“Can I ask you one last thing?'' is a refreshing and thrilling fantasy about a martial arts young lady that has been broadcast on TOKYO MX, BS11, and other stations since October 2025. Shui's colorful ending theme “Inferia” has been released as a single.
This work, created by the popular Vocaloid P Scop, is a dark and aesthetic number with the motif of the heroine's nemesis Telenezza. The song opens with the dangerous-sounding line, “I want to compete for love, love, it's boring if I don't compete.'' Even though she sings languidly, she exudes a somewhat provocative nuance. It is a song that can be called a new frontier for Shui, as it vividly depicts the muddy emotions that sway at the bottom of a fairy-tale-like world with the shadows of her voice.
The coupling song includes the “Happiness of the Dead” Remix by Sasuke Haraguchi, who won the Boka Collection 2024 Winter TOP100 and was also selected for “Forbes JAPAN 30 UNDER 30.” He told me about the production of this work.
The feeling of singing the “feelings behind the scenes” came back to me
──First of all, please tell us how you felt when you decided to use it as the ending theme for “Can I have just one last request?”
Mr. Shuyui (hereinafter referred to as “Shuyui”):At first, I was drawn to the length of the title and honestly thought, “What kind of work is this?'' But when I actually read the manga, I found the development and tempo to be very interesting. I quickly fell into the world of art.
I've been reading a lot of boys' manga, so up until now I'd say it's more of a “princess” type of work. I haven't had many opportunities to see works in which the main character wears a dress, so it was very refreshing. Moreover, it was completely different from what I had imagined, and when the heroine loses her temper, she punches him (lol).
──Even though it is a “villainous daughter” story, it has a different kind of fun to it, doesn’t it? Moreover, this time, “Inferia'' is said to be based not on the main character, but on his nemesis Telenezza. How did the production start?
Shui:Actually, there were two potential songs, and I had them both recorded. Both have completely different atmospheres, and “Inferia'' had a very strong “Terenezza flavor.'' It's fairytale-like and a little dark. I was surprised at first. I thought it would be a more refreshing song, but it's quite heavy and has an atmosphere similar to early Vocaloid. I was also surprised that the motif was not the main character but Telenezza.
I have sung many ending themes so far, but I have never focused on a single character because I was conscious of expressing the worldview of the work as a whole. So this time, I was really worried about how to express Telenezza.
──Where did you find the clues?
Shui:This is repeating what I said earlier, but when I heard the sound, it reminded me of the nostalgic Vocaloid. It brought back the feeling of singing about the “underlying emotions'' that is unique to Vocaloid. You could call it that feeling that digs into the depths of your heart. I thought it was fun to be able to express emotions that are hard to express in everyday life.
──It's a sound unique to Vocaloid P member Scoppu.
Shui:Mr. Scoppu has been supporting the Vocaloid scene for a long time. I felt that that feeling of “nostalgia” must have come from there.
──There is a phrase like “Let me dye it in my color'', but this song has an impression of a dark cherry color, and it feels like Shui-san's previous image of blue has been repainted.
Shui:I was surprised to hear that they had just repainted it blue. If you ask me, yes, I just realized that (lol). The image is exactly like a dark cherry color. It's a bit bitter and deep red-purple. For Shui, this is a song with a color never seen before.
──What impression did you have when you read the lyrics?
Shui:It felt like I was reading a novel. I think Telenezza wrote the lyrics. It was filled with Telenezza's feelings, and it was an expression of his emotions. I thought it would be possible to put my heart into it without having to struggle too much.
──I think this is a literary expression that could only have been created by Shui, who has dealt seriously with words and the Japanese language. Personally, the phrase “Let's exchange this kind of relationship'' made me think, “This is not a friendship relationship, but a relationship like this.''
Shui:It's interesting, right? I would like you to read the lyrics. I think you'll enjoy it more if you read the text.
──You mentioned earlier that “it seems like you can put your heart into it without having to struggle too much.'' How was the recording?
Shui:It was going well! I had recorded a half-half demo once, so the direction of my singing style and expressions was pretty set in stone at an early stage. It's a song that can be sung in a wide variety of ways, so I don't want to stick to just one song; I think it's the type of song that gets better the more you play with it.
That's why I valued the “haphazard” feel and tried not to make it too elaborate. It felt like we were working together with the engineers and cops to discuss things like “Isn't this good?'' and “Let's try this too.''
