Zift

Moth falls in love with Ada during his school days in Sofia, laying the emotional groundwork for his later decisions. Ada, nicknamed 'Mantis', becomes a central figure in his life. This romance foreshadows the trouble and choices he will face as the plot unfolds.

Out of a desire for money, Moth agrees to work with his shady neighbor Slug to steal the black diamond from Vlad the Bijou's house. They hatch a carefully planned burglary that kicks off the central conflict of the story. The scheme misfires, setting Moth on a collision course with the crime's consequences.

The robbery ends in failure: Moth is wounded by Vlad and captured by the police while Slug escapes. Vlad the Bijou is killed by Slug, and the diamond's existence remains unknown. The case effectively collapses around Moth, sending him to prison.

In Sofia prison, Moth befriends Van Wurst the Eye, an older, boxing-minded inmate. Van Wurst shares his hard-edged philosophy of life and even his belief in the destructive power of women. Shortly before Moth's release, Van Wurst hangs himself, leaving Moth shaken.

Ada visits Moth in prison and reveals that his son Leonid was born and died of lockjaw, a tragedy that weighs on him during his confinement.

After release, Moth is escorted by guards to the Baths where Slug, now a powerful figure, interrogates him in a damp basement about the diamond. Moth denies knowledge of any diamond and resists the pressure.

Moth escapes but drinks iridium-poisoned wine handed to him by Slug, a cruel trick that weakens him and deepens the pursuit.

Drunk and wandering through Sofia, Moth witnesses the city's changing socialist veneer—the Largo and the Dimitrov Mausoleum—and encounters a string of bizarre locals. He ends up at Saint Nicholas Church, where a priest who baptized him earlier points him toward Ada's whereabouts.

Moth locates Ada performing in a nightclub under the stage name Gilda, and learns she is living with Slug. They rekindle their relationship, even as distrust lingers.

Moth and Ada realize the diamond is hidden inside Vlad the Bijou's coffin, and they head to the graveyard to retrieve it.

At the graveyard, Moth first visits what he believes is his son's grave, only to realize it isn't; Ada and Slug linger behind him, hinting at betrayal.

They proceed to Vlad the Bijou's grave and begin digging for the coffin's contents. In the confrontation, Moth fatally wounds Slug with a pickaxe, but Ada stuns him, leaving him momentarily helpless.

In the gravediggers' shed, Moth, knowing death is near, tears the bitumen that has carried the diamond, swallows the hidden gem, and dies with the diamond inside him.