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'Oh, come now. You don't know that for sure. Maybe I'm a different Xander. It's a common enough name, I should think.'

"That was one of the least convincing things I've ever heard," said Hector.

Xander gave a mild laugh. 'Yes, well, I suppose I have never been known for my ability to persuade or deceive. Hence why I prefer to either be quite direct or simply say nothing at all.'

Hector could certainly respect that mentality.

'You are not a Vanguardian yourself, are you?' said Xander.

"No."

'And yet you recently fought one of Abolish's deadliest warriors.'

"Banda Toro." Hector felt like he could be a bit more forthcoming, now. "You know of him? He's one of Bloodeye's men."

'Ah, indeed. Then this is confirmation of the rumors I have been hearing. Lozaro has made a significant breakthrough in his research. That is most unwelcome news.'

Hector had to pause at that bit of intel. "Lozaro? I've heard that name before, too."

'Oh? That is surprising. He's typically quite the stealthy operator. I presume you did not hear that name in the most pleasant of contexts, no?'

"Definitely not. I mean, uh... I guess I could be mistaken, but... I'm pretty sure he brought a... monstrosity into the world that terrorized Lorent and devoured dozens of innocent people."

'Yes, that sounds like him, alright. Never one to let the risk of enormous collateral damage or devastation to the general populace get in the way of his sick curiosity.'

A part of Hector expected Xander to glean more from what he'd just referenced. The Beast of Lorent had been an infamous enough problem that it wouldn't be surprising if some of the top Vanguardians had heard of it.

If he knew anything, however, he was deciding to keep it to himself, for now. 'How, exactly, did you hear the name Lozaro? That man has been a menace upon the world for more years than I care to remember, but very few have ever managed to learn of him.'

"Ah... that's a long story. And I'm not sure how to explain it, quite frankly."

'That is fine, but please, I would be grateful for any clues you could share with me regarding Lozaro's current whereabouts.'

The apparent earnestness of the man's request caught Hector a little off guard. "Are you hunting him down yourself?"

'I would leave this very moment, if I knew where to go.'