In 1825, during the Greek-Turkish war, the English adventurer Treloany discovered a hidden immeasurable treasure in the mountains of Kafiristan, an area on the Russo-Afghan border. Many "gentleman adventurers" arrived in Mesolonghi, seizing the opportunity to embark on their adventures, aiming to reach Kafiristan and seize the treasure of Alexander the Great. Along the way, many of them were murdered by bandits from the Afridi tribe, while others endured horrific tortures in a prison known as "The Golden House of Samarkand."
Corto Maltese and his friends reunite during a tumultuous historical period for Western Asia, where political upheaval is related to the Italo-Turkish war, the Armenian massacres, the Balkan wars, and the fall of the Ottoman Empire. The treasure remains inaccessible while the geopolitical situation of the era unfolds.
The story, besides the quest for treasure, explores the complex historical reality prevailing in Western Asia, with Corto Maltese meeting Enver Pasha in Dushanbe, in Russian Turkestan.
