Sam felt that Yodha is his best shot to get out of his situation, but that doesn't mean he can act immediately.
He has to wait for a while to get the best timing to get out of here.
For now, there are no immediate fights for him for the next week. He will be free and peaceful. Since he has some friendship with the attendants, he has some extra privileges of chatting with them.
So, for every chance he got he started sharing some wine and chatting up with the attendants around him.
He asked about many things and most of the time his conversation started with the question, 'what's new?'
This can translate as both things like what's new in the city or around the Arena and what's new with your life. This might seem like a simple wordplay, but it made a world of difference and the meaning doesn't depend on Sam but the person he is talking to.
