Option #1: Someone Has Hassled The Hoff

The Stranger mentioned that one of his choices—the Halfling climber known as Hugo Hoff—was holed up in an Oxenfurt house close to the confusingly-named Novigrad Gate. Make haste for Oxenfurt, head to the stone dwelling close to the gate, and knock on the door. There’s no answer. But there’s evidence of scratching and blood on the porch. Not good.

Scan the porch beam to uncover blood; someone knocked their head on it. Close by are footprints. Follow them along the main thoroughfare in a roughly south-easterly direction, and down to the water’s edge. A trio of bandits aren’t happy you’ve wandered by; defeat all three of them. You sense Hugo is in trouble.

Use your Witcher Senses and check the nearby rowboat, still moist and used recently. The trail ends at the water’s edge, but a quick looting of one of the bandits revealed a letter. It seems Hugo ran into a little bit of trouble, and has been taught a permanent lesson. Dive into the river, swimming south (and optionally using your Witcher Senses to pinpoint Hugo from the surface), and dive down to inspect the halfling, who’s sleeping with the fishes. This leaves you no option but to attempt to recruit Eveline Gallo.