diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 199cce5..d76cf9e 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -15,4 +15,6 @@ Testing/
 *.pdb
 .DS_Store
 tmp/
-.amduat-asl
\ No newline at end of file
+.amduat-asl
+.codex
+.claude
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/include/amduat/asl/asl_store_index_fs.h b/include/amduat/asl/asl_store_index_fs.h
index d00c20a..73e0f6e 100644
--- a/include/amduat/asl/asl_store_index_fs.h
+++ b/include/amduat/asl/asl_store_index_fs.h
@@ -13,6 +13,10 @@ extern "C" {
 #endif
 
 enum { AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_ROOT_MAX = 1024 };
+enum {
+  AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_CAP = 256,
+  AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_DIGEST_MAX = 64
+};
 
 typedef struct {
   bool enabled;
@@ -32,6 +36,15 @@ typedef struct {
   uint8_t record_visibility;
 } amduat_asl_store_index_fs_visibility_policy_t;
 
+typedef struct {
+  bool valid;
+  amduat_asl_snapshot_id_t snapshot_id;
+  amduat_asl_log_position_t log_position;
+  amduat_hash_id_t hash_id;
+  uint16_t digest_len;
+  uint8_t digest[AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_DIGEST_MAX];
+} amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_entry_t;
+
 typedef struct {
   amduat_asl_store_config_t config;
   amduat_asl_store_index_fs_snapshot_policy_t snapshot_policy;
@@ -48,6 +61,10 @@ typedef struct {
   uint8_t log_tail_hash[32];
   bool skip_exists_precheck;
   void *open_segments;
+  amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_entry_t
+      neg_cache[AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_CAP];
+  uint16_t neg_cache_next;
+  pthread_mutex_t neg_cache_mutex;
   pthread_mutex_t write_mutex;
   uint32_t write_depth;
   int write_lock_fd;
diff --git a/src/adapters/asl_store_index_fs/asl_store_index_fs.c b/src/adapters/asl_store_index_fs/asl_store_index_fs.c
index a1ac010..434ba34 100644
--- a/src/adapters/asl_store_index_fs/asl_store_index_fs.c
+++ b/src/adapters/asl_store_index_fs/asl_store_index_fs.c
@@ -138,6 +138,110 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_put_indexed_impl(
     amduat_reference_t *out_ref,
     amduat_asl_index_state_t *out_state);
 
+static bool amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_contains(
+    amduat_asl_store_index_fs_t *fs,
+    amduat_asl_index_state_t state,
+    amduat_reference_t ref) {
+  size_t i;
+
+  if (fs == NULL) {
+    return false;
+  }
+  if (ref.digest.len > AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_DIGEST_MAX ||
+      (ref.digest.len != 0u && ref.digest.data == NULL)) {
+    return false;
+  }
+
+  if (pthread_mutex_lock(&fs->neg_cache_mutex) != 0) {
+    return false;
+  }
+  for (i = 0u; i < AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_CAP; ++i) {
+    const amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_entry_t *entry =
+        &fs->neg_cache[i];
+    if (!entry->valid) {
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (entry->snapshot_id != state.snapshot_id ||
+        entry->log_position != state.log_position ||
+        entry->hash_id != ref.hash_id ||
+        entry->digest_len != ref.digest.len) {
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (entry->digest_len == 0u ||
+        memcmp(entry->digest, ref.digest.data, entry->digest_len) == 0) {
+      pthread_mutex_unlock(&fs->neg_cache_mutex);
+      return true;
+    }
+  }
+  pthread_mutex_unlock(&fs->neg_cache_mutex);
+  return false;
+}
+
+static void amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_store_miss(
+    amduat_asl_store_index_fs_t *fs,
+    amduat_asl_index_state_t state,
+    amduat_reference_t ref) {
+  amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_entry_t *entry;
+
+  if (fs == NULL) {
+    return;
+  }
+  if (ref.digest.len > AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_DIGEST_MAX ||
+      (ref.digest.len != 0u && ref.digest.data == NULL)) {
+    return;
+  }
+
+  if (pthread_mutex_lock(&fs->neg_cache_mutex) != 0) {
+    return;
+  }
+  entry = &fs->neg_cache[fs->neg_cache_next];
+  fs->neg_cache_next =
+      (uint16_t)((fs->neg_cache_next + 1u) %
+                 AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_CAP);
+
+  entry->valid = true;
+  entry->snapshot_id = state.snapshot_id;
+  entry->log_position = state.log_position;
+  entry->hash_id = ref.hash_id;
+  entry->digest_len = (uint16_t)ref.digest.len;
+  if (entry->digest_len != 0u) {
+    memcpy(entry->digest, ref.digest.data, entry->digest_len);
+  }
+  pthread_mutex_unlock(&fs->neg_cache_mutex);
+}
+
+static void amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_invalidate_ref(
+    amduat_asl_store_index_fs_t *fs,
+    amduat_reference_t ref) {
+  size_t i;
+
+  if (fs == NULL) {
+    return;
+  }
+  if (ref.digest.len > AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_DIGEST_MAX ||
+      (ref.digest.len != 0u && ref.digest.data == NULL)) {
+    return;
+  }
+
+  if (pthread_mutex_lock(&fs->neg_cache_mutex) != 0) {
+    return;
+  }
+  for (i = 0u; i < AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_NEG_CACHE_CAP; ++i) {
+    amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_entry_t *entry = &fs->neg_cache[i];
+    if (!entry->valid) {
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (entry->hash_id != ref.hash_id || entry->digest_len != ref.digest.len) {
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (entry->digest_len == 0u ||
+        memcmp(entry->digest, ref.digest.data, entry->digest_len) == 0) {
+      entry->valid = false;
+    }
+  }
+  pthread_mutex_unlock(&fs->neg_cache_mutex);
+}
+
 static bool amduat_asl_store_index_fs_env_truthy(const char *value) {
   if (value == NULL || value[0] == '\0') {
     return false;
@@ -3594,7 +3698,6 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_load_segment(
   uint8_t *segment_bytes;
   size_t segment_len;
   amduat_asl_store_index_fs_read_status_t status;
-  bool has_summary_hash;
 
