Nurbanu survives an attack and blames Hürrem, igniting open war between them. Defne wins Bayezid’s trust but secretly arms Selim with a dangerous secret, escalating the brothers’ feud. Mihrimah falls ill and grows close to the foreign physician Pedro, stirring Rüstem’s jealousy. Fatma’s trap nearly kills Hürrem, prompting Süleyman to banish her. As Nurbanu threatens to expose old secrets, Hürrem moves to eliminate her, while Süleyman burns Mustafa’s letter in a desperate attempt to silence his guilt.