Urban LitRPG System-Chapter 96: Dinner, Mess & Solution. (2/3)

Someone used to negotiation and politics understood how to pause a discussion without appearing rude. Aaron Müller clearly knew how a place like Dallmayr operated and used that rhythm to think before speaking.

The third course was placed carefully before each guest.

This dish was a refined seafood main course, presented with the elegance expected from Dallmayr’s kitchen — butter-poached North Sea turbot, one of the most prized fish in European fine dining. The thick white fillet sat perfectly centered on the plate, its surface glossy from a delicate beurre monté sauce.

Beside it rested a small arrangement of seasonal vegetables — tender white asparagus tips, baby carrots, and a few roasted pearl onions — arranged with minimalist precision. Beneath the fish was a smooth layer of saffron-infused potato purée, adding both richness and color, while a light champagne reduction had been carefully spooned around the plate, creating a subtle aroma that lifted the entire dish.

The presentation was restrained but luxurious, every element measured and balanced, the kind of plate that reflected both classical French technique and Bavarian refinement — unmistakably worthy of Dallmayr’s reputation.

The servers stepped back quietly once the dishes were placed, leaving the table once again as the conversation prepared to resume.

" I don’t see a way out for you. "

Aaron said it calmly while continuing to eat the dish in front of her, her expression serious and thoughtful rather than cold. The words landed heavily across the table.

Max was visibly surprised for a brief moment, the directness of her answer cutting through the careful preparation of the evening, while Finn looked at his mother with open shock, clearly not expecting such a blunt response after all the effort that had gone into arranging the dinner.

" Honey, surely... "

Linn spoke carefully, his tone uncertain as he glanced between his wife and Max. He genuinely wanted to help the young man sitting across from him. Max was his son’s friend, someone who had protected Finn and brought stability into his life, but Aaron had just rejected the entire purpose of tonight’s gathering in a single sentence.

Max remained quiet, he took another bite of the dish slowly, his face composed, but behind that calm exterior his mind was moving quickly, recalculating everything that had happened so far. If Aaron Müller believed there was no legal path forward, then the dinner had already lost its main objective.

Instead of reacting emotionally, Max began searching for other possibilities, mentally stepping back from the plan he had built around this meeting and treating the evening as if it had already failed.

Because if one door closed, the only logical move was to find another before the night ended.

Jennifer looked at Max immediately after hearing Aaron’s words, searching his face for some kind of reaction, but seeing him calmly eating instead of arguing or panicking made the last bit of hope in her chest sink. If even Max wasn’t pushing back, then maybe the situation really had no solution.

" You didn’t ask me why I said that? "

Aaron spoke again, this time with a faint smile forming on her lips as she looked directly at Max, clearly curious about his reaction.

Max set his fork down slowly before answering.

" I invited you to a private dinner, Mrs. Müller. You’re my friend’s mother, and more importantly a city official. If you say there’s no way out, I assume you have a reason. I don’t see the point in forcing you to repeat something unpleasant just to satisfy my curiosity. "

His voice remained calm, the tone respectful but firm, carrying the quiet confidence of someone who didn’t need to argue to protect his dignity.

Max gave a small smile afterward and briefly glanced toward Jennifer, the look reassuring rather than defeated, before his gaze returned to Aaron, his posture relaxed as if the entire topic had already lost its weight in his mind.

To him, this conversation no longer held the same importance it did a few minutes ago.

" You’re as courageous as both of them say. "

Aaron pointed lightly toward her husband and her son, then briefly covered her mouth as she let out a small laugh, the earlier seriousness easing from her expression. The remark wasn’t mocking — it carried genuine approval, the kind given when someone had proven their composure without trying to impress anyone.

" Left alone in this world since I was born. I was adopted, but my foster parents died not long after, leaving me to fend for myself again. I learned early not to expect anything from anyone... and to prepare for everything instead. "

Max said it simply, without drama, as if he were explaining a basic fact rather than recounting hardship. He kept eating as he spoke, the tone steady, and after finishing the sentence he gave Jennifer a small reassuring smile and gestured for her to continue eating as well.

Inside his mind, however, calculations were already moving forward.

