The 3rd "Hob Scourge" book finds Maxim showing promise of a great talent that he is too young to manage alone. The search for a teacher and a way to shape his talent becomes urgent when Levosta finds a loophole in his treaty with the humans and uses it to plot revenge against newlywed Sergei. The family lawyer's obsession with removing the demon-struck scar from his head plays into the plot.