He sighed. "I can't say I much relish the thought of you wieldin' deadly weapons, but... Thing is, I may not always be able to look out for you, for whatever reason. Might be best for you to acquire some of that skill."

He paused, trying to figure out how to word what else he was thinking. "Shooting's... easier than stabbing," he finally said. "Lets you keep your distance."

Makes it even easier to take a life, he might've pointed out, but he didn't want to get too far into that.