So I’ll have to pay him for the rest of my life?

The thought tightened his jaw slightly.

With the system on my side... I’ll just use the Palladium Card and hand him his own money.

Max remained composed outwardly, but the frustration inside him was real. He knew brute force wasn’t the answer. He had already grown stronger than most heavyweight MMA fighters, and Machina was something far beyond human strength entirely, but this wasn’t a battlefield.

It was the modern world, filled with cameras, laws, and consequences that didn’t disappear simply because someone was powerful.

Max understood one thing very clearly, no matter how capable he became, committing a crime recklessly would only destroy everything he was building.

Let’s wait and see how the Saoirse situation unfolds. I already took a gamble there.

Max kept his expression calm at the table, but his mind briefly revisited the chain of events surrounding Saoirse. He had beaten the bully who had been tormenting her, and although he had planned the encounter carefully and executed it with control, it was still a risk.

If any evidence had remained, or worse — if one of those men had died — the consequences could have spiraled quickly.

The bully had not been just some random troublemaker either. He was the son of one of Bronte’s most trusted lieutenants, the man often described as Bronte’s right hand.

Still, if Max’s plan unfolded the way he hoped, the result could turn into an unexpected advantage. If tension grew between Bronte and his own lieutenant because of the incident, the internal fracture would weaken them both, that would be the best possible outcome.

" Actually, the reason I said that earlier is because the Mayor and several high-ranking people in the city already have connections with Bronte. Even for me, he’s essentially untouchable... unless— "

Aaron paused mid-sentence with a faint smile forming on her lips, deliberately leaving the final part unfinished.

Max noticed the pause but didn’t interrupt. Instead, he gave a small knowing smile and casually glanced toward the doorway.

*Knock*

" Come in. "

Max said calmly, the door opened and the maître d’ entered once again, followed by the service staff carrying the fourth course of the evening.

At Dallmayr, this stage of the meal usually marked the transition from lighter seafood courses into the centerpiece of the dinner — the main entrée.

The plates placed before the guests revealed an elegant preparation of Bavarian milk-fed veal loin, cooked to a perfect blush-pink center. The veal rested atop a delicate bed of truffle-infused potato mousseline, the smooth purée adding richness without overwhelming the meat.

Alongside it were roasted seasonal vegetables — baby carrots glazed lightly with honey, charred asparagus tips, and small pearl onions caramelized until they carried a deep golden color. A glossy reduction of veal jus had been carefully spooned across the plate, the dark sauce adding both aroma and depth.

The presentation followed the philosophy of high-end European cuisine — restrained but precise, every component balanced in flavor and placement.

The staff poured a carefully selected red wine pairing beside the dish, the bottle introduced briefly by the sommelier before each glass was filled with quiet professionalism.

Once the plates were placed and the wine served, the staff withdrew again, leaving the table in calm silence for a moment — the kind of pause that naturally reset the conversation before it continued.

" Unless? "

Finn asked before he could stop himself, leaning slightly forward with curiosity, so absorbed in the discussion that he momentarily forgot he was speaking to his own scary mother.

Aaron glanced at him briefly, but instead of correcting him she simply continued.

" Unless he is outside Munich. Especially if he’s in Regensburg, where you’re from, The mayor of Regensburg is my friend and she will help us out "

Aaron explained calmly, cutting a small piece of the veal before taking another bite, speaking as if she were outlining a strategy rather than speculating.

Max’s eyebrow lifted slightly when he heard the word "us."

He had almost forgotten that Aaron Müller had her own reasons for paying attention to Bronte. From what Linn had said earlier, Bronte had managed to operate in Munich for years without leaving evidence strong enough for the city administration to move against him.

Meaning this wasn’t just Max’s problem anymore, Aaron was interested as well. Max set his fork down slowly.

" So... what do we have to do? "

This time there was a different expression on his face — a confident smile returning, the earlier disappointment disappearing as quickly as it had appeared.

If there was a path forward, even a difficult one, then Max had no intention of stepping away from it, In that moment, the way he looked across the table made it clear he wasn’t intimidated by Bronte at all, If anything, it felt like he had just been given permission to finally move against him.