Inez is a young orphan girl with a special gift that allows her to communicate with all creatures. A great destiny awaits her, of which she is yet unaware. As the story opens, Inez is traveling to the country's capital with an old wizard named Kaager and a faithful dog named Zode. The country is about to plunge into its first winter in one hundred years and ominous signs abound concerning the demon-race's return, threatening the country's fragile peace. The demon-race had been biding its time ever since an ancient war drove it into hiding. On the way, Inez is exposed to demon-poison. Zode absorbs the poison from her body at the risk of his own life, and falls into eternal sleep. At the capital, Inez meets the emperor, a cold and withdrawn man suffering under the weight of his responsibility for the country. He is at first skeptical about the little girl's ability to take on such a difficult mission, but becomes convinced of her power when she manages to read his heart. He confers on her an amulet containing the essence of a guardian dragon. Her mission is to venture out of the human territory and use this amulet to bring back the dragon, without which the country is bound to collapse in its next confrontation with the demon-race. The only one to accompany her on this dangerous mission is Yulan, a mysterious member of the emperor's court. He is not fully human, but his true identity remains veiled. She is also followed by a dark wizard named Kyrette, whose fate is somehow connected to the amulet Inez carries.