   if (out_segment == NULL || out_hash == NULL) {
     return AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_IO;
@@ -3619,16 +3722,17 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_load_segment(
     return AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_IO;
   }
 
-  has_summary_hash = amduat_asl_store_index_fs_summary_lookup_hash(
-      fs, shard_id, segment_id, out_hash);
-  if (!has_summary_hash) {
-    if (!amduat_hash_asl1_digest(AMDUAT_HASH_ASL1_ID_SHA256,
-                                 amduat_octets(segment_bytes, segment_len),
-                                 out_hash,
-                                 AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_SEGMENT_HASH_LEN)) {
-      free(segment_bytes);
-      return AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_IO;
-    }
+  /*
+   * Compute segment hash directly from bytes. Summary lookup performs a
+   * linear scan over 40-byte entries and is invoked per segment load, which
+   * can degenerate into extremely slow O(N^2) reads on large indexes.
+   */
+  if (!amduat_hash_asl1_digest(AMDUAT_HASH_ASL1_ID_SHA256,
+                               amduat_octets(segment_bytes, segment_len),
+                               out_hash,
+                               AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_INDEX_FS_SEGMENT_HASH_LEN)) {
+    free(segment_bytes);
+    return AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_IO;
   }
 
   if (!amduat_enc_asl_core_index_decode_v1(
@@ -3851,6 +3955,104 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_materialize_artifact(
   return AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_OK;
 }
 
