Purpose.

Short as a forearm or long as a man. Smooth, shiny, black, rusted, wavy or warped. Straight or curved, edged or serrated. Some are easier to wield, some more effective in battle. But a sword is a weapon, always. The reason it was made means nothing, nor does the way it was used.

A sword is a weapon, always, and all weapons have only one purpose.

It was as clear to him now as the day he first gripped the hilt of a saber. Nothing had changed since he had first killed. To defend or avenge, it did not matter; when he held a sword, he held all swords.

He held death, waiting to happen.