Sasha Nerodova cannot boast of a happy present. The last person related to her by blood has recently passed away, an unfinished university, a rented apartment and complete uncertainty in life. The only joys are the cat and the opportunity to use the rest of their savings to unwind at least a little at a rock festival. A chance meeting reveals the truth about the existence of a world beyond the familiar, a world in which the Affected, possessing supernatural abilities, have been living among people for centuries, and for centuries solving their own problems, familiar and Familiar to every person, and ultimately unfair accusations force Sasha, who has barely understood the new present, to go to a community of magicians living outside the law. But even there everything is not as good as it seems at first glance.