It is evening, children are gathered around the fire, and the old miller begins to tell them a fairy tale. In his tale, Mykola, a bursak, goes to Mr. Adam to teach his daughter Khrystyna to read and write. But on the way to the manor, Mykola learns that the village has been invaded by evil spirits, werewolves, and air-breathers, and that Mr. Adam himself is in captivity. Mykola and Khrystyna decide to free the prisoners and the land from evil spirits, but they will have to go through many trials.

At first playfully, and then seriously, the heroine falls in love with her friend's husband, who fights for social justice. Then there will be an arrest, exhausting interrogations of a police officer fascinated by her, involvement in the death of her lover. And that's not all...