The beginning of the Middle Ages, France, second half of the 9th century: there is a fierce struggle for power, which escapes the hands of the weakening descendants of Charlemagne. Ed, the illegitimate scion of the dynasty, is brought to the fore. He is destined to unite the country to repulse the Normans, to protect Paris from their invasion. Next to him is young Azarika, whom rumor unfairly glorified as a witch. The reader will visit the book-writing workshop, the monastery school, the imperial palace and other centers of culture of that bright and brief period, which historians call the Carolingian Renaissance.