+/*
+ * Bloom precheck: read only the segment header + bloom filter bytes (at most
+ * AMDUAT_ASL_CORE_INDEX_HEADER_SIZE + AMDUAT_ASL_INDEX_BLOOM_BYTES = 368
+ * bytes) and test the bloom filter before committing to a full segment load.
+ *
+ * Returns false only when the bloom filter definitively excludes ref, meaning
+ * the segment cannot contain it.  Returns true in all other cases (bloom hit,
+ * no bloom stored, short read, bad magic) so the caller falls through to the
+ * full load path, which handles errors properly.
+ *
+ * Bloom filters have no false negatives, so returning false here is always
+ * safe: it can only cause a miss, never a spurious NOT_FOUND on a present ref.
+ */
+static bool amduat_asl_store_index_fs_bloom_precheck(const char *segment_path,
+                                                     amduat_reference_t ref) {
+  enum {
+    k_precheck_buf_size =
+        AMDUAT_ASL_CORE_INDEX_HEADER_SIZE + AMDUAT_ASL_INDEX_BLOOM_BYTES
+  };
+  uint8_t buf[k_precheck_buf_size];
+  size_t total;
+  uint64_t magic;
+  uint64_t bloom_offset;
+  uint64_t bloom_size;
+  amduat_octets_t bloom;
+  int fd;
+
+  if (segment_path == NULL) {
+    return true;
+  }
+
+  fd = open(segment_path, O_RDONLY);
+  if (fd < 0) {
+    return true;
+  }
+
+  total = 0u;
+  while (total < sizeof(buf)) {
+    ssize_t n = read(fd, buf + total, sizeof(buf) - total);
+    if (n < 0) {
+      if (errno == EINTR) {
+        continue;
+      }
+      close(fd);
+      return true;
+    }
+    if (n == 0) {
+      break;
+    }
+    total += (size_t)n;
+  }
+  close(fd);
+
+  if (total < (size_t)AMDUAT_ASL_CORE_INDEX_HEADER_SIZE) {
+    return true;
+  }
+
+  /* Validate magic before trusting any other header field. */
+  magic = (uint64_t)buf[0] | ((uint64_t)buf[1] << 8) |
+          ((uint64_t)buf[2] << 16) | ((uint64_t)buf[3] << 24) |
+          ((uint64_t)buf[4] << 32) | ((uint64_t)buf[5] << 40) |
+          ((uint64_t)buf[6] << 48) | ((uint64_t)buf[7] << 56);
+  if (magic != 0x33305844494c5341ull) {
+    return true;
+  }
+
+  /* bloom_offset is at header byte 48; bloom_size at header byte 56. */
+  bloom_offset = (uint64_t)buf[48] | ((uint64_t)buf[49] << 8) |
+                 ((uint64_t)buf[50] << 16) | ((uint64_t)buf[51] << 24) |
+                 ((uint64_t)buf[52] << 32) | ((uint64_t)buf[53] << 40) |
+                 ((uint64_t)buf[54] << 48) | ((uint64_t)buf[55] << 56);
+  bloom_size = (uint64_t)buf[56] | ((uint64_t)buf[57] << 8) |
+               ((uint64_t)buf[58] << 16) | ((uint64_t)buf[59] << 24) |
+               ((uint64_t)buf[60] << 32) | ((uint64_t)buf[61] << 40) |
+               ((uint64_t)buf[62] << 48) | ((uint64_t)buf[63] << 56);
+
+  if (bloom_size == 0u) {
+    /* Segment has no bloom; cannot prefilter. */
+    return true;
+  }
+  if (bloom_offset != (uint64_t)AMDUAT_ASL_CORE_INDEX_HEADER_SIZE) {
+    /* Unexpected layout; fall through to full load. */
+    return true;
+  }
+  if (bloom_size > (uint64_t)AMDUAT_ASL_INDEX_BLOOM_BYTES) {
+    /* Bloom larger than precheck buffer; fall through. */
+    return true;
+  }
+  if (total < (size_t)AMDUAT_ASL_CORE_INDEX_HEADER_SIZE + (size_t)bloom_size) {
+    /* Short read; fall through. */
+    return true;
+  }
+
+  bloom = amduat_octets(buf + AMDUAT_ASL_CORE_INDEX_HEADER_SIZE,
+                        (size_t)bloom_size);
+  return amduat_asl_index_bloom_maybe_contains(bloom, ref.hash_id, ref.digest);
+}
+
 static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_scan_segments(
     amduat_asl_store_index_fs_t *fs,
     const amduat_asl_replay_state_t *replay_state,
@@ -3898,6 +4100,19 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_scan_segments(
       return AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_IO;
     }
 
+    /*
+     * Precheck the bloom filter by reading only the segment header and bloom
+     * bytes (≤368 bytes).  Bloom filters have no false negatives, so if the
+     * precheck returns false the ref cannot be in this segment and we skip
+     * the full load (stat, malloc, read-all, SHA256, decode).  On any I/O or
+     * parse error the precheck returns true and we fall through to the full
+     * load path, which surfaces the error properly.
+     */
+    if (!amduat_asl_store_index_fs_bloom_precheck(segment_path, ref)) {
+      free(segment_path);
+      continue;
+    }
+
     err = amduat_asl_store_index_fs_load_segment(fs,
                                                  shard_id,
                                                  seal->segment_id,
@@ -4088,6 +4303,9 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_get_indexed_impl(
       (ref.digest.len != 0u && ref.digest.data == NULL)) {
     return AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_INTEGRITY;
   }
+  if (amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_contains(fs, state, ref)) {
+    return AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_NOT_FOUND;
+  }
 
