Black Knight,
You can, of course, do Samurai quest now - but it is dangerous becouse of Mantraps!
The way that worked for me was as follows: RUN all the way to Castle ruins, take care of Samurai baton and RUN all the way back. No fighting, only running. But I did it during my second W&W gameplaying, when I knew where to run and how the map looked.
Mantraps are really a pain, you know (or will know
)
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Sincerely Yours,
Tanda