After his business was disrupted by bandit attacks, Ali Riza Bey falls ill and passes away. Zübeyde, having already experienced the loss of a child, doesn't want her son to leave her side but Mustafa aspires to become a soldier. Young Staff Captain Mustafa Kemal is arrested and interrogated by secret agents of the capital due to his idealistic actions.

After seeing Ottoman decline in Damascus, Mustafa Kemal returns to Thessaloniki but is sidelined for his opinions. Reserve Battalions sent by Enver Bey to Istanbul stage a revolt.

Italy is invading Ottoman territories in Africa. Major Mustafa Kemal, stationed in Tripoli, tries to resist the occupiers. Meanwhile, Thessaloniki falls into the hands of the Greeks. Falling into a depressive state, Mustafa Kemal is appointed as Military Attaché in Sofia. Unbeknownst to him, one of the great loves of his life is waiting for him there.

Mustafa Kemal, in command of the 19th Division, and Enver, the Minister of War, disagree over the command of the army. The 19th Division, which was not authorised to move without orders, is deployed at Anafartalar in Suvla on the initiative of Lieutenant-Colonel Mustafa Kemal.

Colonel Mustafa Kemal returns from Gallipoli and is finally reunited with his mother and sister. Upon meeting Mrs Corinne, Zubeyde Hanim is alarmed by her son's affair. Enver appoints Mustafa Kemal to command the 16th Corps. He is expected to stop the Russian advance.

General Mustafa Kemal openly declares that he will not obey the order to refrain from resisting the British forces. He has come to terms with the reality that the Ottoman Empire is indeed the "Sick Man" of Europe, as they say. He returns to Istanbul. To the public, he appears as a loyal and withdrawn general, quietly loyal to Sultan Vahidettin.