Meanwhile Jake, Kyle and Lu Yifeng had made it safely into the arena. They had been surprised not to meet anyone, not even the shadow of a cat. The arena and its surroundings were eerily quiet, the atmosphere as eerie and stressful as it could be.
As they progressed, the trio thought several times that they were walking straight into the lion's den, but they had to face the facts. No one was waiting for them. No ambush behind a wall, no archer watching from a balcony, no trap to step into. Everything was horribly quiet and empty.
At least that's what they thought at first. Realizing that no one was interested in them, they started watching the other buildings surrounding the inner courtyard, and especially the one where Servius Cassius and his wife lived. The arena was quite large and the marble walls were thick, so Jake and Lu Yifeng could not hear much. No suspicious sounds except the wind and a few owls perched somewhere they didn't know about.