Chapter 372: A Nostalgic and Strange Encounter

"Debt Seal."

Ryan activated his skill instantly, not even turning around to see who was speaking to him from the dimly lit hallway. Being in a closed space and having been discovered by surprise, he didn’t think it was necessary.

A silent wave swept over the room in a fraction of a second, reaching the figure behind him. After using his skill, he pushed off with his legs and darted backward in a swift blur that cut through the air.

In the blink of an eye, Ryan closed the distance between them, positioning himself directly behind the person who had spoken to him just a moment ago.

"What? Who the he—" the female voice exclaimed in surprise upon losing sight of him and sensing his sudden presence directly behind her.

The woman tried to spin on her heels quickly to put her guard up and defend herself from the intruder. But with all her skills sealed by Ryan’s power, her body couldn’t respond with the speed she intended.

No matter who she was or what rank she held at that moment, unable to use her mana or her techniques, she was nothing more than a simple, weak human in front of Ryan.

Taking advantage of that opening before she could finish turning around, he raised his arm and struck swiftly at the back of her neck, carefully measuring his strength.

The impact knocked her senses out instantly, and the woman fell face-down on the floor, completely unconscious in the middle of the room.

Ryan calmly lowered his hand as silence reigned inside the house once again. He stared for a second at the motionless silhouette lying at his feet, making sure there was no one else around.

’I don’t know who she is, but I didn’t want to cause any damage in this place. Sealing her skills prevented that. Now let’s see who we have here,’ Ryan thought to himself, satisfied with having resolved the situation without making any noise or destroying his old property.

With that in mind, Ryan took a half step closer and knelt next to the body, resting his right knee on the floor to examine the intruder closely.

He reached out and grabbed the woman firmly by the shoulder, carefully pulling her to turn her toward him and see her face under the dim light filtering in from outside.

As he laid her on her back on the floor, several locks of hair slipped to the sides. Her red hair was very long and well-cared-for, falling neatly around her shoulders.

Furthermore, her elegant dress contrasted perfectly with the intense hue of her hair, making it clear at a glance that she wasn’t a common thief who had broken into the house.

From that position on the floor, breathing slowly and steadily, she seemed to be sleeping peacefully. Seeing her like that, Ryan immediately confirmed that he had controlled his strength well and that the blow hadn’t killed her.

But as soon as he focused his eyes on her features, that highly familiar appearance made him freeze completely.

"Impossible. Why is she of all people here?" Ryan muttered, astonishment in his voice, as he perfectly recognized the appearance of the woman lying unconscious on the floor in front of him.

Out of all the people he could run into during his brief visit to human territory, she was the last one he ever imagined finding inside those walls.

"The guild master of Lunar Veil... I thought this property hadn’t sold. Don’t tell me you’re here because of that auction business?" Ryan commented, tossing the question into the air of the room, since being unconscious she had no way of hearing or answering him.

As he observed her, trying to understand what she was doing in Erhes Valley, Ryan’s eyes drifted down to her arms. However, at that moment, Ryan noticed she was wearing a striking object on her hand—a peculiar ring giving off a faint energy.

Accustomed to identifying those types of accessories thanks to the work of his own artisans, he gently took her limp hand and lifted it a little to look at the ring closely.

"Is this...?" Ryan said quietly, leaving the sentence unfinished as he recognized the jewel’s purpose.

Next, he used his fingers to carefully remove the ring, and once the object’s effect stopped cloaking her, he immediately inspected her with his skill.

The status window unfolded before his eyes, displaying the woman’s true data, and what he saw was something he hadn’t expected.

The guild master of Lunar Veil, who was supposed to be an A-rank adventurer in the eyes of the world, actually possessed a higher level and had been hiding her true identity behind a relic.

Possessing such a specific artifact to hide her real stats from adventurers was no coincidence. That immediately led Ryan to believe she was surely one of William’s allies.

Ryan lowered the woman’s hand, letting it rest on the floor once again as he remained silent, analyzing the scenario he had stumbled into out of pure curiosity.

’I didn’t think I’d see her again, at least not so soon. She’s lucky I didn’t kill her. Anyway, it’d be best for me to leave. Coming to see the humans was pointless. Even though I’m human, they no longer perceive me as one. So...’ Ryan thought with some resignation, remembering the absurd stories the adventurers had been telling about him in the tavern.

Walking through the city and hearing how they described him as a monster had made it clear to him that his place among humans was already a thing of the past.

Determined not to complicate things further or waste any more time there, Ryan stood up from the floor, recovering his posture.

He turned around and walked with calm steps toward the back door he had entered through, leaving the unconscious body of his former guild master behind in the middle of the room.

However, when he was just a few steps from reaching the back patio, he suddenly stopped and let out a sigh.

Leaving like that, leaving her lying on the floor without knowing what she was looking for in his old house or what plans she had with William, seemed like a wasted opportunity to him.

Ryan stood still for another second and finally turned his body to look back at the red-haired woman still lying on the floor.

"In any case, I suppose we should at least talk," Ryan murmured, changing his mind as he strode firmly back toward Sophia.

"For better or for worse, I will use my skill to spare you from possible control by the deity. Or if you’re already under that control, I’ll free you from it right now," Ryan said quietly, making a definitive decision regarding her.

Uttering those words in the silent room, Ryan finished his approach and stood right in front of Sophia’s motionless body.

He looked at her sleeping face for a brief instant, then extended his right hand directly toward her, preparing the healing spell that would wake her up and trigger the system’s debt.

"Don’t blame me for what happens next. Recovery."