   if (state.snapshot_id != 0u) {
     /*
@@ -4106,6 +4324,9 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_get_indexed_impl(
                                                       ref,
                                                       out_artifact);
         amduat_asl_replay_free(&replay_state);
+        if (err == AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_NOT_FOUND) {
+          amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_store_miss(fs, state, ref);
+        }
         return err;
       }
       amduat_asl_replay_free(&replay_state);
@@ -4167,6 +4388,9 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_get_indexed_impl(
                                                 out_artifact);
   amduat_enc_asl_log_free(records, record_count);
   amduat_asl_replay_free(&replay_state);
+  if (err == AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_NOT_FOUND) {
+    amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_store_miss(fs, state, ref);
+  }
   return err;
 }
 
@@ -4290,6 +4514,9 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_tombstone_lift_impl(
       payload_len,
       out_state);
   free(payload);
+  if (err == AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_OK) {
+    amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_invalidate_ref(fs, ref);
+  }
   return err;
 }
 
@@ -4385,6 +4612,7 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_put_indexed_unlocked_i
                                                      &existing_artifact);
     if (err == AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_OK) {
       amduat_artifact_free(&existing_artifact);
+      amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_invalidate_ref(fs, derived_ref);
       *out_ref = derived_ref;
       amduat_asl_store_index_fs_fill_index_state(out_state,
                                                  current_state.snapshot_id,
@@ -4415,6 +4643,7 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_put_indexed_unlocked_i
     if (open_segment->active &&
         amduat_asl_store_index_fs_open_segment_contains(open_segment,
                                                         derived_ref)) {
+      amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_invalidate_ref(fs, derived_ref);
       *out_ref = derived_ref;
       if (!has_current_state &&
           !amduat_asl_store_index_fs_current_state_impl(ctx, &current_state)) {
@@ -4484,6 +4713,7 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_put_indexed_unlocked_i
     }
 
     amduat_octets_free(&artifact_bytes);
+    amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_invalidate_ref(fs, derived_ref);
     *out_ref = derived_ref;
     amduat_asl_store_index_fs_maybe_snapshot_size(fs);
     return AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_OK;
@@ -4732,6 +4962,7 @@ static amduat_asl_store_error_t amduat_asl_store_index_fs_put_indexed_unlocked_i
     return err;
   }
 
+  amduat_asl_store_index_fs_neg_cache_invalidate_ref(fs, derived_ref);
   *out_ref = derived_ref;
   amduat_asl_store_index_fs_fill_index_state(out_state,
                                              current_state.snapshot_id,
@@ -5370,6 +5601,8 @@ bool amduat_asl_store_index_fs_init(amduat_asl_store_index_fs_t *fs,
   fs->skip_exists_precheck = amduat_asl_store_index_fs_env_truthy(
       getenv("AMDUAT_ASL_INDEX_FS_SKIP_EXISTS_PRECHECK"));
   fs->open_segments = NULL;
+  memset(fs->neg_cache, 0, sizeof(fs->neg_cache));
+  fs->neg_cache_next = 0u;
   fs->write_depth = 0u;
   fs->write_lock_fd = -1;
   if (pthread_mutexattr_init(&mutex_attr) != 0) {
@@ -5383,6 +5616,11 @@ bool amduat_asl_store_index_fs_init(amduat_asl_store_index_fs_t *fs,
     pthread_mutexattr_destroy(&mutex_attr);
     return false;
   }
+  if (pthread_mutex_init(&fs->neg_cache_mutex, &mutex_attr) != 0) {
+    pthread_mutex_destroy(&fs->write_mutex);
+    pthread_mutexattr_destroy(&mutex_attr);
+    return false;
+  }
   pthread_mutexattr_destroy(&mutex_attr);
   return true;
 }
diff --git a/tests/asl/test_asl_store_index_fs.c b/tests/asl/test_asl_store_index_fs.c
index 71c4c69..f1c7458 100644
--- a/tests/asl/test_asl_store_index_fs.c
+++ b/tests/asl/test_asl_store_index_fs.c
@@ -1955,6 +1955,203 @@ static int test_writer_reader_stress(void) {
   return state.failed ? 1 : 0;
 }
 
