He shifted his attack from Lyman himself to the potion.
This was his last line of defense, and the one he believed to be most impregnable.
For it rested on the Church's fundamental doctrines, a sacred domain that could not be violated.
"Under the Act, any attempt to influence the inheritance of bloodlines through unnatural means constitutes blasphemy!"
Brian's voice turned vicious as he stared fixedly at Lyman.
"As the first person to attempt to openly produce and sell this substance in the Royal Capital, Count Lyman committed the grave crime of 'creating blasphemous items,' even if he did not organize the auction!"
His words struck everyone in the courtroom like a sledgehammer.
Even the nobles in the public gallery who secretly supported Lyman felt their hearts sink.
Divine authority was, in the end, a mountain they could not get around.
Yet Brian failed to notice that, as he tried to bind everyone to the Church's war chariot, the expressions of the nobles on the jury were quietly changing.
Their brows furrowed, unease and resistance showing in their eyes.
The "facts" Lilia had spread at the salon were continuing to take root.
That was right. If they accepted the Church's judgment of this potion today...
Would their own families' heirs come under suspicion tomorrow?
Would the Church seize their property in the name of "purification"?
The tragic fate of Lady Ferrier and her unborn child was the very fate most likely to await them!
They might not care whether Lyman lived or died, but they could not disregard the foundations of their own families!
Brian keenly sensed the subtle change in the atmosphere, and his heart sank.
Why?
He could not understand why, despite holding the high ground in both law and doctrine, he had instead provoked these nobles' hostility.