Crown atop his head and armed only with a sword and his scepter, he laid waste to countless men.
~Qrow on the king of Vale, revealed to be one of Ozpin’s incarnations

I mean I didn’t go to combat school! I didn’t pass any tests! I didn’t earn my spot at this academy! I lied! I got my hands on some fake transcripts, and I lied!
~Jaune to Pyrrha

It’s a hand-me-down. My great-great-grandfather used it to fight in the war.
~Jaune on Crocea Mors

Who I am matters not to you! Or you! Or–Well…you do interest me.
~Tyrian to Ren, then Nora, then Jaune

It’s been a running gag on the Beacon Broadcast that the reason Jaune got into Beacon Academy was not because Ozpin was fooled by his fake transcripts, but because Jaune is the great-great-grandson of Ozpin as the king of Vale (who, in such a case, might be named Ozark), and Ozpin wanted to give his progeny-removed a chance at becoming a huntsman. In a word: nepotism.

Part of the reason it’s funny is because it’s plausible, specifically with respect to Jaune being related to the king of Vale. Jaune has an old sword and shield from the time of the Great War that looks very similar to the design used in the statue in front of Beacon–a statue that may have been based on the king of Vale, given that the academies were made by him after the War. The weapon’s name, Crocea Mors–meaning “yellow death,” with the shade of yellow being golden or saffron–is also the name of the legendary sword given to Julius Caesar, which gives the weapon itself a “kingly” association.

In addition, the depiction of the king’s sword in the Great War WoR is colored a bright golden yellow to complement the Ozpin green.

So, Jaune might actually have the king’s old sword. Maybe Ozpin was flattered and let him in on nostalgia alone. Or maybe…maybe there’s something more.

Maybe it’s something Tyrian sensed too.

It’s strongly suggested that the king of Vale used the Relics to end the Great War, given the deadly weather patterns mentioned at the final battle, and given that the king put one Relic in each of the academies he founded. Three items mentioned by Qrow are the king’s crown, the king’s sword, and the king’s scepter. From the art above, the scepter seems to be Ozpin’s cane…which we recently learned is not a Relic, against all expectations. However, the sword and the crown might still be, along with two other unmentioned objects.

We can infer from the Maiden/Relic correspondence mentioned earlier in Volume 5 that Cinder Fall was sent to Beacon to obtain the Fall Maiden’s power and unlock the Relic of Choice. But we also know the Relic wasn’t in the tower. In fact, Cinder couldn’t find it at all.

Let’s just say I made finding the Relic at Beacon a…bit more challenging than at the other schools.
~Ozpin

What if, during the attack at Beacon, someone sent the Relic far away from the main battle?

In a rocket locker, perhaps?

What if Ozpin hid the Relic of Choice–disguised as a sword and shield, representative of the option to choose to use weapons to attack or to defend–as an Arc family heirloom, and brought Jaune into Beacon (maybe even getting fake forms into his reach) to keep the Relic safe again?

Cinder couldn’t recognize it because she never saw it (which is why I think it’s Jaune’s sword rather than Pyrrha’s crown, which she interacted with directly. Also, Pyrrha’s from Mistral, and getting the Beacon Relic there seems like a bad idea). Tyrian couldn’t recognize the sword/shield because Jaune upgraded it. But something about Jaune…still seemed interesting to him. Perhaps unmet potential, both in Jaune and in his weapon.

There’s one more thing that stands out to me about Crocea Mors. Not the weapon–the name. A golden yellow death, connected to Ozpin.

What if the sword was named after Ozpin’s trademark of possession?

Golden eyes in reflections, and soon the person you knew is gone forever, whether subsumed or merged, and this new person is off gathering Relics, swinging swords, and reshaping the face of the world in the name of ending the War and protecting humanity.

I suppose sometimes it’s not the sword that kills you, but the shield.