The operations against the hidden slave worlds did not end Lootwell's search.
If anything, they made Lucien more reluctant to stop.
The problem with hidden dangers was that nobody noticed the ones that remained hidden.
For years, Lootwell had watched obvious threats closely. Hostile factions, dangerous ruins, unstable territories, suspicious organizations, and anything else capable of becoming an immediate crisis had rarely escaped its attention for long.
The slave worlds had exposed a different weakness.
Some dangers did not grow by becoming stronger.
They survived by becoming quieter.
That realization changed the way Lucien looked at the five continents.
He no longer wanted to know only where the strongest enemies were.
He wanted to know where the system itself could fracture if enough pressure arrived.
A faction with questionable loyalty mattered.
