"I object! This would damage Captain Alsace's reputation. Besides, compulsory use of truth serum requires a vote by the entire Review Committee and a report to Congress!" The deputy chairman immediately voiced his objection.
Although truth serum did little harm to the body, the process was far from pleasant. Unforeseen consequences were also quite common, such as revealing true feelings buried deep inside or secrets no one else knew...
For that reason, its use was strictly regulated. Unless a case involved a serious threat or the subject consented, it would not be used lightly.
Imagine regularly using truth serum to check government officials' loyalty and integrity. Corruption and abuse of power for personal gain would probably be all but eliminated.
Yet even if such a harmless drug were placed before Earth's governments, probably not a single senior official would choose to use it.
No one wanted to expose themselves completely to the light and shackle themselves with chains they could never escape. That was human nature.
The emergence of truth serum had once sparked a massive debate throughout the Twin Stars civilization.
Should they sacrifice human nature for absolute rule of law, or preserve one last little patch where people still held sway?
The final verdict was that unless the strict conditions for compulsory use were met, anyone who refused truth serum... had committed no offense!
"Personally, I am willing to believe Captain Alsace, and I have no intention of damaging anyone's reputation. However, the reputations of several hundred Sea Race soldiers are also at stake here. To reconstruct the truth as accurately as possible, I trust you can understand why we have to do this, Captain Alsace!
"Of course, if the results confirm that Captain Alsace has concealed nothing, I guarantee here and now that he will receive compensation