After being newly appointed as Pasha, Mahmut spends some time at a festival with his friend, Ibrahim, and meets Shara, a dancer who Ibrahim is friends with. The next day, Mahmut is called into the Divan to discuss the Balt-Rhein Empire's demands after an empire minister, Franz, is found dead at Türkiye's border. One Pasha, Zağanos, knows this a ploy for the empire to invade Türkiye and proposes a preemptive strike at them.