“Luke, today’s your book signing. Time to get up!”
“Huh? Who’s calling me?”
Luke sat up in bed and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.
The bedroom door opened, and James walked in before pulling the blanket off him.
“Come on. Your mom has breakfast ready.”
“Okay, I’m getting up.”
Luke quickly changed out of his pajamas, washed up, and headed downstairs.
“Oh, Anna’s up early today.”
“Hmph! You’re the lazy one,” Anna replied, already focused entirely on the food in front of her.
“Eat slowly,” Luke said with a smile.
“A proper young lady doesn’t get food all over her face.”
“I’m not a baby anymore,” Anna huffed, rolling her eyes.
Luke finished his bacon sandwich in just a few bites before draining a glass of milk.
“I’m done. Dad, let’s go.”
“No rush.” James smiled confidently.
“Trust my driving. We won’t be late.”
“Dad, I want to come too!”
Afraid everyone would leave without her, Anna immediately spoke up.
“Be good, Anna. Stay home with Mommy. We’ll take you next time.”
Before she could protest again, James leaned over and kissed Helen on the forehead.
“We should be back by lunchtime. If we’re delayed, don’t wait for us.”
“All right.” Helen smiled.
“Drive safely.”
On the Road
“Luke,” James said as they drove toward London, “during the signing, just sign books and take photos with readers. Don’t agree to any other requests. I’ll be nearby the whole time.”
“Okay, Dad.”
After a brief pause, Luke asked, “Since it’s the weekend, will there be a lot of people?”
“I don’t think so. There shouldn’t be many reporters either. Most of the visitors will probably be children and their parents.” James patted the camera on the passenger seat.
“I also brought the camcorder so we can show Anna everything when we get home.”
“That’s good.”
Luke nodded.
“After the signing, can we stop by Baker Street?”
“Sure, but only for a little while. Your mom will be waiting for us for lunch.”
“Deal.”
Before long, they arrived at the bookstore hosting the event.
Several children and their parents were already waiting outside.
“It looks like The Lion King is more popular than I expected,” James said with satisfaction.
“The organizer for today’s event is Justin. There he is.”
A man quickly walked over to greet them.
“James, you’re finally here! I was starting to think we’d have to delay the event.”
James laughed.
“Relax. I’m always on time.”
Justin turned toward Luke with a friendly smile.
“So you’re Luke. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Let’s get started. We shouldn’t keep your young fans waiting.”
“It’s nice to meet you too, Uncle Justin.”
Luke looked toward his father.
“Dad, I’m going over first.”
“Go ahead.” James took out his camcorder.
“I’ll record everything from here.”
As soon as Luke stepped into the signing area, the waiting children immediately became excited.
Justin picked up a microphone.
“Welcome, everyone, to today’s The Lion King book signing. Standing beside me is the author of this wonderful story, Luke Kirk. Luke, would you like to say a few words to your readers?”
Luke nodded politely.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Luke Kirk, the author of The Lion King. Thank you all for coming today. I hope this story has brought you happiness, and I hope it continues to do so.”
Justin smiled.
“All right, the signing is officially open! Please line up in an orderly fashion. We’ve also prepared Simba plush toys, and every child will receive one before leaving.”
Once the line had formed, Justin walked over to James.
“Luke is amazing,” he said with a grin.
“My daughter absolutely loves The Lion King. She even handed me her copy this morning and told me I wasn’t allowed to come home without an autograph.”
James laughed.
“I’m glad she likes it.”
“I also heard a studio is adapting it into an animated film.”
“That’s right. Production has already begun.”
“Congratulations in advance. I’ll definitely take my daughter to see it when it comes out.”
Justin smiled warmly before excusing himself.
“I’ve got a few things to take care of upstairs. If you need anything, you’ll find me in my office on the second floor.”
“Thanks for all your hard work today, Justin.”
The first reader in line was a little girl.
“Hello, Luke. I really love your story. I read it every night before I go to bed.”
“Thank you.”
Luke smiled gently.
“I originally created it as a bedtime story for my little sister.”
“She’s so lucky to have a brother like you.”
The girl hesitated for a moment before asking,
“Can I take a picture with you?”
“Of course. Did you bring a camera?”
She immediately turned around and waved excitedly.
“Mom! Come take a picture with Luke and me!”
