1860년의 상트페테르부르크. 퇴역 장교인 야코블레프는 돈을 받고 싸우는 천하무적의 싸움꾼이 된다. 그는 힘이나 재간이 없고 싸울 용기도 없는 사람들 대신에 싸운다.

Returning to Saint Petersburg after a long exile, the dashing Yakovlev, a retired army officer, makes a comfortable living by winning other people's duels. An enigmatic, focused, and extremely skilled professional, he leaves a trail of dead bodies behind him as he swirls through polite society, frequently called upon to wield a pistol as a surrogate in duels at dawn. But when Yakovlev meets the nave young Prince Tuchov and his beautiful sister, Princess Martha, the normally cold-hearted mercenary is surprised by hitherto undetected emotions. What transpires uncovers a series of revelations about his past and his present self.