diff --git a/aragora/debate/cognitive_limiter_rlm.py b/aragora/debate/cognitive_limiter_rlm.py
index 5b5a5fbd64..b64ebfec2b 100644
--- a/aragora/debate/cognitive_limiter_rlm.py
+++ b/aragora/debate/cognitive_limiter_rlm.py
@@ -13,12 +13,12 @@
 3. The LLM can recursively call itself on context subsets
 4. The LLM dynamically decides decomposition strategy (grep, map-reduce, peek, etc.)
 
-When the official RLM library is installed (`pip install aragora[rlm]`), this module
+When the official RLM library is installed (`pip install rlm`), this module
 uses the real REPL-based approach. Otherwise, it falls back to hierarchical
 summarization which preserves semantics but isn't true RLM.
 
 Install RLM support:
-    pip install aragora[rlm]
+    pip install rlm
 """
 
 from __future__ import annotations
@@ -37,11 +37,6 @@
 )
 
 # Check for official RLM library (use factory for consistent initialization)
-get_rlm: Any
-get_compressor: Any
-DebateContextAdapter: Any
-RLMBackendConfig: Any
-
 try:
     from aragora.rlm import get_rlm, get_compressor, HAS_OFFICIAL_RLM
     from aragora.rlm.bridge import DebateContextAdapter, RLMBackendConfig
@@ -50,10 +45,10 @@
 except ImportError:
     HAS_OFFICIAL_RLM = False
     HAS_RLM_FACTORY = False
-    get_rlm = None
-    get_compressor = None
-    DebateContextAdapter = None
-    RLMBackendConfig = None
+    get_rlm: Any = None  # type: ignore[no-redef]
+    get_compressor: Any = None  # type: ignore[no-redef]
+    DebateContextAdapter: Any = None  # type: ignore[no-redef]
+    RLMBackendConfig: Any = None  # type: ignore[no-redef]
 
 if TYPE_CHECKING:
     from aragora.rlm.compressor import HierarchicalCompressor
@@ -206,7 +201,7 @@ def __init__(
         else:
             logger.info(
                 "RLM factory not available. Using hierarchical summarization fallback. "
-                "Install with: pip install aragora[rlm]"
+                "Install with: pip install rlm"
             )
 
         # Widen stats type to support mixed int/float/dict values from RLM extension
@@ -251,7 +246,8 @@ async def query_with_rlm(
             ...     strategy="grep"
             ... )
         """
-        if not self.has_real_rlm:
+        rlm = self._aragora_rlm
+        if rlm is None:
             logger.warning("Real RLM not available, using fallback search")
             return self._fallback_search(query, messages)
 
@@ -263,7 +259,7 @@ async def query_with_rlm(
             formatted_context = self._format_messages_for_rlm(messages)
 
             # Use AragoraRLM for query
-            result = await self._aragora_rlm.compress_and_query(
+            result = await rlm.compress_and_query(
                 query=query,
                 content=formatted_context,
                 source_type="debate",
diff --git a/aragora/knowledge/mound/api/rlm.py b/aragora/knowledge/mound/api/rlm.py
index 994308130d..2e2821910e 100644
--- a/aragora/knowledge/mound/api/rlm.py
+++ b/aragora/knowledge/mound/api/rlm.py
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@
 approach where the model writes code to examine context. This is preferred
 over compression-based methods.
 
-Install TRUE RLM: pip install aragora[rlm]
+Install TRUE RLM: pip install rlm
 
 NOTE: This is a mixin class designed to be composed with KnowledgeMound.
 Attribute accesses like self._ensure_initialized, self.workspace_id, self.query_semantic, etc.
@@ -127,7 +127,7 @@ async def query_with_rlm(
         # Build text content from knowledge items
         content_parts = []
         for item in items:
-            source = getattr(item, "source", None) or getattr(item, "source_type", None)
+            source: Any = getattr(item, "source", None) or getattr(item, "source_type", None)
             source_str = (
                 source.value if hasattr(source, "value") else str(source) if source else "unknown"
             )
@@ -212,7 +212,7 @@ async def query_with_true_rlm(
         - Model writes code like: `facts = get_facts(km, "topic", min_confidence=0.8)`
         - No information loss from truncation or compression
 
-        This is the PREFERRED method when `pip install aragora[rlm]` is installed.
+        This is the PREFERRED method when `pip install rlm` is installed.
 
         Falls back to compression-based query if TRUE RLM not available.
 
@@ -227,8 +227,7 @@ async def query_with_true_rlm(
         """
         if not HAS_RLM:
             logger.warning(
-                "[rlm] RLM not available for knowledge query. "
-                "Install with: pip install aragora[rlm]"
+                "[rlm] RLM not available for knowledge query. Install with: pip install rlm"
             )
             return None
 
@@ -242,7 +241,7 @@ async def query_with_true_rlm(
             logger.warning(
                 "[rlm] TRUE RLM preferred but not available. "
                 "Will use compression fallback. "
-                "Install with: pip install aragora[rlm] for better results."
+                "Install with: pip install rlm for better results."
             )
 
         # Fetch relevant knowledge items via QueryOperationsMixin
@@ -259,7 +258,7 @@ async def query_with_true_rlm(
         # Build text content from knowledge items
         content_parts = []
         for item in items:
-            source = getattr(item, "source", None) or getattr(item, "source_type", None)
+            source: Any = getattr(item, "source", None) or getattr(item, "source_type", None)
             source_str = (
                 source.value if hasattr(source, "value") else str(source) if source else "unknown"
             )
@@ -368,9 +367,7 @@ async def create_knowledge_repl(
             REPL environment, or None if TRUE RLM not available
         """
         if not HAS_RLM or not HAS_OFFICIAL_RLM:
-            logger.warning(
-                "[rlm] TRUE RLM REPL not available. Install with: pip install aragora[rlm]"
-            )
+            logger.warning("[rlm] TRUE RLM REPL not available. Install with: pip install rlm")
             return None
 
