From the polotsk prince who died fighting the crusaders, the wizard Vadim Sokol learns of an ancient inheritance, of the paths of Trajan, and sets out to search for them. He intends to find a way onto the enchanted paths and gain new knowledge. But that is not the most important thing. The Venedian alliance needs allies, and Vadim meets the Grand Prince Izyaslav, who plans to become the first Russian tsar. However, achieving this is not easy. The Roman emperor does not want to strengthen Rus, and Prince Yuriy Dolgoruky plans to seize Kyiv and brings the Cumans into Rus.
A cruel war begins, and Vadim Sokol joins it, because there is no other way. He is obliged to support those who in the future may help the Venedians. And again, fate brings him together with his long-standing enemies—the paladins of Bernard from Clairvaux.