With how the discussions on this thread have gotten I now officially despise Zenos and the effect he has had on the story with all my heart. Look at how the narrative has been warped concerning power levels. Meanwhile, we still have stuff like the Bardam's mettle dungeon text which implies that you're cheating while your npc allies aren't.

A rival can be something more than just a recurring antagonist you have to duel over and over again, but apparently the next worthy opponent is what most people are thinking of. I guess Zenos was more appropriate than I thought.