Black Tobias, a well-known frequenter in Vienna cafes, commonly tells stories about his life to other customers. He talks to one customer about his wife, Hannah, and how they ran a small fragrance store. Tobias would assist the store in the mornings, but in the afternoons and evenings, he worked as a peddler, well-acquainted with all types of people he interacted with. Hannah's fragrance store was on a street through which Archduke Carl of the Hapsburg dynasty would pass by every day on the way to visit his mother. Tobias would bow and greet him every time he saw Carl's carriage pass by, calling him "Majesty." Tobias assures the customer that Archduke Carl was his friend and said so himself. Tobias describes when he saw the Archduke in the Trocadero one night. Carl called out for the waiters to bring "his friend" over and introduced Tobias to his circle of friends.

Carl declares that he feels consoled by Tobias's greetings every morning and drives by the street even when he doesn't want to go out because he does not want to disappoint Tobias. Carl worries that if Tobias is ever absent, "the Empire would fall apart." He toasts to Tobias that night, and the group spends a lively time together, with the Archduke telling Tobias "thank you, my dear friend." During the first World War, the police raids stores to confiscate soap and oil since they had to keep up a ration. Two truckloads of products are taken from Hannah's store, ruining her business. Tobias feels absolute despair, and the following morning he drops to his knees in front of the Archduke's incoming carriage and tells him about the police raid. Carl reassures him that his merchandise will be returned and asks for Tobias's name. The same afternoon, Tobias receives back the same two truckloads of products. Four years into the war, Archduke Carl becomes Emperor. The cafe customer ceases seeing Tobias since Viennese cafes became too expensive. However, he unexpectedly stumbles across an older and worn-out Tobias shortly after the war ends. The customer asks Tobias what happened after the Emperor returned his store merchandise. Tobias explains that he was still tirelessly peddling every night. He recalls how his patients were even trying to negotiate prices for meager items, and he was barely getting by. Hannah eventually dies from sickness, and Tobias is in ceaseless despair, feeling the world become dead to him. He stops paying attention to everything, including the news, and stops greeting the Emperor for a few days. When Tobias gains the motivation to greet Carl again, he is puzzled by Carl's absence. Tobias walks into his friend Spira's store to inquire about the Emperor. Spira tells a shocked Tobias about the revolution, the abdication of Emperor Carl, and the dissolution of Austria-Hungary. In shock and despair, Tobias knows this disastrous domino effect was all his fault because he stopped greeting the Emperor.