Corto Maltese accompanies his friend Aida Treat, who writes reports for National Geographic, to Alexandria. In the turbulent city by the Nile, worlds collide, and political tensions are running high. Old Europe is preying on the African paradises, and in the province of Equatoria, a certain Emin Pasha, born Eduard Schnitzer in Opole, holds power. But Corto is, as always, in search of a legendary treasure. This time, it is the magical mirror of a priest-king who lived around 1100.