"Yes, you are more likely correct," Iroh said. "And such things are often hidden until they are ready to strike. In some ways, the taking of the Palace while the current Emperor was out was... not as much of a problem as it could have been."

In other words, Malicant having the Palace was bad, but Iroh could think of it being worse. They still had several people free and most of the city wasn't Malicant's territory. Iroh hadn't lived in a city under occupation before -- during the siege of Ba Sing Sei, he'd been on the invading army, and when the Fire Nation had captured the city, he'd been in prison -- but he understood some of the theory from talking to his neighbors. And, truthfully, Ba Sing Sei under the Dai Li hadn't been too different than under the Firelord's occupation, especially for a renegade firebender.

It was making Iroh think. Bounding over the walls on a comet-fueled fire blast was not an option here.