 The novel tells a story of a fictional Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth soldier and noble Andrzej Kmicic and shows a panorama of the Commonwealth during its historical period of the Deluge, which was a part of the Northern Wars.Chapters I – V

The novel begins with a description of the families living in and around the district of Rossyeni, the oldest and most powerful of which are the Billeviches.Aleksandra Billevich, daughter of the chief hunter of Upita, has been orphaned and left in the care of the noble families.