The Wild Hunt
Mattheus had still been on horseback when he saw one of the beasts that they were to eradicate. This was mostly since he planned on switching rides during the first break they took. Yet the Wild Hunt did not stop once they rode out of the city until wetting their blades with the blood of their first prey.
Another tradition, apparently.
Ignoring that they rode hard for several hours, a noisy group of whooping and rough laughter amongst the suddenly vocal hunting hounds, the first clash he witnessed had the twenty-one-year-old realize two things.
The hulking beast, a monstrous-looking bear with bloodstained horn and gore around its slavering mouth, was something that could wipe out a village easily. It had met the challenge of the hunting party with a roar as it stood as tall as a building, claws more sloth than bear.