Claire Feeling

"Woah, who is this beauty?!" Henry thought to himself as soon as he noticed one of the receptionist girls.

 "Please, come to this counter. Ms. Via, the senior receptionist, will be at your service!" Lisa informed the group, gesturing the way. 

"Hey, my name is Henry, the sword's hero. What is your name?" Henry approached the receptionist girl he saw and greeted her with a style. 

"Hmm… Greetings, my name is Isabelle. How can I assist you?" When Isabelle heard that he was the hero, she had no choice but to serve him. 

Lisa noticed this and notified Via with a nod before walking to Isabelle's counter. 

"Oh, Ms. Isabelle, would you mind helping Lord Henry and his companions with the registration and briefly explaining everything to them?" Lisa asked Isabelle with a smile. 

"Oh... yes, sure," Isabelle replied, nodding her head before preparing the registration process. 

"Please, the five of you wait here for a bit. Ms. Isabelle will help you with the registration. I will go and check with the receptionist real quick," Lisa informed the group before heading to Via's counter to have a talk.

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"Isabelle, what a nice name! Maybe I should make a move on her," Henry thought to himself as he looked at her intensely with lust while Isabelle prepared the registration form. 

"Damn, that Xenon really predicted everything, and his plan is really working out somehow! I was lucky enough to be bestowed with the 'Hero' class. The Cormac family will regain fame and power for sure, but before that, I should fulfill my wish of building the harem I've always dreamed of," Henry continued with his fantasy thoughts as he began filling out the form with the rest of his group that Isabelle handed him. 

Henry Cormac came from the Cormac family, the long-lasting rival family of the Harrington family. He was the youngest son of the current head of the family, with four siblings. Even though Henry was a noble, he was looked down upon by his own family because of his poor swordsmanship and being weak. He always trained his sword and worked harder than everyone else to be acknowledged, until one day he was turned down by one of the girls he had a crush on. She was a noble and studied in the same class as him. When he found out the reason she dumped him was because of Winston, he was devastated. Even before Winston became famous as the country's best swordsman, his skill and looks surpassed anyone in the kingdom. 

Henry had never met Winston or talked to him. Until the time when Winston was leaving his house to train his sword, Xenon Harrington, Winston's cousin, approached Henry. Henry was surprised when he met Xenon for the first time, who was the same age as him and Winston. The two had never talked to each other, but Xenon knew about Henry's grudge toward Winston through his informants. Xenon had not only targeted Henry but others as well.

"Heh, I just followed his plan for now! He told me to meet Cedric if I needed anything," Henry muttered to himself as he finished his form and handed it to Isabelle. 

After they were done with the registration, the five of them left the guild and returned to the dormitory that the school provided for them. Even though Henry was surrounded by these girls, he could not make a move on any of them as he needed to gain their trust first. 

The girls he requested to be part of his party were all associated with Winston, and he wanted to get revenge by being loved by these girls who used to be close to Winston. Claire was already under his charm, but in order for her to remain as a saint, she must remain pure. Henry knew that, so he could not lay his fingers on her for now. 

He wanted to meet Cedric, a young man around his age who studied at the same academy as him. Xenon told him to meet with Cedric if he needed anything. Right now, Henry had his eye on Isabelle, the young receptionist girl.

"Wait, I should ask Aria to train me with a sword tomorrow, and hopefully I should start exploring the dungeon to get my holy sword as soon as everyone has settled down," Henry thought to himself on his bed.

"After I acquire the Holy Sword, I will become the ideal hero that people look up to. Then I will defeat the demon lord! … Hahahaha !! …. I wonder if another hero was found yet. Anyway, I was the first hero. Let's just enjoy this new life!" Henry continued before dozing off on his bed. 

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"Really! You felt his presence?" Fiona asked Aria as soon as she brought it up again. 

"Yes, I did, but it's kind of fuzzy," Aria replied with a sad tone. 

"Hmmm… I guess you might have mistaken someone else," Chloe interjected. 

"I see... Hmm... where is Claire? I thought you were her roommate?" Fiona asked Aria. 

"Huh...she was taking a bath…. Ahhh … I don't want to sleep with her... Chloe, change with me!!" Aria started to act like a kid suddenly, as she doesnt want to share a room with Claire.

"Sorry, I can't! I need to stay close to the princes— I mean, Fiona. Anyway, your room is across from us!" Chloe confronted Aria, folding her arms. 

"Hahaha... it's funny to see you guys act like this!" Fiona joined the conversation as the two argued with each other.

"Oh... my apologies, princes— I mean, Fiona." 

"Yes... sorry for being loud," Chloe and Aria realized they were arguing in front of a princess. 

"My, my, don't worry about it. It's really fun to be like this!" Fiona replied with a lovely smile. 

When they arrived in the city, Fiona informed everyone to treat her like the rest of them by hiding her identity as a princess

"I never realized that the two of you were so close !" Fiona praised their friendship. 

"Hehe…anyway, Claire will probably finish her bath. I should go back to my room ! Goodnigth Fiona and Chloe" Aria informed them before returning back to her room. 

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"Ms. Aria, you're back. I'm done with the bath, you can go ahead," Claire informed her as soon as she got out of the bathroom.

"Hrm... okay," Aria replied indifferently, turning her head away from Claire.

The atmosphere inside the room became cold and tense as Aria acted coldly toward Claire. Claire, on the other hand, had no choice but to remain calm and composed whenever Aria behaved this way. She had no idea why, but somehow she felt a bit guilty about the way she acted toward Winston. Even though he was her ex-fiancé, she should have been more concerned when Winston suddenly vanished from the school and the country. 

This made her rethink about the time before Winston and Henry started their duel. Winston had told her, "Don't you feel glad about this duel?" At that time, she was confused, as she was afraid that the two would get hurt because of her. However, after Winston said that, she saw a relieved expression on his face, especially in his eyes. He had always been cold toward Claire, but the way he acted back then seemed forced and not genuine to her.

"Ms. Aria, I know you miss your brother, and I guess you might be mad at me for not being concerned about his disappearance. But—" Claire started to speak to Aria, building up her courage. Aria was surprised to hear this. 

She quickly turned her head and listened to what Claire had to say. 

"... but I wanted to know the truth about his feelings back then. Why did he act like that toward me?" Claire finished her sentence as tears began to fall. 

"... Ms. Claire," Aria was surprised to see Claire's tears begin to fall as she tried her best to talk things out. 

Aria also realized the rumors about her brother at school during that time. Claire must have been hurt during that period. Aria felt uneasy about this and the way she acted toward Claire, but she didn't want to show her weak and sympathetic side.

"Hmm... I don't care. I'm going to take a bath," she replied in a normal tone.

The tension inside the room eased. Claire could feel that Aria must have understood her feelings too, as her reply had changed after hearing everything.

"Ok" Claire replied, wiping her tears away with a smile.

Despite the small exchange, she felt a glimmer of hope that Aria might understand her pain. The weight of her guilt and confusion about Winston's behavior had been heavy on her heart, but sharing her feelings, even briefly, brought her a sense of relief.