After getting robbed and hoodwinked by a trio of criminals, a highlander finds an ingenious way to exact his revenge.

North Caucasus, XIX century. Abrek-Ossetian Jigo learns that only two men remain in his family — he and his nephew Akhsar. The highlander decides to take revenge on the Dudarov’s family, whose representative killed his brother. However, the difficult financial situation forces Jigo to go to Mozdok, where he is going to exchange cheese for grain with his kunak, the Terek Cossack Stepan. He loads the cart and, together with his nephew, goes to the Russian fortress.

During the battle with the Nazis, Lieutenant Soslan was shell-shocked and captured. A funeral comes home. But he escaped from captivity and is hiding in the attic of his home.

This historic drama is set in an Ossetian village in the 17th century. The film’s main hero is Chermen. An illegitimate son, Chermen is striving to assert his dignity. He is opposed by Dacco, the elder of the Aldar clan, in whose village Chermen lives. Guided by mercenary motives, Dacco strikes a deal with Prince Tsarai. Together, they rob people and then divide the loot between themselves. By some chance, Chermen learns of the deal and informs his friends about it. At first, he thinks that no one in the Aldar village would believe him, the bastard, and that the plot would remain unexposed. But the friends accept the challenge.