diff --git a/fleetd/src/main/java/dev/ltms/fleet/msg/MessageService.java b/fleetd/src/main/java/dev/ltms/fleet/msg/MessageService.java
index 04e825b..2f9869a 100644
--- a/fleetd/src/main/java/dev/ltms/fleet/msg/MessageService.java
+++ b/fleetd/src/main/java/dev/ltms/fleet/msg/MessageService.java
@@ -948,6 +948,14 @@ public final class MessageService {
                 // the worker chained a second fleet_ask before replying. Mirror sendAsync's own guard
                 // (:1000) and leave the ticket open (markAsyncQuestion above already re-armed it under
                 // the new turnId) instead of completing it here with a QUESTION "reply".
+                // Measured when #282 was merged: this guard is DEFENCE IN DEPTH, not the thing
+                // that makes the chained ask work. ask() calls markAsyncQuestion (:860) before
+                // resolveQuestion (:861), so by the time this thread wakes, the task has already
+                // moved to the new turnId and finishAsyncTask(oldTurnId, ...) finds nothing. Removing
+                // this guard alone leaves the test green. Keep it anyway: it mirrors sendAsync's
+                // sibling guard, and that sibling's own comment (:1017) warns the two orderings are
+                // not something to rely on. Do NOT delete it as dead code without re-checking that
+                // ordering, and do not treat it as the sole protection either.
                 if (result.outcome() != Outcome.QUESTION) {
                     finishAsyncTask(turnId, result);
                 }