A young warrior sets out to rid his homeland of its evil conqueror. In the opener, Lief and his guardian, Barda, embark on their quest to locate the seven gems necessary to free Deltora from the Shadow Lord.

Danger surrounds Lief and Barda in the Forests of Silence as they meet a mysterious girl while searching for hidden gems.

Jasmine leads Lief and Barda to a giant knight in the forest who believes they have come to rob him.

Lief heads for the Lake of Tears, but he must first journey though Thaegan's land and solve riddles posed by her guard.

Lief and his friends are chased by Grey Guards because they rescued a Ralad man.

Manus guides Lief to the Lake of Tears by way of his homeland, where they learn a surprising truth.

Lief tries to take the gem from Soldeen, a giant monster, but is interrupted by Thaegen, an evil sorceress.

Lief and his friends move on toward the next destination after defeating the Thaegan Sorceress, but Lief realizes they are being followed when the belt signals danger and Jasmine gets a bad feeling.

Lief and his friends are stuck in Noradz, whose residents clean obsessively and whose ruler wants Lief and his friends to stay.

Lief and his friends must fight their way out of Noradz after escaping from a dungeon, in which they'd been imprisoned.

Lief and his friends escape from Noradz hidden in a food wagon that takes them to Tom's store, where they learn that the Shadow Lord rules over Noradz.

The group searches for the third gem in the City of Rats and encounters Reeah, a giant snake that guards the city's towers.

Lief and his friends evacuate from the City of Rats. While resting by the Broad River, Lief shares the story of his father and King Endon with Jasmine.

Lief tells the story of his father, Jarred; King Endon; and Queen Sharn, who have all vowed to one day recover the belt's stolen gems.

A festival in Rithmere draws the attention of Lief and his friends, who try to win 100 gold coins by participating in its Games.

Lief and his friends are in danger of missing the games when they are locked in their rooms at the inn and threatened by a stranger.

Lief and his friends get advice before they compete in the final round of the games.

Jasmine is forced to compete in the last round of the games after discovering that some of her opponents have been poisoned.

The Grey Guards attack Lief and his friends as they journey to the Shifting Sands, but help comes from an unexpected source.

The Grey Guards continue their pursuit as Lief and the others search for the fourth gem in the Shifting Sands, where they meet Terreocti, the Sand Beast.

Lief loses consciousness after a swarm of bees attacks him, and he receives advice about his quest from his parents while he dreams.

The sorceress Thaegan is revived by the Shadow Lord and vows revenge against Lief, who continues on his journey. Meanwhile, Jasmine has doubts about Francoise.

Lief and his friends find Francoise's mother in the palace, but they end up trapped after Thaegan tricks them.

Lief has a nightmare that reveals a door bearing the Shadow Lord's mark after he and his friends drink from the Dreaming Spring on their way to Dread Mountain.

Lief's resolve is renewed after he dreams about his parents.