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The circumstances used for the comparison is different, so I won't say it's a good one. I don't remember any of the other girls even think (not attempt) of sitting in front Hayate between his legs, so I can't really compare his reactions. Although, it was obvious through the chapter that he doesn't mind if it's Athena, and he even willingly (his choice) to embrace her from behind. Moreover, he even asked Athena whether she's alright with the way he embraced her, which was an initiative he never make on any other girl in embarrassing situations.
He really does think Hina is beautiful (no doubt), but he was much more so in awe with Maria's (in normal clothes, no less) beauty on their first meeting. So, I don't think there's any meaning to it accept praising Hina's beauty, and he'd probably said something similar to every girl in a dress. And, the fact is, despite having the beautiful Hina being with him, he never once/couldn't enjoyed (although he tried) the time his was spending time with her during the evening. All he thinks about was Athena to the point where it was impossible for him to hide it regardless of how hard he tried to pretend. I think that speaks of his value of Athena compare to Hina.
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