The twenty-first birthday is the day when boys and girls in America enter adulthood. I don’t live in America—in Russia. But otherwise everything is the same. Except that instead of full civil rights, I received a sword, a hamster and a dragon as a gift. And also the opportunity to roam between worlds. And also a bunch of problems, responsibilities and fanatics of a non-existent order who want to solemnly sacrifice my carcass for a good cause. Perhaps something else... haven't figured it out yet. One thing is clear. The first step is taken from the threshold - and no matter how many worlds I visit, my home is here on Earth. Here will be the core of my clan, and the heart of the Empire.