The second volume of Miguel Gomes' Arabian Nights trilogy tells the story of various individuals affected by the economic crisis in Portugal. With a mix of social commentary, fantasy elements, and intertwined narratives, it explores themes of poverty, misery, and the human experience.

This is the story of a young Mozambican footballer called Eusébio, a gifted athlete destined to great achievements, coveted by rival clubs, Sporting and Benfica, which ends up hiring him. Blackmail, kidnapping attempts, ministers involved, press hysteria and huge money offers make the story of this football transfer into a saga evolving between the two continents. It ends up when the legend begins: with Eusébio’s first match at the Benfica Stadium.

Tiago, a tour guide with a broken heart leads Karen, a grieving and aging Brazilian woman, around a Lisbon of strange suicidal heroes. Tiago lives with his father, Raul, an old sailor haunted by historical defeats, and with his son, Manuel, a teenager fantasising of a solitary, but erotic, trip to the cosmos. All together, they take Karen through dreams, lost glories, and catastrophes to meet a fallen hero who disappeared many centuries ago on an island in the South Atlantic Ocean.

A couple of traveling artists, Léon and Elvira Berthelini, who earn their living performing in taverns and cafes, arrive in the village of Covarronca to perform their variety show.