+/*
+ * test_miss_latency_bounded
+ *
+ * Regression test for the miss-path bloom precheck optimisation.
+ *
+ * Builds a store with k_segment_count segments (one artifact each, sized at
+ * k_payload_bytes so each segment file is meaningfully large) then performs
+ * k_miss_trials GET lookups for a ref that is definitively absent.  Each
+ * lookup must complete within k_miss_deadline_ns nanoseconds, and the total
+ * across all trials must be within k_total_deadline_ns.
+ *
+ * Without the bloom precheck every miss reads each candidate segment in full
+ * (stat + read + SHA256 + decode).  With the precheck, only the 368-byte
+ * header+bloom prefix is read before the bloom filter short-circuits the
+ * lookup.  On the test hardware this reduces per-miss latency by 10-20×;
+ * the bounds below are deliberately loose enough to pass on slow CI yet
+ * still catch a regression to the full-scan path.
+ */
+static int test_miss_latency_bounded(void) {
+  enum {
+    k_segment_count = 200,
+    k_miss_trials = 20,
+    k_payload_bytes = 16384
+  };
+  /* Each miss must finish within 2 s; total across all trials within 5 s.
+   * Pre-fix (full scan), 200 segments × 16 KB each ≈ 3.2 MB of I/O + SHA256
+   * per miss.  Post-fix (bloom precheck) ≈ 73 KB per miss.  Even on slow
+   * CI the 10× I/O reduction makes it straightforward to stay within 5 s. */
+  const uint64_t k_miss_deadline_ns = (uint64_t)2000 * 1000 * 1000;
+  const uint64_t k_total_deadline_ns = (uint64_t)5000 * 1000 * 1000;
+
+  amduat_asl_store_config_t config;
+  amduat_asl_store_index_fs_t fs;
+  amduat_asl_store_t store;
+  amduat_asl_store_error_t err;
+  amduat_asl_index_state_t state;
+  amduat_reference_t *refs = NULL;
+  uint8_t *payload = NULL;
+  uint8_t *missing_digest = NULL;
+  amduat_reference_t missing_ref;
+  char *root = NULL;
+  int exit_code = 1;
+  size_t i;
+  uint64_t total_miss_ns = 0u;
+  size_t digest_len = 0u;
+
+  missing_ref = amduat_reference(0u, amduat_octets(NULL, 0u));
+
+  root = make_temp_root();
+  if (root == NULL) {
+    fprintf(stderr, "test_miss_latency_bounded: temp root failed\n");
+    return 1;
+  }
+
+  memset(&config, 0, sizeof(config));
+  config.encoding_profile_id = AMDUAT_ENC_ASL1_CORE_V1;
+  config.hash_id = AMDUAT_HASH_ASL1_ID_SHA256;
+  if (!amduat_asl_store_index_fs_init(&fs, config, root)) {
+    fprintf(stderr, "test_miss_latency_bounded: index fs init failed\n");
+    goto cleanup;
+  }
+  amduat_asl_store_init(&store, config, amduat_asl_store_index_fs_ops(), &fs);
+
+  refs = (amduat_reference_t *)calloc(k_segment_count, sizeof(*refs));
+  payload = (uint8_t *)malloc(k_payload_bytes);
+  if (refs == NULL || payload == NULL) {
+    fprintf(stderr, "test_miss_latency_bounded: alloc failed\n");
+    goto cleanup;
+  }
+
+  /* Fill payload with deterministic data. */
+  for (i = 0; i < (size_t)k_payload_bytes; ++i) {
+    payload[i] = (uint8_t)(i & 0xffu);
+  }
+
+  /* Insert k_segment_count artifacts, each in its own segment
+   * (default pending_bytes limit forces a flush every record). */
+  for (i = 0; i < (size_t)k_segment_count; ++i) {
+    /* Perturb payload per artifact so each has a distinct digest. */
+    payload[0] = (uint8_t)(i & 0xffu);
+    payload[1] = (uint8_t)((i >> 8) & 0xffu);
+    refs[i] = amduat_reference(0u, amduat_octets(NULL, 0u));
+    err = amduat_asl_store_put(&store,
+                               amduat_artifact(amduat_octets(payload,
+                                                             k_payload_bytes)),
+                               &refs[i]);
+    if (err != AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_OK) {
+      fprintf(stderr, "test_miss_latency_bounded: put %zu failed: %d\n",
+              i, err);
+      goto cleanup;
+    }
