Returning to Saint Petersburg after an extended exile, the dashing Yakovlev, a retired military officer, makes a cushty residing by successful different individuals's duels. An enigmatic, centered, and intensely expert skilled, he leaves a path of lifeless our bodies behind him as he swirls by way of well mannered society, often referred to as upon to wield a pistol as a surrogate in duels at daybreak. However when Yakovlev meets the naïve younger Prince Tuchov and his lovely sister, Princess Martha, the usually cold-hearted mercenary is stunned by hitherto undetected feelings. What transpires uncovers a sequence of revelations about his previous and his current self.