In the late Middle Ages, Orontius grows up in poverty in a peasant family as the only son of his parents. After the sudden death of his mother, his father entrusts Orontius to the vagabond Eberlein to protect him from hunger and hardship. The only condition is: Eberlein and his troupe are to take Orontius to a monastery in Siegen for his 15th birthday. An adventure-filled time begins for the boy. In the monastery, Orontius learns about the life of the Franciscans and becomes a monk. During this time he meets Gregorius of Metz, with whom he subsequently forms a deep friendship. However, he doubts the integrity of the Abbot. After more than two decades, Orontius leaves the monastery to visit his father. There he discovers that everything has changed. From then on, he gets to know life in all its brutality, but also in its beauty.