──Was there any direction from Mr. Scopp?
Shui:That is the person who will entrust it to me. Of course, if I'm stuck, they'll give me advice like, “Can you try something like this?'' but basically I'm allowed to express myself freely. I'm also the type of person who likes to do things on my own, so maybe he understood that and left me in charge. I was really grateful.
I have a deep voice to begin with, so I thought it would be a good idea to sing naturally without trying too much. In terms of mood, I would say it's provoking. I was conscious of the feeling of being a little “irritating.''
──I was annoyed (lol).
Shui:What can I say, it looks shiny, but it's really dark… I didn't have much experience with it as an adult. But when I was in elementary school, when I had a fight with a friend, I remembered the feelings like “Oh, something doesn't go well and I'm confused,'' or “I'm angry because I love you,'' and I put that into the song. When you become an adult, you either give up and say, “That's enough,” or you become more careful.
──Ah, in that sense, it's a very human song.
Shui:I agree. I thought it was a song that gave a glimpse of the hysterical side of women. The beginning of the song is low and dark, but at the chorus, it suddenly rises to a high pitch and has elements of screaming, which I think is very Telenezza-like.
──Is there any part of the song that particularly moved you?
Shui:The lyrics say, “I want to distort that beautiful face.'' This is a phrase that feels like “I hate you so much that I love you,'' and I thought it had a nice weight to it, as it felt like the two sides of love and hate. Also, in terms of sound, I really like the intro. It starts off like a curtain rising, and it's like a fairy tale, like a marionette stage… It's something I've never heard before, so every time I listen to it, I'm shocked.
──In the ending video of the anime, there is a moment in the intro where Telenezza's eyes suddenly open…
Shui:I totally understand! (Laughs) That scene is great!
──Even though I know it's coming when I open my eyes, I still get a shock every time (lol). You can also see Telenezza dressed as a fairy tale heroine, but what was your impression after watching the ending video?
Shui:It's been picked up so much that I thought, “Telenezza is the main character!'' The drawings are so good and I think it's so cute (lol). The range of facial expressions is also amazing. There was a cut that looked like a mermaid, and stars were reflected in “I Want to Become a Star,'' and I could feel the love that the anime team put into it.
── On the other hand, Shui-san's own music video has a completely different impression from what we've seen so far.
Shui:thank you. Since this is a song that has never been done before, the video is also like nothing that has ever been done before. In both videos, the curtain rises and the song begins. I thought that whoever listened to it would get the feeling that the story was about to begin.
──I feel a “heavy love” from both videos. This is a slightly similar question, but how do you perceive the “love” that this song depicts?
Shui:The most important thing is “humanity”. However, it is only in the second half of the story that Telenezza's humanity comes to the fore. At first, when you look at it from the viewer's perspective, there are many scenes where you think, “It's annoying!'' (lol). The main character, Scarlett, punched me in the face and I was like, “Thank you!'' (laughs) However, as the story progresses, we begin to see Telenezza's past memories and how she is like a puppet… In the end, I felt that “love and hate become similar in quality once you let go of your emotions.''
I used to have a hamster, and it was so cute that I felt so much love for it that I felt it squeeze when I held it in my hand… It's called “cute aggression,” and it's similar to that feeling. I thought that love and hate are the same when taken to their extremes.
──Does the “heavyness and complexity of emotion” in Telenezza that you were just talking about connect with Shui-san’s sensibilities as a singer?
Shui:Yes, there is. Singers cover a wide variety of songs, and naturally they want to express themselves, but they make sure to prioritize the worldview of the song first. It seems like it's the same thing, but maybe it's not the same thing…Telenezza also has moments where it seems like she's trying to cover herself up by trying to be a “contrived bad guy'' at first. I guess that's why he's trying to protect himself. When I saw that, I thought, “Ah, maybe we're the same.'' Although the vectors are different, I felt that they somehow resonated in the sense of “protecting/revealing by covering thoroughly.''
──(At the time of the interview) I think that Telenezza's full-fledged turn will probably come around the next time, so my impression of this song will likely change at that time.
Shui:I agree. I think the more Telenezza moves, the more this song shines. I feel like the more I know about her, the more we overlap.
──Again, what kind of song do you think “Inferia” turned out to be for Shui-san?
Shui:It was a very new challenge. I feel like I was able to show my “not-so-blue self''. It was my first experience singing as a character based on the character Telenezza, and although it was difficult, it was even more fun.