         # Cast self to Protocol to access methods provided by composed KnowledgeMound class
diff --git a/aragora/memory/cross_debate_rlm.py b/aragora/memory/cross_debate_rlm.py
index 5aa19de581..ee126579c7 100644
--- a/aragora/memory/cross_debate_rlm.py
+++ b/aragora/memory/cross_debate_rlm.py
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@
         context = await memory.get_relevant_context(task="Design a new API")
 
 Install official RLM support:
-    pip install aragora[rlm]
+    pip install rlm
 """
 
 from __future__ import annotations
diff --git a/aragora/rlm/__init__.py b/aragora/rlm/__init__.py
index 602e37cfdc..67fa6f38d8 100644
--- a/aragora/rlm/__init__.py
+++ b/aragora/rlm/__init__.py
@@ -17,10 +17,7 @@
 can symbolically interact with."
 
 Installation:
-    # Install with real RLM support
-    pip install aragora[rlm]
-
-    # Or install the official library directly
+    # Install the official RLM library for real RLM support
     pip install rlm
 
 Usage with Real RLM:
diff --git a/aragora/rlm/adapter.py b/aragora/rlm/adapter.py
index 9d67a07589..7e349fa60e 100644
--- a/aragora/rlm/adapter.py
+++ b/aragora/rlm/adapter.py
@@ -849,7 +849,7 @@ class REPLContextAdapter(RLMContextAdapter):
         # >>> disagreements = search_debate(debate, r"disagree|however")
         # >>> FINAL(f"Key disagreements: {summarize(disagreements)}")
 
-    Requires: pip install aragora[rlm] for TRUE RLM functionality
+    Requires: pip install rlm for TRUE RLM functionality
     """
 
     def __init__(
diff --git a/aragora/rlm/factory.py b/aragora/rlm/factory.py
index 167ddf786c..d60b7492e1 100644
--- a/aragora/rlm/factory.py
+++ b/aragora/rlm/factory.py
@@ -228,7 +228,7 @@ def _apply_env_overrides(rlm_config: RLMConfig) -> RLMConfig:
         if not HAS_OFFICIAL_RLM:
             error_msg = (
                 "TRUE RLM required but official RLM library not installed. "
-                "Install with: pip install aragora[rlm] or pip install rlm"
+                "Install with: pip install rlm"
             )
             logger.error("[RLM Factory] %s", error_msg)
             raise RuntimeError(error_msg)
@@ -264,12 +264,12 @@ def _apply_env_overrides(rlm_config: RLMConfig) -> RLMConfig:
         if warn_on_fallback and effective_mode in (RLMMode.AUTO, RLMMode.TRUE_RLM):
             logger.warning(
                 "[RLM Factory] TRUE RLM not available, using compression fallback. "
-                "For better performance, install: pip install aragora[rlm]"
+                "For better performance, install: pip install rlm"
             )
         else:
             logger.info(
                 "[RLM Factory] Created AragoraRLM with compression fallback "
-                "(official RLM not installed - pip install aragora[rlm] for TRUE RLM)"
+                "(official RLM not installed - pip install rlm for TRUE RLM)"
             )
 
     # Cache if using default config and no specific mode
@@ -468,7 +468,7 @@ async def wrapper(*args, **kwargs):
             if not HAS_OFFICIAL_RLM:
                 raise RuntimeError(
                     f"Function {func.__name__} requires TRUE RLM but official library "
-                    "is not installed. Install with: pip install aragora[rlm]"
+                    "is not installed. Install with: pip install rlm"
                 )
             return await func(*args, **kwargs)
 
diff --git a/docs/status/STATUS.md b/docs/status/STATUS.md
index 75184ea193..61b8c3745c 100644
--- a/docs/status/STATUS.md
+++ b/docs/status/STATUS.md
@@ -1965,7 +1965,7 @@ Based on [arXiv:2512.24601](https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.24601) - "Recursive Langu
 **Installation:**
 ```bash
 # Install with real RLM support
-pip install aragora
+pip install rlm
 ```
 
 **Usage:**
diff --git a/tests/debate/test_cognitive_limiter_rlm.py b/tests/debate/test_cognitive_limiter_rlm.py
index 8d0901da23..c125a722b9 100644
--- a/tests/debate/test_cognitive_limiter_rlm.py
+++ b/tests/debate/test_cognitive_limiter_rlm.py
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@
 - Real RLM integration (arXiv:2512.24601) - REPL-based approach
 - Fallback hierarchical summarization when RLM library not installed
 
-Install real RLM: pip install aragora[rlm]
+Install real RLM: pip install rlm
 """
 
 from __future__ import annotations
diff --git a/tests/rlm/test_cognitive_limiter_rlm.py b/tests/rlm/test_cognitive_limiter_rlm.py
index 51018e902e..ae3083228d 100644
--- a/tests/rlm/test_cognitive_limiter_rlm.py
+++ b/tests/rlm/test_cognitive_limiter_rlm.py
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@
    is stored as a Python variable and LLM writes code to query it
 2. Fallback hierarchical summarization when RLM library not installed
 
-Install real RLM: pip install aragora[rlm]
+Install real RLM: pip install rlm
 """
 
 import asyncio