St. Petersburg, 1860. The attack killed a member of the royal family. A few days later, Fyodor Dostoevsky in a psychiatric clinic meets a young man. Guziev admits to the writer that he is a member of a terrorist group that committed the murder, and that the organization is planning new attacks. The young man gives Dostoevsky the address of Alexandra, a team leader, begging the writer to help stop the terror. Pursued by abrupt onsets of epilepsy, creditors and publishers, Dostoevsky days dictates to Anna Grigoryevna new chapters of "The Player" and at nights leaves no attempts to find the leader of the organization. "You think you're writing a novel, directed against the revolution," - inspector Pavlovich says to Dostoevsky. "But, in fact, your book is far more provocative than all revolutionary manifestos".