diff --git a/internal/cmd/sling_helpers.go b/internal/cmd/sling_helpers.go
index 71b4ef9e..24fe25b9 100644
--- a/internal/cmd/sling_helpers.go
+++ b/internal/cmd/sling_helpers.go
@@ -345,6 +345,9 @@ func detectActor() string {
 // Rig-level agents use the rig's configured prefix (default "gt-").
 // townRoot is needed to look up the rig's configured prefix.
 func agentIDToBeadID(agentID, townRoot string) string {
+	// Normalize: strip trailing slash (resolveSelfTarget returns "mayor/" not "mayor")
+	agentID = strings.TrimSuffix(agentID, "/")
+
 	// Handle simple cases (town-level agents with hq- prefix)
 	if agentID == "mayor" {
 		return beads.MayorBeadIDTown()