I don't see who He paid the ransom to. Vdh,
perhaps the hidden truth lies in Jesus' use of the term "the son of man came to--" in connection with the ransom, or betterment of the human race.
From the time that our ancestors were swinging in or under the trees in Eden or the Cameroons, it was procreation and death, untimely for the least fit, that let to the advancement of our species.
call death the price, or ransom that a species pays for longtime aka everlasting success. Even stars die, so the next generation can be richer in heavier metals, carbon even, the organic element.
A random ransom like arrangement. proton.