This is my 2nd play-through, but I need a tip here 'cause I can't remember how I played this portion of the game previously. I'm trying to secure the sigil, but I was not successful for some reason in keeping William alive to get the key for the mine to finish up HOE Bound. I have all the other things I need.

I've been fooling around in Broken Valley for a very long time and then took a look at my quest failures and see that I failed The Guild w/o a Master which means Wm died. Is there another way to secure the key I need to continue on or is this a lost cause making me backtrack. A shove in the right direction would be greatly appreciated.