Julius, who devours comic books and vampire stories, has a lively imagination. Julius meets Arnold Cautious, who lives in an abandoned house on the outskirts of town and introduces himself as a degenerated, strawberry juice-drinking vampire. Julius and Cautious become friends. Together they try to make the Lucky Stone, the recipe for which is in Cautious' grandmother's secret recipe book. Julius wants to give the stone to his estranged parents so they can rediscover their common happiness. Julius and Arnold's laboratory attempts to make the Lucky Stone falter badly time and time again, but they stubbornly pursue their quest for happiness.

The love story of sixteen-year-old Arturs is interrupted by the First World War. After losing his mother and his home, he finds some consolation in joining the army, because this is the first time national battalions are allowed in the Russian Empire. But war is nothing like Arturs imagined – no glory, no fairness. It is brutal and painful. Arturs is now completely alone as war takes the lives of his father and brother. Also, no progress is made in the promised quick resolution of the war and timely return home. Within the notion that only he alone cares about returning home and that his homeland is just a playground for other nations, Arturs finds strength for the final battle and eventually returns home to start everything from scratch, just like his newly born country.