Winter Festival 1

[Time Period: 1074 A.D., Heian Era]

It had been just nigh of eight years since Fujiwara was born now. In those years since his reincarnation, Fujiwara grew as a person both mentally and physically.

It took time getting used to a world without technology. But he managed to move on from it upon finding other things in his life. Such as a few friends in his village, or finding odd jobs to help calm the boredom.

As for the physical side of things, the boy now had more definable features to talk of. Fujiwara Yoshiro had somewhat broad shoulders, with a physique that made it seem he had been working out his entire life, making some even question his age. He had amber eyes that were reminiscent of sparks of fire along with long, gray-silvery hair with bangs.

He usually wore a kimono and hakama. Right now, he was only wearing hippari and monpei.

Fujiwara was, for the moment, harvesting a crops from a fenced-off patch of vegetables behind his house. He had been collecting the vegetables in handwoven baskets with his mother for around half an hour. It was an early winter morning, so they weren't toiling in the sun. 

Just as his mother promised, he was taught how to farm.

And with that, he also grew in the eyes of the system.

[Congratulations! You've leveled up the proficiency {Green Thumb} to LV. 9!]

Love to see it.

As the ecstasy of leveling up his proficiency washed over him, he reveled in his new knowledge.

He had been farming just shy of one year. His Heavenly Restriction helped him get through what most others would consider a rude awakening.

"Yoshiro," his mother yelled to some degree "Did you finish up picking the onions on that side?" Fujiwara gave a thumbs-up as he yelled back. "Yep! I just did!" He held up three baskets full of onions with his offhand for proof.

I take back everything I said about the Heavenly Restriction. I'd be DYING out here.

His strength increased many times over the years. His Heavenly Restriction grew along with him.

[VIT: 24 {+40} (Heavenly Restriction)]

[STR: 17 {+40} (Heavenly Restriction)]

[DEX: 19{+40} (Heavenly Restriction)]

[AGL: 14{+40} (Heavenly Restriction)]

[END: 26{+40} (Heavenly Restriction)]

[ENL: 30{+20} (Jujutsu Prodigy)]

He now had all his stats above 50 points. Fujiwara was comparable to a professional heavyweight boxer in terms of strength. His agility was comparable to that of an Olympic sprinter.

Every year, Fujiwara got five stat points for all attributes due to his Heavenly Restriction. It was great to see his Restriction mature without too much time. He thought it'd take until his mid-20s before he'd show signs of development like this.

"Should we head back inside?" Fujiwara asked, picking up an additional three baskets with his offhand. "Yeah, we've harvested enough for the festival." his mother replied, inspecting her yield. Pleased with their harvest, they both made their way back inside the house, all the baskets of vegetables they collected in hand

"Mother, can I go to the Winter Festival?" Fujiwara asked his mother with a small pout forming. His mother rolled her eyes while a chuckle escaped her mouth. "Ok. After we sell a few vegetables, you can go. But, I'm coming along." Just like that, Fujiwara's eyes lit up like stars.

The village that they lived in was a bit odd. Winter didn't affect the place as others did. It allowed for farming to still take place during the winter as every place outside the village didn't have this kind of advantage. It led to the birth of the Winter Festival. A time of year when others travel to the village for trading. 

All sorts of festivities would occur around this time, slowly making it be seen less as a business or trading opportunity and more like a seasonal event. Fujiwara was usually trading with his mother during this time, having only seen the festival for a total of three years. The main reason for her stopping him was that she was scared of him being kidnapped or hurt.

She would later come to realize this year that her seven-year-old son was both freakishly strong and amazingly smart for his age. This led to her trust in her son to be much stronger. Still, she worried for him. So she would at least accompany him to the festival.

Besides that, Fujiwara and his mother made it into the house. They both dropped off their vegetable baskets at the round wooden table next to the front door. "I'll finish up preparations for the festival tonight. You can relax for now." His mother said as she breathed deeply from carrying the heavy baskets.

Fujiwara nodded in understanding, still in much excitement about being able to join the festival. He walked over to his room. All there was was a futon accompanied by a blanket, a table, a small drawer, and a candle that rested on his drawer.

It's been a while since I could think to myself. It'll be really nice to enjoy the festival for a bit.

He fell onto his futon and exhaled deeply. He finished his day's work, was allowed to relax, and was allowed to go to the festival. Things were looking great.

However, as great as things were, the all-too-familiar sound of a bell rang in his head.

[Da Da Da Daa!!! You've reached the age of eight!]

[+5 stat points will be added to your heavenly restriction]

My eight birthday already? Neat.

A feeling similar to leveling up a proficiency came. Only it wasn't a cool rush taking him, but rather a warmth taking his body as he felt even stronger than he had before.

[For your milestone, The System will now update!]

Huh? It can do that?

The same internet dialing sound he heard so long ago played. While it did, he took a seat near the end of his futon.

[Update Completed!]

[You have now unlocked the {Quests}, {Inventory}, and {Skill} tabs!]

"So I seriously couldn't get Quests before that? Really?" Fujiwara always waited on the iconic system quest that showed itself in every light novel with the gimmick. He always guessed it was because he was too young for the average quest, but that idea slowly decayed once his Heavenly Restriction came into play.

Then his skills being omitted didn't seem too bad after his stats grew to such highs, but for something even bigger than quests to be entirely omitted just seemed ridiculous. Fujiwara mentally sighed at this.

Whoever made this system didn't map it out well.

[Quest Incoming!]

Well, at least it'll be nice to see this go down.

The holographic blue text slowly loaded in front of him. He was even more excited to see his first quest. Perhaps it was related to the farming he was doing. Maybe it was exercising.

I just hope it's something good.

The text finally finished loading and he read it with a hopeful smile.

[A being made of Cursed Energy is hiding within the village, hiding until the Winter Festival begins! Exorcise it before it hurts anyone!]

[Reward: ???]

[Upon Failure: -10 in all stat points]

…

…

…

"WHAT?!?!"

[3 Days Before The Winter Festival]