Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach

Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach, or simply Cahir, was an intelligence officer of the Nilfgaardian Empire who hailed from Vicovaro. He was the son of Ceallach and Mawr, the brother of Dheran, Aillil and grandnephew to Assire var Anahid.

Early life
He was born to noble Vicovarian pair, Seneschal Ceallach Dyffryn aep Gruffyd and his wife Mawr, in the family's stronghold, Darn Dyffra. He also had a lot of siblings, notably brothers Dheran, Aillil and three sisters. Among the mages, he was related to Assire var Anahid, his great-aunt.

At some point in his life his skills were recognized by Nilfgaaardian Intelligence, maybe thanks to his father's position at court, and he joined its ranks later becoming an officer. He was also given the title of count.

Mission to find Ciri
During the First Northern War, he had a secret mission to locate, capture, and bring Princess Cirilla of Cintra back to Nilfgaard. At one point, he was very close, yet Ciri evaded and fled from him (he later claims to have let her escape on purpose). He frequently appeared in Ciri's nightmares and it only later became clear to Geralt that he, Cahir, was the black knight with the bird of prey wings on his helmet. When the witcher first met Cahir, he had recently been released from two years in prison from which he had only expected to escape via the gallows. The emperor decided to give him one more chance, adding that if he did not succeed, the executioner's axe awaited him. He also states that the chance of a pardon is extremely small and that of forgiveness, non-existent. All this related to a mysterious incident two years earlier, but no further details are provided. Emhyr var Emreis, the emperor of Nilfgaard tasks him with finding Ciri.

Travelling with Geralt
Later, he joined Geralt's party but not without the witcher's strong (and vocal) objections. Geralt nearly killed him on at least three occasions before finally (begrudgingly) accepting him into his party. The first time was during the coup on Thanedd Island, then again later while Cahir was being transported as a prisoner in a coffin by hawkers.

During the assault on Stygga, he faced Leo Bonhart. Ciri told Bonhart that he was the witcher, but the seasoned killer was not frightened by this bluff and defeated the "Black Knight" with relative ease. Though he seemed an enemy at the outset, his sacrifice gave Ciri and Angoulême time to escape.

He loved Ciri and had frequent dreams about her where he saw her as an adult with a rose tattoo on her thigh.

Trivia

 * Dandelion was fond of making fun of his and Regis's long names.
 * Cahir's mother's name Mawr means "big" in Welsh. His father's name, Ceallach, is of Irish-Gaelic origins, and means "bright-headed".
 * Cahir was unable to fully bend three fingers of his hand which had been cut by Ciri in a sword duel during the Thanedd coup.
 * Cahir was very often called "Nilfgaardian" by various people, he was always correcting them, stating that he was from Vicovaro.
 * In, the Armor of Vicovaro's name in the def_shops game assets file is called "Cahir Armor", a reference to the fact he was from Vicovaro.
 * In, there is a gwent card with his likeness. He is also mentioned by General Morvran Voorhis during a conversation with Geralt about competing horses in an upcoming race. The training dummy with a Nilfgaardian helmet at Kaer Morhen is also a possible reference to Cahir.

Notes & references
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