Leo pocketed the purified tear, the weight of the 250 RP in his digital bank feeling like a safety net, even if he couldn't spend it yet.
He caught the look Lumine gave him—a mix of gratitude and lingering suspicion.
In her world, "systems" and "Rider Points" didn't exist, but she knew an anomaly when she saw one.
"Don't get used to the drum solo," Leo muttered to Paimon as they stepped out of the headquarters.
"I've got plenty of other tricks in the bag."
The Road to the Temple of a Thousand Winds
The trek toward the eastern coast of Mondstadt was anything but peaceful.
The winds were still erratic, whipping through the tall grass of Windrise.
Amber led the way, her scout's eyes scanning the horizon, while Kaeya strolled beside Leo, his hands behind his back.
"So, Leo," Kaeya started, his voice casual but sharp.
"That crimson suit of yours... the one that makes you move like a stray thought. It doesn't use Elemental Energy, does it?
"I noticed that colorful belt you wear before transforming"
"It's... internal power," Leo replied, keeping his gaze forward. "No need for an external battery when you've got the path of heaven under your feet."
"How very self-sufficient of you," Kaeya chuckled.
They reached the crest of a hill overlooking the ancient amphitheater.
The Temple of a Thousand Winds sat like a rotting crown on the cliffside. In the center of the ruins, a massive, rusted hunk of machinery began to groan.
A Ruin Guard.
Its central eye flared with a hateful orange light, and it began to track them with a mechanical whir.
"Wait! That's not just a Ruin Guard!" Amber shouted, pointing.
"Look at the core! It's infused with that same purple corruption!"
The machine didn't just walk; it leaked shadows.
As it raised its massive arms, several Abyss Mages—Cryo and Pyro—materialized around it, cackling as they wove a protective barrier around the mechanical titan.
"Lumine, take the Mages! Amber, provide cover!" Kaeya commanded, drawing his sword.
"Leo, I assume you have a 'suit' for dealing with giant, stompy robots?"
Leo smirked. His cooldowns had finally hit zero.
He felt the familiar weight of the Zero-One Driver materialize on his waist.
"Actually," Leo said, pulling out the bright yellow Rising Hopper Progrise Key.
"I was thinking of something with a bit more... kick."
Leo clicked the button on the key.
[JUMP!]
A digital shockwave blasted the grass flat. Lumine and Kaeya flinched as a giant, neon-yellow mechanical grasshopper slammed into the dirt next to the Ruin Guard, nearly toppling the ancient machine.
"Henshin!"
[AUTHORIZE! PROGRISE! ]
[A JUMP TO THE SKY TURNS TO A RIDER KICK]
[RISING HOPPER!]
The yellow armor locked into place. Leo's HUD lit up, immediately identifying the Ruin Guard's weak points.
The machine fired a volley of homing missiles, their trails screaming through the air.
"Too slow!"
Leo didn't just run; he blurred. Using the enhanced leg strength of the Rising Hopper suit, he leaped off one of the incoming missiles, using the explosion to catapult himself higher.
He spun in mid-air, raining down a flurry of high-velocity punches on the Ruin Guard's head.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The machine staggered, its metal casing denting under the force.
Below him, Lumine was a whirlwind of Anemo, swirling Amber's fire into a massive fire-nado that melted the Abyss Mages' shields.
"Leo! The eye!" Lumine shouted, her blade glowing with golden light.
"I'll distract it!"
She lunged forward, a palm-strike of pure wind hitting the Guard's legs. The machine tilted, exposing its glowing orange core.
"Good call, Partner!"
Leo landed on a crumbling stone pillar and pushed off with everything the suit had. He didn't just jump; he became a yellow streak of neon light.
"Let's end this beat!"
He slammed the side of the Driver.
[RISING IMPACT!]
Leo's right leg surged with electric yellow energy.
He spiraled through the air, a living lightning bolt aimed directly at the Ruin Guard's central core.
The explosion was deafening. The Ruin Guard didn't just shut down—it shattered, its corrupted pieces scattering across the stone floor of the temple.
The purple smoke hissed as it evaporated into the clean sea air.
Leo skidded to a halt on one knee, the armor sparking as the transformation held steady. He looked up to see Paimon staring at him, her mouth hanging open.
"You... you just kicked a Ruin Guard into scrap metal!" she squeaked.
"Without even using a sword!"
Kaeya walked over, sheathing his blade.
He looked at the smoking remains of the machine, then at Leo's high-tech suit.
"Impressive. Most people need a team of Vision-bearers and a week of planning to take one of those down.
You did it in... what? Thirty seconds?"
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
OBJECTIVE COMPLETE: TEMPLE CLEARED
RP EARNED: +500
TOTAL RP: 750
Leo stood up, the armor dissolving into pixels as he deactivated the Driver.
He felt the familiar ache in his muscles, but his mind was racing.
750 points.
"750," Leo whispered to himself, a small grin tugging at his lips.
"What was that?" Amber asked, trotting over.
"Nothing," Leo said, turning to the group. "Just thinking about that Sticky Honey Roast. Is the offer still standing, Kaeya?"
"For a man who kicks dragons and Ruin Guards? The first three plates are on me," Kaeya laughed.
But as they began the trek back to the city, Leo noticed Lumine looking back at the ruins.
She wasn't looking at the scrap metal. She was looking at the strange, stylized grasshopper symbol burned into the ground where Leo had landed.