So I think i accidentally softlocked myself into not being able to progress with Bernard. I was speed running through the game again to get back to where I was because I accidentally saved over my main file, and in doing so, forgot about the bandit hunting quest and finished the bandit side story. Now no bandits are spawning at the tracks. Is there any way for me to progress
Just go to the bandit camp and get back to the map. Now if you hover camp icon you should see their morale. It's dropping every day, unless you do some quests or bribing. If morale is lower than 25 then the bandits starts attacking again. I think sparring should work too, as it counts as a normal fight.