In which Raskolnikov, newly clothed and possessing a strange calm, wanders through the city streets weighed down by a tumult of restless thoughts and eerie encounters; a chance meeting with Zametov leads to a tense dialogue broaching dark suspicions, while subsequent interactions reveal the troubled confusion and isolation that haunt him. He visits the site of a recent tragedy, confronting the bleak reality of change and decay, before standing amidst the indifferent crowd and contemplating a decisive step toward an uncertain resolution.