A woman standing farther back smiled and hurried over with a camera.
The next reader in line was a chubby little boy.
“Hey, did you really write The Lion King? I love Simba!”
“Thank you.” Luke smiled as he signed the book.
“Don’t forget to pick up a Simba plush toy before you leave.”
“Really? That’s awesome! I’ve wanted one for so long. Thank you!”
“You’re welcome. I hope you’ll enjoy my next story too.”
“Your next story?”
“That’s right.” Luke leaned in slightly and lowered his voice.
“But don’t tell anyone. It’s a secret.”
“Okay! I promise I won’t!”
The book signing continued smoothly.
Throughout the event, James stood nearby, recording Luke from different angles with his camcorder.
At the beginning, Luke had been genuinely excited.
In his previous life, he had been an ordinary office worker who spent most of his time trapped in the exhausting routine of long work hours.
Opportunities like this had been nothing more than a distant dream.
But after nearly two hours of signing books nonstop, all of that excitement had disappeared.
Now…
His hand hurt.
His arm hurt.
Even his shoulder was beginning to ache.
“Next, please.”
Luke lowered his head and reached for the next book.
The little girl standing in front of him looked strangely familiar.
As he uncapped his pen, she spoke.
“Could you write a message for me? My name is Hermione Granger.”
“I really love this book.”
“My parents were too busy today, so I came here by myself.”
Then she looked at him with sparkling eyes.
“Are you really only seven? I can’t believe someone my age could write such an amazing story.”
Hermione…
Hermione Granger?
Luke suddenly froze and looked up at the little girl.
The familiar brown hair.
The familiar face.
The familiar name.
There was no mistake.
Luke had read the Harry Potter series countless times in his previous life.
In fact, the unfinished novel he had been planning to publish was Harry Potter itself.
Hermione would enter Hogwarts at the age of eleven.
She was seven years old now.
The timeline matched perfectly.
A wave of shock swept through him.
Wasn’t this supposed to be the Marvel Universe?
Was Hermione Granger just someone with the same name…
Or was this world far more complicated than I thought?
Just then, a mechanical voice suddenly echoed inside his mind.
[System analysis: 99%.]
[System analysis: 100%.]
[Analysis complete.]
[System activated.]
[World analysis in progress…]
[No spiritual energy detected.]
[Adjusting system to match this world’s laws…]
[10%…]
[50%…]
[100%…]
[Upgrade complete.]
[Initializing beginner rewards…]
[You have obtained: Image Retention Technique.]
[You have obtained: Holy Spirit Root.]
[Holy Spirit Root: Greatly increases affinity with all forms of magic, improves magical resistance, strengthens spell power, accelerates the learning speed of magic, and significantly enhances the user’s physical constitution. Further abilities remain locked.]
[You have obtained: Natural Affinity.]
[Natural Affinity: Allows communication with certain plants and animals. Plants within a certain range experience accelerated growth and may undergo special mutations.]
[You have obtained: Vermilion Bird Gift Pack (Unique).]
[Vermilion Bird Cultivation Technique: Provides body-tempering effects whenever the user’s cultivation advances. Greatly increases affinity with fire, enhances the power of fire-based techniques, and allows flames to evolve by absorbing extraordinary flames. Further abilities remain locked.]
[Vermilion Bird Bloodline: Greatly improves resistance against mental attacks, increases affinity with fire, and enhances the power of fire-based abilities. Further abilities remain locked.]
[Fireball Spell: A basic fire-element spell with growth potential.]
The notifications continued one after another, leaving Luke momentarily stunned.
“Um…”
Hermione shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.
“Is… is there something on my face?”
Only then did Luke come back to his senses.
“Sorry.”
He smiled apologetically and lowered his head to sign her book.
“Please give me a moment. I’ll think of a nice message for you.”
After handing the signed book back, Luke glanced toward James, who was still filming nearby.
“Dad,” he said quietly, “I’m getting a little tired. Can we finish up here?”
James looked at his son, then nodded understandingly.
Stepping forward, he addressed the remaining readers.
“Thank you all for coming to Luke’s book signing today. We’ll be wrapping up the event here. Thank you very much for your support.”
As the remaining children and parents gradually dispersed, James turned back to Luke.
“Take a break here for a few minutes,” he said.
“I’m going upstairs to talk with Justin.”