be easy to miss. This guide will cover how to unlock that mission.
Unlocking Do Not Seek Absolution in Red Dead Redemption 2
This series of quests cannot be started until Chapter 5 and after the "A Fork in the Road" mission—when Arthur, in Saint Denis, learns he has contracted tuberculosis— is completed. "A Fork in the Road" is a mandatory mission, but there is one other requirement the player will need to meet in order for "Do Not Seek Absolution" to unlock: Arthur will need to have an honorable reputation.
Specifically, Arthur will need an honor rank of at least +4 (the honor scale goes from -8 to +8) for the mission to become available. If the player does not have the appropriate honor rank, they should re-evaluate their choices and game-play practices and start doing some honorable things. Saying hi to NPCs will give small boosts to honor, as will donating to the camp and doing good deeds out in the world. The "Do Not Seek Absolution" questline can be begun in Chapter 6 as well; during Chapter 6, Arthur gets an extra 50% honor for every honorable action he does. Waiting to take advantage of this stat boost will make it easier to get Arthur's honor level up—if it's not already there—and will then open up the quest.
Once the player has a high enough honor rank, they will see an icon for Edith Downes in Annesburg (also seen on the map above). If Arthur goes there and speaks with her, he will then be able to begin the mission and see what happened to the family of the man from whom he contracted tuberculosis in the first place.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is available on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC