[When he speaks, his voice is calm and steady. The beginning of the tale isn't that hard for him, so to speak.]

I was a nameless tantou under my old ronin master's care. He lived with his wife and their young son. But one day... [Was it the master? The wife? His earlier years are vague to him.] ...he passed away from an illness. With just his wife and their son left behind, they needed money to support themselves. So his wife decided to sell me for money.

[Money... In a sense, that's what started it for him.]

In order to do that, she have to pass through the area known as the Sayo no Nakayama. It's... known for having many bandits and thefts there.

That was where she was killed and I was stolen from her.

[Sayo looks back at his pets, lost in his memories of that time. The faint memories of that scene, and the bandit's hand on his hilt.]

...I was with the bandit for a long time and used as he wish for his crimes. [Theft. Murder. The voices of hatred he killed and can still hear in his dreams.] Until he stopped and took me to a sword polisher.

The sword polisher apprentice he met was... my old ronin master and his wife's son.

[Can you see where this is going, Sousei...]