At some point during a playthrough of The Forgotten City, players will come across the assassin waiting for them by the baths. If not stopped, he will eventually break the Golden Rule, so players must work out how to stop him in a new loop.
When consulting the journal, all it says is that players must "get creative" to deal with the problem. Thankfully, the solution doesn't actually take that long, and solving the unique puzzle results in acquiring the bow, and eventually the Golden Bow in The Forgotten City.
How to Stop the Assassin in The Forgotten City
To stop the assassin in The Forgotten City, players must ensure that Fabia does not enter the shrine she wants to hide in. Get her to wait in the bakery instead while players talk with the assassin. This can be accomplished by witnessing her death once in a previous loop, or reading the note outside the shrine before talking to her.
Now, when players talk to the assassin, they can direct him to the dangerous shrine. It will collapse on him, and players can now pick up the items in his possession, including the bow in The Forgotten City. Killing him in this indirect way will not break the Golden Rule, and it will only need to be done once.
In future time loops in The Forgotten City, players can instead tell Galerius to stop the assassin and save Fabia, as the Bow will stay in the inventory for the rest of the current playthrough. It can then be used to get the Golden Bow. It's important to instruct Galerius to save Fabia during the final time loop of the indie title if players wish to get the best possible ending.
Stopping the assassin does not complete the quest to find the person who is going to break the Golden Rule, however. There are still more questlines to experience after the enemy has been dealt with. Although getting the Golden Bow will help get three of the four endings, including the best ending in The Forgotten City.
To acquire the key item, talk to Desius at the nearby marketplace after picking up the regular bow. Once his quest has been completed, players will then be able to use the Golden Bow on algae in the water and vines in The Forgotten City during any loop, as it will also stay in the inventory. These vines lead to locked areas and hard-to-reach treasure.
The Forgotten City is out now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.