Most quests in Stardew Valley only appear in your Journal when you’ve accepted them, but some will appear after cutscenes. ‘A Winter Mystery’ is one of these quests, and the steps to complete it aren’t exactly clear. 

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How to begin ‘A Winter Mystery’  in Stardew Valley

Screenshot by Destructoid

Unlike some other quests that require you to build relationships or complete certain objectives, A Winter Mystery is a quest that is easy to unlock. All you need to do is leave your farm during the Winter and head to the Bus Stop between 6 a.m. and 4 p.m.

If you do, you may encounter a shadowy figure. He’s known, at this point, as ‘The Shadow Guy’, and he’ll run away as soon as you see him. Now you need to find him, but Pelican Town is a pretty big place to search. Thankfully, there’s a trail of footprints to follow.

How to complete ‘A Winter Mystery’ in Stardew Valley

Screenshot by Destructoid

To complete ‘A Winter Mystery’, head into town and up to where the Community Center is. Here, you’ll see the footprints leading into the bush shown above. 

Interacting with this bush will cause the Shadow Guy to jump out and apologize for stealing, because it turns out he’s quite the little thief. He’ll go on to give you the Magnifying Glass, which is a very useful tool, and the ‘A Winter Mystery’ quest will be complete. 

How to use the Magnifying Glass in Stardew Valley

Screenshot by Destructoid

You don’t actually use the Magnifying Glass in Stardew Valley, but now that you have it, you’ll be able to gather Secret Notes. These Notes can drop while undertaking different activities, and provide useful information, or can lead to secret items or rare interactions.

Secret Notes have a specific drop rate from different activities:

ActivityDrop rateRemoving weeds0.9%Killing monsters3.3%Chopping trees0.5%Fishing8%Artifact Spots11%Breaking stones0.75%Removing:
– Large Stumps
– Large Logs
– Meteorites
– Boulders5%Destroying a Giant Crop100%

Once you’ve found a note, you’ll need to equip it in your hotbar and then use it in the same way that you consume food, which will reveal the secrets within. You can check any previously opened notes in the Secret Notes tab of the Collections menu. 

Most of the Secret Notes contain information which will help you figure out the loved gifts for each villager, although some of them contain maps guiding you to secret items such as a Junimo Plush.

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