Nathaniel is a young magician adopted by Arthur Underwood, an unimportant magician in the internal affairs ministry, which attempts to deal with, among other things, the “resistance”, a group of non-magicians, or “commoners” who seek to overthrow the magician government of Britain. Underwood is despised by his apprentice for his lack of skill, praise and for his inflated view of himself, must of all though, Nathaniel dislikes him for his failure to protect him from Simon Lovelace, a important Magician who had humiliated Nathaniel.