diff --git a/packages/reactor/src/adapters/agent-compile/__tests__/contract-loader.test.ts b/packages/reactor/src/adapters/agent-compile/__tests__/contract-loader.test.ts
index 793b0f3..bb263fa 100644
--- a/packages/reactor/src/adapters/agent-compile/__tests__/contract-loader.test.ts
+++ b/packages/reactor/src/adapters/agent-compile/__tests__/contract-loader.test.ts
@@ -78,6 +78,28 @@ test("sliceContract: a gateway kind is read from frontmatter", () => {
   equal(c.kind, "gateway");
 });
 
+test("sliceContract: an inline comment on a frontmatter field is not part of the value", () => {
+  // Without stripping the inline comment, kind becomes "gateway # exposes a webhook"
+  // and normalizeKind silently falls back to the default "responsibility".
+  const c = sliceContract(
+    "---\nname: ingress # the edge node\nkind: gateway # exposes a webhook\n---\n### Maintains\nx\n",
+    "/x/g.prose.md",
+  );
+  equal(c.kind, "gateway");
+  equal(c.name, "ingress");
+});
+
+test("sliceContract: a '#' that is not a comment stays in the value", () => {
+  // '#' only opens a comment when preceded by whitespace; a quoted value keeps
+  // its '#' literally.
+  const c = sliceContract(
+    '---\nid: issue#42\nname: "release #1"\n---\n### Maintains\nx\n',
+    "/x/g.prose.md",
+  );
+  equal(c.id, "issue#42");
+  equal(c.name, "release #1");
+});
+
 test("defaultWakeSource: gateway → external; cadence → self; else input", () => {
   const gw: LoadedContract = { id: "g", name: "g", kind: "gateway", path: "/g" };
   equal(defaultWakeSource(gw), "external");
diff --git a/packages/reactor/src/adapters/agent-compile/contract-loader.ts b/packages/reactor/src/adapters/agent-compile/contract-loader.ts
index a0324ec..d4288f5 100644
--- a/packages/reactor/src/adapters/agent-compile/contract-loader.ts
+++ b/packages/reactor/src/adapters/agent-compile/contract-loader.ts
@@ -251,7 +251,19 @@ function parseFlatFrontmatter(frontmatter: string): Record<string, string> {
       continue;
     }
     const key = line.slice(0, colon).trim();
-    const value = unquote(line.slice(colon + 1).trim());
+    let rawValue = line.slice(colon + 1).trim();
+    // An inline YAML comment (' #…', the '#' preceded by whitespace) is not part
+    // of the value. Full-line comments are already skipped above; without this a
+    // commented field such as `kind: gateway # note` keeps the comment as its
+    // value and, for `kind`, falls back to the default. A '#' inside a quoted
+    // scalar, or one not preceded by whitespace, stays literal.
+    if (!rawValue.startsWith('"') && !rawValue.startsWith("'")) {
+      const comment = rawValue.search(/\s#/);
+      if (comment !== -1) {
+        rawValue = rawValue.slice(0, comment);
+      }
+    }
+    const value = unquote(rawValue.trim());
     if (key.length > 0 && value.length > 0 && out[key] === undefined) {
       out[key] = value;
     }