Marek is a thirteen-year-old boy born with a curved spine and a twisted arm. He lives with Jude, the village shepherd, and endures frequent beatings and severe neglect. Desperate for affection, he seeks attention wherever he can find it, including continuing to visit the village wet nurse, Ina. He holds a deep spiritual belief that physical hardship will earn him divine favor.

Villiam is the lord of Lapvona, having inherited the fiefdom from his ancestors. He lives a life of extreme privilege, hoarding wealth and demanding endless entertainment from his visitors and servants. His existence of constant comfort and diversion leaves him emotionally stunted and completely disconnected from the brutal reality endured by the villagers he rules.

Jude is the village sheepherder who lives several miles from the center of Lapvona. He is deeply devoted to his flock of lambs, showing them a level of affection and care that he entirely denies his putative son, Marek. He harbors deep grudges, claims his family died in a storm, and practices regular self-flagellation as a form of religious observance.

Agata is a voiceless woman originally from a family of bandits. After enduring extreme physical and sexual trauma, including having her tongue cut out by her father, she exists entirely at the mercy of the men around her. Unable to communicate verbally, she survives her subjugation primarily by dissociating from her body and her circumstances.

Ina is the village wet nurse and a medicine woman who lives on the fringes of Lapvona society. After a plague blinded her and killed her family, she survived alone in the woods for decades, learning the language of birds and the properties of plants. She reintegrated into the village after miraculously producing milk in her forties, making her a crucial but mistrusted resource for the community.

Grigor is an elderly villager who begins to question the status quo of Lapvona following a violent raid. Unlike the other villagers who accept their suffering as God's will, Grigor uses practical logic to analyze the discrepancies between the wealthy manor and the impoverished village. He seeks knowledge from those who live outside traditional societal roles.

Father Barnabas is the local priest who wields significant influence over the village of Lapvona. Educated poorly at a seminary, he practices religion not out of genuine belief but out of a desire for control and superiority. He acts as an enforcer for Villiam, manipulating the villagers through religious fear to keep them subjugated.

Jacob is the strong, adventurous son of Lord Villiam. Raised in the extreme privilege of the manor, he is accustomed to getting his way and enjoys his interactions with the peasant boy Marek precisely because Marek is easy to manipulate. He possesses an entitlement typical of his high class status.

Lispeth is a young servant girl working at the manor under Lord Villiam. She harbors a deep, unrequited love for Jacob and bitterly resents Marek. Because of her low class and gender, she is forced to tolerate severe indignities and cruel games devised by Villiam, holding onto her position only because she knows village life would be worse.

Dibra is Villiam's wife and the lady of the manor. She considers herself an atheist due to the chaotic and unhappy nature of her life, finding no comfort in the religious platitudes offered by the local church. She is thoroughly bored by her husband and trapped in a marriage that serves only to secure her social position.

Luka is a servant at the manor and Dibra's secret lover. His relationship with Dibra began when he was ordered to deliver her to Villiam for marriage. He regards Dibra with near-religious devotion but is forced to maintain total subservience in public, keeping their bond entirely hidden from the rest of the manor.

Ivan is Dibra's brother. He lives away from Lapvona but maintains a connection to the manor through correspondence and gifts, tracking the shifting politics of the fiefdom from afar.

Jon is Grigor's adult son. He lives in the village and works hard to survive, adhering strongly to the community's belief that suffering and labor equate to goodness. He finds his father's growing skepticism deeply frustrating.

Vuna is Jon's wife and Grigor's daughter-in-law. She is practical and cautious, prioritizing the family's social standing within the village over speaking out against corruption. She carries the silent burden of previous miscarriages, making her highly protective of her current circumstances.

Clod is Villiam's personal servant. He tends to the lord's immediate physical needs and is occasionally tasked with bizarre artistic requests, such as drawing scenes that Villiam finds amusing or significant.

Klim is an old man from the village who attempts to survive the severe summer drought by camping near the lakeside. He struggles with physical frailty as starvation sets in across the fiefdom.

Petra is a servant at the manor assigned to attend to Marek. She handles basic requests and navigates the tense, shifting dynamics of the household during the holiday season.

Klarek is a guardsman employed by Lord Villiam. He is tasked with executing the lord's directives, including the seemingly arbitrary selection of villagers to attend the manor's holiday feasts.