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Father Rocha had already brought the farce to an end. Veríssimo was travelling under arrest along the road to Porto. With polite manners, he asked permission to hire a mule. He rode without stirrups and held the halter rope. Twelve soldiers from the 8th regiment surrounded him. At the end of the afternoon, they entered Famalicão.
The administrator Torres sent a bed to the prison. He also allowed Veríssimo to dine with Nunes. Nunes had followed his friend from a distance. Veríssimo was discouraged and blamed Nunes's plans. He thought of Libânia and believed that he was lost. Nunes knew a little about criminal law. He said that there was no evidence for a charge. He promised to handle the case, unless he too was arrested. Then he joked about the money from the farce. The Botelhas ladies had already given one hundred gold coins. Veríssimo replied that he expected a sentence of transportation. That night, Nunes left full of remorse. He knew that he had led his friend into that danger.
The next day, they took Veríssimo to the Porto Court of Appeal prison. Libânia and Nunes were already waiting for him. Nunes had gone to find Libânia in Ramalde. Libânia faced life's hardships with strength. She looked at Veríssimo courageously and smiled. She told him always to keep his spirits strong.
Veríssimo's room was numbered 2. A large window gave light and overlooked the Douro. A man condemned to death had been there before him. The door bore names and dates left by prisoners in 1829. Libânia and Torcato stayed at a nearby inn. They spent much of their time near the prison. On the sixth day, Nunes requested his friend's release. There was still no formal statement of the charge. The charge arrived from Póvoa on the eighth day. Veríssimo then appealed to the Court of Appeal.
The appeal judge was Councillor Fortunato Leite. Fifteen years earlier, Fortunato had known Norberto Borges. Norberto had warned Fortunato that his house would be searched. That warning had saved Fortunato during the persecution of 1831. As he read the case, the judge recognised the surnames. He discovered that Veríssimo was his benefactor's son. Fortunato wanted to repay his old debt to the father. Moreover, the first proceedings had been rushed. The witnesses did not prove any plan for an uprising. Nor did they prove that Veríssimo had used the false identity to make others give him valuables. Yet Nunes had just spoken about the hundred coins.
The judgment called the court a Carnival farce. Fortunato overturned the charge and wrote with humour. The other judges laughed and signed unanimously. Thus, Veríssimo was set free. Libânia fainted with joy when she heard the news. Then she wept because at last she felt happy.
Fortunato asked Veríssimo to come to his house. Veríssimo arrived anxiously but kept his dignity. The judge explained that he had repaid an old debt. But he also rebuked Veríssimo for his conduct. Veríssimo had allowed people to take him for Dom Miguel. Fortunato advised him to seek honour, work and a changed life. Veríssimo kissed his hand and refused ten gold coins. He said that he would ask for them if he ever needed them. Then Fortunato laughed and contradicted his own lesson. He declared that the abbots had deserved to be cheated. Veríssimo left feeling very grateful.
Fortunato changed the lives of the two companions. With his help, Nunes became a licensed legal agent in Porto. He was clever, worked well and charged for his services. He brought his wife and two children to the city. The two families rented a house in Rua de Trás. They lived well together and spent carefully. They still had 750,000 réis from the Botelhas money. They added that money to Nunes's earnings.
At night, Veríssimo visited several cafés in Porto. He listened to government opponents and gained their trust. However, he reported their plans to the Cabralist Fortunato. This information also reached the civil governor. Veríssimo received about six pounds a month. The narrator calls it a small payment for public order.
On 9 October 1846, the situation changed. José Passos met Veríssimo in Praça Nova. He called him a patriot and asked him to stir the crowd. The bells rang and the people moved through the streets. Veríssimo and Nunes immediately went to find Fortunato. The councillor was trembling with fear beside his daughters. The two men offered to protect their benefactor. Later, they became lieutenants in a national battalion.
Before the battle of Valpaços, they studied the situation. They realised that two regiments would change sides. They decided to follow those soldiers at the right moment. During the fighting, the regiments went over to the royal forces. Veríssimo and Nunes went over too, under fire. They cheered the Queen and the Constitutional Charter. Prudence and Fortunato had done their work.
Afterwards, a column advanced against the Miguelists in Braga. The two men asked to serve away from their old acquaintances. They said that they did not wish to fight relatives and familiar priests. Nor did they wish to see the Botelhas ladies lose their money. Even so, they took part in pursuing other royalists. They found dead men left by the soldiers in front. However, they never drew their swords. The narrator calls this a bloodless triumph.
The civil war ended with the Gramido settlement. The two men laid down their weapons and asked for jobs. Fortunato and other important men recommended them. Nunes became a court clerk in Estremadura. Veríssimo received a profitable post inspecting tobacco and soap. Later, he moved to the customs service in Viana do Minho. Finally, he directed a customs service overseas.
Years later, a newspaper announced Libânia's death. It said that she had died at five in the morning. The notice called her a woman of perfect education. It also made her a member of an illustrious Covas family. The newspaper presented Veríssimo as a councillor and director. Thus, the old farce ended in official respectability. The narrator thinks that Veríssimo and Nunes may still be alive. After all, both men were strong in body and spirit.