mutendid
Shingai's mother dies just after giving birth to him. He begins his life under the care of his mother's young sister and Chafunga the man he believed to be his father. Unbeknown to him, he is of royal blood and the ancestral spirits chose him to be the next king of Dangadema after displacing his despot father King Zihwe. When Chafunga learned that Shingai was not his son, he sought to kill the nine-year-old boy. Shingai is tipped by an old man in the village to run to his maternal grandparents who lived in a nearby kingdom. He gets lost on the way and ends up spending almost a year wandering in a big forest called Mazivandadzoka. A female spiritual figure called Muthlomo appears and advises him at times. Shingai finds himself in a faraway kingdom called Magocha but he loses his memory and does not know where he is from. The Kingdom of Magocha is civilized but ruled by a dictator King Rubonga. The word goes round of a mysterious boy Shingai who had magical powers that attracted good fortune to him and people around him. King Rubonga saw the opportunity of using Shingai's supposed magic to annex and bring under his domination, the rich kingdoms that lay to the west of Magocha. He takes Shingai and brings him up in his palace although he does not trust him completely. Shingai grows into an esteemed warrior. Together with the heir apparent to the Magocha throne, Prince Masimba, they revamp the Magocha army. In the process, Shingai steps on the toes of some of the king's governors. He maneuvers the royal and kingdom politics as he tries to find his bearings. He falls in love with Shuvai, the daughter of Rubonga's archenemy, his brother Vandirai. Mysterious murders of the king's guards begin, bringing the strong kingdom into turmoil but the assassins are not known. He is heartbroken when Shuvai marries another man. Shingai gets into big trouble when he impregnates one of Rubonga's young wives. He runs from Magocha but returns as dissident to fight Rubonga.