The Witcher S3: Real Reason Nilfgaardian Emperor Is after Ciri Will Totally Disgust You
If you think that you’ve already seen the worst controversies of The Witcher, you’ll change your mind after learning what is it the Emperor needs his daughter for.
With The Witcher S3 finally out, we felt the urge to preserve the sanity of the show’s fans who haven’t read the original Sapkowski’s books. It’s likely that later this season — perhaps, in Vol. 2 — the real reason for the Nilfgaardian Emperor’s hunt for Ciri will be revealed, and we want you to be mentally prepared.
The Emperor of Nilfgaard’s real name is Emhyr var Emreis — but we’ve met him earlier in the series. He called himself Duny, Urcheon of Erlenwald, and he married Queen Calante’s daughter Pavetta and looked good doing that. Well, as good as an anthropomorphic hedgehog can look, anyway. Let’s move on.
If you haven’t caught up by now, let’s clarify one funny fact: this makes Ciri the daughter of the Nilfgaardian Emperor and the current heir to the thrones of both Cintra and Nilfgaard. This may lead you to think that Emhyr wants his daughter back so that she can inherit his vast Empire, but that’s actually far from the truth.
You see, back in the day. Emhyr’s father, the ruler of Nilfgaard, was killed and overthrown by the Usurper.
Following a certain prophecy, Emhyr took revenge and led a revolt against the Usurper and killed both him and his sympathizers, paving the floor of his ballroom with their graves (hence, his nickname The White Flame Dancing on the Barrows of His Enemies).
While the prophecy suggested that Emhyr would do that, it also promised him a son that would take after the father and rule over the entire world.
But that boy needed to have the Elder Blood flowing in his veins, and Emhyr had none. His wife Pavetta did, but she died, and Ciri was left to be the only living person with the Elder Blood in her.
For Emhyr, the all-powerful Emperor of Nilfgaard obsessed with his prophecy, this only means one thing: he needs his daughter Ciri to bear his son, the future ruler of the world. The Emperor is very much not concerned with matters of morality or will, and he even started a full-blown war with the Northern Kingdoms to find Ciri.
So… Yeah.
If you thought you’d seen it all in The Witcher, just wait until you see our almighty hedgehog dude try to have a child with his daughter to produce an heir.