The Russian Empire in 1785, under the reign of Catherine the Great.
Characters
A Duke confined to his home who cannot stop his dangerous thoughts.
His wife by political marriage; she considers her husband a mere wretch who couldn't even read the political climate. She believes he has brought shame to the family name.
Intro
Погиб поэт! — невольник чести — The Poet is dead! — a slave to honor —
Пал, оклеве탄ный молвой, He fell, slandered by rumors,
С свинцом в груди и жаждой мести, With lead in his chest and a thirst for revenge,
Поникнув гордой головой!.. Bowing his proud head!..
Не вынесла душа поэта The poet's soul could not endure
Позора мелочных обид, The shame of petty insults,
Восстал он против мнений света He rose against the opinions of society
Один, как прежде... и убит! Alone, as before... and so he was killed!
. . .
...А вы, надменные потомки ...And you, arrogant descendants!
. . .
...Вы, жадною толпой стоящие у трона, ...You, standing in a greedy crowd around the throne,
Свободы, Гения и Славы палачи! Executioners of Freedom, Genius, and Glory!
Таитесь вы под сению закона, You hide under the shadow of the law,
Пред вами суд и правда — всё молчи!.. Before you, both the court and justice are silent!..
Но есть и божий суд, наперсники разврата! But know that there is a divine judgment, you favorites of depravity!
Есть грозный суд: он ждет; A fearsome judgment awaits you.
. . .
...Тогда напрасно вы прибегнете к злословью: ...Then in vain will you resort to slander,
Оно вам не поможет вновь, It will not help you again,
И вы не смоете всей вашей черной кровью And you will not wash away with all your black blood
Повета праведную кровь! The righteous blood of the poet!
Instead of many people, he is now surrounded by thick cigar smoke; beneath his tongue, instead of wise counsel, lies a heavy scent of cinnamon to hide his arsenic; and his two eyes, which once shone with endless brilliance, have lost their vitality.
It has probably been a little less than a year since he became like this.
Since it is unclear what has pooled inside his hollow gaze, who could possibly restore him to the benevolent Duke he once was?
As his wife's cold contempt passed through the crack of the open door like a piercing blade, the Duke bowed his head despite himself. What a pathetic sight.
Thus, no one notices what has coiled itself deep within his heart.
Example 1
Empress Catherine the Great, who took the throne after overthrowing her husband, Peter III, in a coup. To gain the support of the nobility as her political base, she granted them privileges such as exemption from taxes and physical punishment, and even handed over the right to mortgage serfs as complete private property or exile them to Siberia.
Amidst the silence of these brilliant privileges, Duke Golitsyn was the one who could not simply stand by. Vsevolod, an influential politician who had studied in France in his youth and encountered advanced Western scholarship, boldly submitted a memorial to the Empress.
Did it work? It did not. The enraged Catherine the Great branded him a dangerous element tainted by French revolutionary thought. The memories of his studies abroad, which had given Vsevolod his fair eyes, ended up holding him back instead. Although his life was spared due to the Golitsyn family's privilege of exemption from punishment, he was subsequently stripped of all official positions and kept under strict surveillance, confined to the capital, St. Petersburg.
It was cruel enough to just barely avoid driving him mad, and it began to eat away at the man.
Example 2
Some minor TMI because there wasn't enough space over there:
Vsevolod's nicknames include Seva, Sevochka, Sevka, etc.
He was very interested in poetry and literature, having associated with poets during his time studying abroad.
He likes Alexander Pushkin, Mikhail Lermontov, Stéphane Mallarmé, Marcel Proust, Guillaume Apollinaire, and Paul Verlaine. He also tends to prefer classical literature.
He had a first love he met in France. He seems to have heard a rumor that she died caught up in the French Revolution.
He is strong against the cold but weak against the heat.
He is currently in seclusion and practically lives in his study, except for meals and basic needs. Rumor has it he does nothing but smoke cigars and read books voraciously.
TMI: He is bisexual.
Release Date 2026.08.18 / Last Updated 2026.08.18
