Constantinople, March 1536. Ioannis Notaras, descendant of Loukas Notaras, prime minister of Constantine Palaiologos, is strangled by order of Sultan Suleiman because he fled his thirteen-year-old son Nikiforos to Venetian-ruled Corfu, instead of delivering him to satisfy his desires. The Sultan's wrath is not limited to the execution of Notaras, but also extends to his wife and daughter, who are led to the harem. At the same time, the shores of the Mediterranean are plundered by the Ottoman fleet, led by the pirate Hayreddin Barbarossa.
In the harem, the slave Alejandro gains the Sultan's appreciation when the latter realizes that the young man is a talented calligrapher. Thus, he assigns him to calligraphize inscriptions that adorn the facades and halls of the palace, without suspecting that the young man is deeply in love with Theodora, Notaras' daughter, who remains a slave in the harem. And while events in Constantinople are rapidly changing, in Corfu, Nikiforos grows up, refusing to accept that the ruling class considers him a commoner...