Tramp Ships, Flitters And The Hooligan

Despite representing the Terran Empire, Dominic Flandry had travelled to Altai as a passenger in a Betelgeusean merchant ship. When Terran Navy ships arrived to rescue him, he could have returned at least as far as Catawrayannis in one of them but instead preferred to travel in another Betelgeusean ship to the Imperial port at Spica VI. From there, he would have returned to Terra in the luxury liner, the Empress Maia. However, the second merchant ship stopped at Orma where Flandry learned about the self-isolating human colony planet, Unan Besar, and hired a space flitter to go and investigate. On a later mission, he took a high-speed flitter to travel from Brae to Nyanza. The main point here is that Flandry did not as yet have his private spaceship, the Hooligan.

Shortly after returning home from Nyanza, Flandry is in possession of the Hooligan and is served by the Shalmuan, Chives, whom, we later learn, he had acquired, initially as a slave, while outside the Solar System. I deduce that Flandry had acquired Chives before going to Altai, that Chives had remained on Terra while Flandry was on Altai and Unan Besar and that Flandry completed the purchase of the Hooligan shortly after returning from Nyanza.