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After parting from Veríssimo, Nunes reached Calvos. Before entering his house, he went to the abbot's residence. The abbot said that he was alone and told him to speak. Nunes bent closer and whispered that Dom Miguel was in Portugal. The abbot was astonished and asked how he knew.
Nunes replied that he had just arrived from Porto. He claimed that several contacts had told him about the king. According to him, Dom Miguel was in the province, perhaps in Braga. Nunes also said that the uprising would begin in that region. The abbot wanted to alert his friends and prepare the supporters. Nunes placed a finger in front of his lips. He ordered the abbot to remain completely silent. He said that the king neither showed himself nor gave his name. He predicted that all Minho would be in arms within a month. The abbot believed him and wept with joy. He invited Nunes to dinner and promised to open wine from 1815. Nunes said that he would first go and see his wife and children. In this way, he left the abbot expecting a hidden king.
On the night from Saturday into Carnival Sunday, Veríssimo reached Póvoa de Lanhoso. He stayed at Relhas's inn. He introduced himself only as a traveller from far away. Then he asked how they celebrated Carnival in that area. In Calvos, there were plays on all three days of Carnival. Relhas's son was playing Alménio in The False Doctor. The young man could take Veríssimo and find him a chair. The stage stood in Gonçalves's large threshing yard. The actors entered through three doors of a barn.
Veríssimo entered the area where the actors were waiting. A tall carpenter was playing Matilde, the ill young woman in the play. He wore a white dress made for a ball in 1824. Relhas's son played Alménio and wore spectacles. The spectacles helped him pretend to be a doctor. Veríssimo maintained a serious, almost royal expression.
Nunes saw Veríssimo and exchanged a glance with him. Then he hurried away and pretended to be greatly surprised. He asked whether the abbot had already been to the play. Nunes asked whether he knew the stranger in the yard. The abbot knew only that someone had requested a chair for the man. Nunes asked him to come at once. He reminded him that he had seen Dom Miguel in Braga thirteen years earlier. The abbot recalled that he had kissed his hand three times. Nunes asked whether he would still recognise the king. The priest replied that he thought it possible. On the way, Nunes asked him to be extremely discreet. They must not look directly at the stranger. They would speak to him only if the right opportunity arose.
When they reached the yard, the performance had already begun. Veríssimo was standing with one hand on the chair. Several men said that the stranger had remained very serious. The abbot touched Nunes's arm and whispered, "It is him." Veríssimo took a few steps to light a cigarette. The abbot saw him limp and took it as a sign. Nunes warned him to speak quietly and not to stare. At that moment, a general burst of laughter filled the yard. Veríssimo also laughed and applauded. The abbot saw the applause as another moving piece of evidence.
The laughter had arisen from an accident in the first scene. Matilde was meant to pretend to faint into Astolfo's arms. However, the two actors mistimed the moment. Matilde fell backwards onto the damp clay. As he got up, the skirts rose and left the actor exposed. The entire audience responded with laughter and applause. Veríssimo could no longer maintain his royal gravity. The actor fled into the barn and took off the dress. As he refused to return, the director stopped the play. Veríssimo stayed to wait for young Relhas. Gonçalves asked him what he had thought of the scene. Veríssimo replied kindly that it had only been an accident. The abbot approached and greeted Veríssimo ceremoniously. Veríssimo said that such falls happened in the finest theatres. The abbot and Nunes agreed with excessive enthusiasm.
The conversation turned to the natural beauty of Minho. The stranger regretted that winter concealed the spring. At that moment, it began to drizzle. The abbot invited the stranger to wait in his house. Veríssimo accepted because he did not have an umbrella. The showers returned, and the sky grew dark. The rain did not stop as night approached. For that reason, the abbot would not let his guest leave.
During supper, girls appeared disguised in sheets. They hugged Senhorinha the maid and teased Nunes. Veríssimo said that Minho was Portugal's generous heart. He added that they deserved a happier life. According to him, taxes and public officials crushed the people. The abbot listened to him with almost religious attention. Nunes pinched the abbot's leg to reinforce the illusion. At the end of supper, the abbot stood with his glass. He said that he believed he was in the presence of a royalist. Then he drank to the health of Dom Miguel I. Veríssimo thanked him and did not claim to be the king. He stated only that he was a royalist, even among liberals. Finally, he drank to the friends of the exiled prince. Nunes gave the abbot discreet kicks beneath the table. The priest believed that he was already speaking to the king.
Later, the maid announced that the bed was ready. Veríssimo smiled and apologised for troubling the family. He asked whether he had heard Torcato's name correctly. Nunes said that he was Nunes Elias, a servant of Your... He managed to stop before saying Majesty. Nunes admitted that he had almost called the guest Majesty. He pretended to be certain that the king was sleeping in that house. Nunes looked towards the windows and exclaimed, 'This seems like a dream!'
On Carnival Monday, it rained without stopping. The abbot would not allow Veríssimo to leave. On Nunes's advice, he sent for the luggage from Póvoa. The luggage was merely a tin trunk. The lid was dented, and the padlock was rusty. Veríssimo had still not given any name. The others avoided asking him what he was called. They thought that this spared him from having to invent a name. The abbot always addressed the guest as sir. He also thought he was showing the guest that he had recognised him. Nunes confessed that he wanted to kneel before the guest. The abbot replied that the moment had not yet come.
Veríssimo asked for a book to occupy himself. The abbot took him to a pine bookcase. The bookcase held three groups of royalist books. Then Veríssimo praised Father José Agostinho and Friar Fortunato. He presented them as great defenders of altar and throne. The abbot asked whether he had known them personally. Veríssimo replied that he had and smiled calmly. The narrator compared that smile to the exiled prince's. The abbot imagined Father José Agostinho's delight if he could see the king. Veríssimo agreed without enthusiasm. He asked who still hoped to see Dom Miguel in Portugal. The abbot struck his chest and replied, "I do!"
The priest said that Dom Miguel continued to reign in people's hearts. The abbot recalled again that he had seen him in Braga thirteen years earlier. On that occasion, he had kissed the royal hand three times. Veríssimo asked whether he still remembered those features. The abbot replied that he remembered them perfectly. Veríssimo suggested that he would no longer recognise him today. He added that Dom Miguel had aged greatly. The abbot insisted that he would recognise him. A sudden emotion ran through the priest's whole body. He stepped back and placed one knee on the floor. He pointed at Veríssimo and exclaimed, "It is him!" Veríssimo replied that the abbot was mistaken. He said clearly, "I am not who you think I am." Then he asked the priest to get up. The abbot placed both knees on the floorboards. He insisted that he must remain like that before his king. Veríssimo heard footsteps and again asked him to get up.
The man coming up the stairs was Nunes. Nunes found the abbot on his knees. Veríssimo was trying to raise the priest. The abbot told Nunes to kneel beside him. He said that he was at the king's feet. Nunes knelt down, although he knew the whole truth. Then he declared, "I knew it already, my royal lord!" Thus the court of Dom Miguel I was inaugurated at São Gens de Calvos on Carnival Monday in 1845, at three o'clock in the afternoon.