In a county town S***, which looks like a forgotten corner of the Empire, the Petrograd lieutenant Nathan Titov is demoted and sent there as punishment—so no calm provincial life is in store. On a headland by the dam, they discover the body of a young woman in an unusual pose. Together with an unusual partner who has the ability to control the essence of things, Titov must unravel a complicated case in which crime, magic, and long-kept secrets intersect.