He spoke of meeting forgemasters over his travels, but he declined to share names. That was probably for the sake of safety and privacy. [And even here and now, just having a name does precious little. In truth, Alucard had cared precious little for the people met on travels anyway - it was the act of movement that fascintaed him, and learning how scenery morphed across the whole of the contient.

But at the word mitigate Alucard's lips thin, and he finally looks up at Hector with more fire in his eyes than he has throughout all of this.

His next question is a simple one:]

Did you consider my father a person closer to the category of friend before all of this came to pass?

[There's so much more to say here, but the question is important in his eyes. He wants to talk about where, to even boot Hector through the viewing mirror to some remote place, but that'd be too easy, wouldn't it?

The answer is all that matters.]