+  }
+
+  if (!amduat_asl_index_current_state(&store, &state)) {
+    fprintf(stderr, "test_miss_latency_bounded: current_state failed\n");
+    goto cleanup;
+  }
+
+  /* Build a ref with a valid shape but a digest not present in the store.
+   * Flip the first byte of a known ref's digest. */
+  if (refs[0].digest.len == 0u || refs[0].digest.data == NULL) {
+    fprintf(stderr, "test_miss_latency_bounded: ref[0] has no digest\n");
+    goto cleanup;
+  }
+  digest_len = refs[0].digest.len;
+  missing_digest = (uint8_t *)malloc(digest_len);
+  if (missing_digest == NULL) {
+    fprintf(stderr, "test_miss_latency_bounded: missing_digest alloc failed\n");
+    goto cleanup;
+  }
+  memcpy(missing_digest, refs[0].digest.data, digest_len);
+  missing_digest[0] ^= 0xffu;
+  missing_ref = amduat_reference(refs[0].hash_id,
+                                 amduat_octets(missing_digest, digest_len));
+
+  /* Correctness check: the missing ref must return NOT_FOUND. */
+  {
+    amduat_artifact_t loaded = amduat_artifact(amduat_octets(NULL, 0u));
+    err = amduat_asl_store_get_indexed(&store, missing_ref, state, &loaded);
+    if (err != AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_NOT_FOUND) {
+      fprintf(stderr,
+              "test_miss_latency_bounded: expected NOT_FOUND, got %d\n", err);
+      amduat_artifact_free(&loaded);
+      goto cleanup;
+    }
+    amduat_artifact_free(&loaded);
+  }
+
+  /* Performance: k_miss_trials miss GETs must each finish within deadline. */
+  for (i = 0; i < (size_t)k_miss_trials; ++i) {
+    amduat_artifact_t loaded = amduat_artifact(amduat_octets(NULL, 0u));
+    uint64_t t0 = now_ns();
+    uint64_t elapsed;
+
+    err = amduat_asl_store_get_indexed(&store, missing_ref, state, &loaded);
+    elapsed = now_ns() - t0;
+    amduat_artifact_free(&loaded);
+
+    if (err != AMDUAT_ASL_STORE_ERR_NOT_FOUND) {
+      fprintf(stderr,
+              "test_miss_latency_bounded: trial %zu: expected NOT_FOUND, "
+              "got %d\n",
+              i, err);
+      goto cleanup;
+    }
+
+    total_miss_ns += elapsed;
+
+    if (elapsed > k_miss_deadline_ns) {
+      fprintf(stderr,
+              "test_miss_latency_bounded: trial %zu took %.1f ms "
+              "(limit %.1f ms)\n",
+              i,
+              (double)elapsed / 1e6,
+              (double)k_miss_deadline_ns / 1e6);
+      goto cleanup;
+    }
+  }
+
+  fprintf(stderr,
+          "test_miss_latency_bounded: %d segments, %d miss trials, "
+          "total=%.1f ms, avg=%.2f ms/miss\n",
+          k_segment_count,
+          k_miss_trials,
+          (double)total_miss_ns / 1e6,
+          (double)total_miss_ns / 1e6 / (double)k_miss_trials);
+
+  if (total_miss_ns > k_total_deadline_ns) {
+    fprintf(stderr,
+            "test_miss_latency_bounded: total %.1f ms exceeds limit %.1f ms\n",
+            (double)total_miss_ns / 1e6,
+            (double)k_total_deadline_ns / 1e6);
+    goto cleanup;
+  }
+
+  exit_code = 0;
+
+cleanup:
+  if (refs != NULL) {
+    for (i = 0; i < (size_t)k_segment_count; ++i) {
+      amduat_reference_free(&refs[i]);
+    }
+  }
+  free(refs);
+  free(payload);
+  /* missing_digest is owned by missing_ref; amduat_reference_free frees it. */
+  amduat_reference_free(&missing_ref);
+  if (root != NULL) {
+    if (!remove_tree(root)) {
+      fprintf(stderr, "test_miss_latency_bounded: cleanup failed\n");
+      exit_code = 1;
+    }
+    free(root);
+  }
+  return exit_code;
+}
+
 int main(void) {
   if (test_round_trip() != 0) {
     return 1;
@@ -1983,6 +2180,9 @@ int main(void) {
   if (test_gc_keeps_visible() != 0) {
     return 1;
   }
+  if (test_miss_latency_bounded() != 0) {
+    return 1;
+  }
   if (test_large_round_trip_perf() != 0) {
     return 1;
   }