- Cunégonde has been robbed of her diamonds and moidores (Portuguese money). The Old Woman suspects that a reverend friar who slept at their inn is the thief.
- They sell one of the horses for money and travel to Cadiz.
- In Cadiz, the group encounters troops assembled to depart for Paraguay to suppress rebellion.
- Candide impresses a general with his proficiency at the Bulgar military drills. The general appoints him an infantry captain and ships him off with Cunégonde and the Old Woman.
- On the boat, the three travelers briefly have a "My life sucks more!" "No, mine does!" fight until they all agree on one thing: maybe it’s time to consider doubting Pangloss’s life philosophy of Optimism.