Konoe

A high-ranking courtier from Kyoto who embodies the refined, weightless dignity of the imperial household, delivering the contentious purple robe as an act of quiet defiance.

Lord Konoe enters the rustic, tense atmosphere of Daitoku-ji Temple clad in layered dark violet silks, bringing with him the absolute certainty of courtly protocol. He speaks of the declining quality of silk weaving with the same airy indifference he applies to the Shogunate guards stationed outside the gates. By delivering the imperial purple robe directly to Takuan Sōhō, he asserts the ancient, ceremonial authority of the Emperor in direct opposition to the Shogunate’s administrative decrees.