Many people could see that the Empire's military presence outside was teetering on the edge, leaks everywhere.
But the Empire, by leveraging Ryan, found a graceful exit—
It's not that you forced me out; I identified the issues myself and withdrew for the sake of interstellar safety.
Almost no one expected that just as the Star Abyss Republican Alliance's public opinion was gaining momentum, the Empire would withdraw directly, hitting a cotton wall, leaving people unaccustomed.
At that time, several civilizations jumped out, claiming they did not wish to see the Empire's military presence withdraw, or wanted a joint withdrawal if at all.
The Empire was clearly up to no good, secretly guiding the opposition from being anti-Empire military presence to being anti-military presence in general.
The Sea of Stars is such a massive chunk, with countless civilizations, and it's not just the Empire that has a military presence.
