Why The White Flame Is After Ciri In The Witcher
This post contains spoilers for Netflix's "The Witcher" and its source material.
The White Flame Who Dances on the Barrows of his Enemies. This is how Emperor Emhyr is known among those who both respect and fear him, as it is rumored that his ballroom in Nilfgaard is interred with the graves of his political enemies. Emhyr has always been a latent threat in "The Witcher," as his soaring ambitions include engulfing the Continent in chaos and getting his daughter, Cirilla, back at any cost. In the Netflix adaptation of "The Witcher" novels, Emhyr (Bart Edwards) was revealed to be Duny, Ciri's (Freya Allan) father, at the end of season 2, and this twist evoked confusing feelings at best.
As Duny had been propped up as a tragic yet noble figure in the show so far, his resurrection as Emhyr cast a shadow of doubt on his motivations behind coveting Ciri. Is Emhyr just a worried father looking for his daughter because he wants the best for her? According to the books, this is not the case: Emhyr's motivations behind wanting Ciri at Nilfgaard are far more nefarious and, frankly, abhorrent. As the show has not reached that juncture at the moment, let's look closer at Emhyr's actions in season 3 of the show and speculate what he could do next, based on cues from the novel series and the games.
It is important to note that Ciri is not aware that Emhyr is her father at this point, as she believes that Duny died alongside her mother when she lost both of her parents. This revelation, which is bound to happen at some point, will understandably distress her, and introduce more moral dilemmas for someone already burdened with the fate of the world.
Nilfgaard needs Ciri to turn the tides
At this moment in the show, Nilfgaardian forces are on the verge of taking over the Continent, and they seem to have a considerable advantage after the Thanedd Coup. The Battle of Sodden Hill was a blow for Emhyr and Nilfgaard, as it proved that no emperors could enforce their tyranny as long as the Mages were there to keep them in check. Emhyr bounces back by destroying the Brotherhood from within — the coup at Thanedd allowed Emhyr to employ his Scoia'tael ambush with greater precision, and singlehandedly dismantle one of the most crucial power structures in the Continent. As Vilgefortz (Mahesh Jadu) was Emhyr's spy all along, the Brotherhood was compromised from the get-go, and Tissaia's (MyAnna Buring) death only intensifies the precarious position in which the Mages currently find themselves.
The show adapts the Imposter Ciri storyline directly from the books, where a fake Ciri is implanted by Vilgefortz to distract Emhyr from the real one, as Vilgefortz intends to use her Elder Blood for his own ends. At the end of season 3, we see fake Ciri arriving at Nilfgaard and Emhyr accepting her by his side. In the books, Emhyr is aware of Vilgefortz's trickery but still accepts fake Ciri in order to strengthen his dominion over the Northern Kingdoms. However, as the world at large does not know that Emhyr is Duny (Ciri's biological father), how does Emhyr plan to use Ciri to strengthen his claim over the throne? This is where things get icky in the books: He marries her and plans to impregnate her to help fulfill Ithlinne's prophecy.
In essence, marrying the Lion Cub of Cintra automatically legitimizes Emhyr's rule beyond his coercive tactics, and Ciri's child serves the purpose of thwarting the White Frost.
What might happen next
Season 3 sets the stage for several narrative strands: Imposter Ciri is now at Nilfgaard, and Geralt thinks it's the real Ciri. While it's unclear how the Netflix adaptation will tackle what comes next, it is likely that Geralt will cross paths with Emhyr at some point, as he recruits Geralt to find the real Ciri both in the books and the video games. This complicates things, but it is important to understand that Emhyr needs his daughter to fulfill the prophecy, which, according to one interpretation, implies that Ciri's child can potentially help one rule the world. However, based on Ciri's understanding of the prophecy itself, her mere existence can destroy the world, putting her in a precarious position.
The video games take an interesting departure from the incest storyline in the books, as they omit this unsavory aspect in favor of painting Emhyr as a father who wants Ciri to take over his rule. While the reasons behind his motivations are vague, the games portray Emhyr in a much better light, as he emerges as a tactful ruler hell-bent on finding his daughter to simply pass on his legacy. Whether Ciri accepts this is dependent on the player, as if she does, she becomes Nilfgaard's ruler and helps bring peace to the Continent for several years. The Netflix show might or might not go down this path, but it will be interesting to see how it reveals Emhyr's true motivations for hounding Ciri down the line.
Regardless of how Emhyr is fleshed out, he is a ruthless ruler willing to use his daughter as a pawn. Everything boils down to Ciri's Elder Blood status — a double-edged sword that marks her as both the savior and destroyer of worlds, forever coveted even by her kin for nefarious reasons.