Adelheid watched as Renji left, and soon he was left alone with Rukia, the teenager falling silent as he rested his head on his hand, digesting and mulling over everything that he had heard. Obviously, he had touched a nerve; despite himself, he still felt bad over that. If only because he knew how it felt, to have something gnawing at the back of one's mind and then to have it suddenly being the topic of conversation.

Though it was a small bit of relief, knowing that this Ichigo Kurosaki wasn't a bad person. While it honestly didn't answer his question, he was glad to know that bit of information. If only it applied to him, if only.

But now that he was stuck on the topic of that monster, and on guilt and regret and shame, it was hard to think of something else to speak about. Especially to someone like Rukia, whom Adelheid still didn't have a firm opinion on, other than she seemed like a textbook case of the female gender from his own world.