The Alpha Wolf Festival: The Year Before follows Derpy as he enters Petal Fields to train as his grandmother Okamihana’s champion, with one year remaining before the festival. What begins as a chance to reconnect with his family becomes a struggle over his freedom. Ancient grudges, expectations surrounding his father, and an arranged partnership with Hydra test whether his relatives truly want to understand him—or decide his future for him. With Revy, Tina, and his other companions beside him, Derpy explores powers even the gods struggle to understand. As family conflicts turn violent, he must learn whom to trust, how to protect his people, and what belonging to a family should mean.