diff --git a/SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests/EmitPathReadOracleTests.cs b/SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests/EmitPathReadOracleTests.cs
index 09a123f..7bf5b05 100644
--- a/SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests/EmitPathReadOracleTests.cs
+++ b/SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests/EmitPathReadOracleTests.cs
@@ -57,6 +57,17 @@ namespace SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests
                 Assert.That(player.CemeteryList, Does.Contain(spell), "spell should land in the cemetery");
                 Assert.That(player.ClassAndInPlayCardList, Does.Not.Contain(spell), "a spell does not occupy the board");
             });
+
+            // Best-effort (F-E-7): with CurrentMatchingStatus seeded non-Disconnected (NewNetworkEmitBattle),
+            // the flow reaches stockEmitMessageMgr.StockData(info); read it back. If the stock machinery is
+            // not drivable headless this milestone, this assertion is DEFERRED to structural validation
+            // (spec §6) — the OnEmit + no-throw + state checks above are the decisive O1 read on their own.
+            var agent = Wizard.ToolboxGame.RealTimeNetworkAgent;
+            var stocked = HeadlessEngineEnv.TryReadStockedEmitData(agent); // returns null if unreachable
+            if (stocked != null)
+                Assert.That(stocked, Is.Not.Empty, "the emitted dict should be stocked non-empty");
+            else
+                Assert.Inconclusive("payload-presence DEFERRED: stock-sequencer not drivable headless (spec §6)");
         }
     }
 }
diff --git a/SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests/HeadlessFixture.cs b/SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests/HeadlessFixture.cs
index a285d3c..5a41723 100644
--- a/SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests/HeadlessFixture.cs
+++ b/SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests/HeadlessFixture.cs
@@ -434,6 +434,26 @@ namespace SVSim.BattleEngine.Tests
             return (mgr, emitted);
         }
 
+        // M13 Task 4 best-effort: read the emit payload back out of the agent's stock sequencer. With
+        // _notEmit=true (NewNetworkEmitBattle terminates the path that way), EmitMsgUriPack short-circuits
+        // BEFORE stockEmitMessageMgr.StockData (RealTimeNetworkAgent.cs:1438 vs :1461), so the stock is
+        // expected to be null/empty — return null on any null/throw so the test degrades to Inconclusive
+        // rather than failing. Field `stockEmitMessageMgr` (:103) + `GetSequenceAllData()`
+        // (StockEmitMgr.cs:81, returns List<Dictionary<string,object>>) verified against the copied engine.
+        public static System.Collections.IList TryReadStockedEmitData(RealTimeNetworkAgent agent)
+        {
+            try
+            {
+                var f = typeof(RealTimeNetworkAgent).GetField("stockEmitMessageMgr",
+                    System.Reflection.BindingFlags.Instance | System.Reflection.BindingFlags.NonPublic);
+                var stock = f?.GetValue(agent);
+                if (stock == null) return null;
+                var m = stock.GetType().GetMethod("GetSequenceAllData");
+                return m?.Invoke(stock, null) as System.Collections.IList;
+            }
+            catch { return null; }
+        }
+
         private static void SetField(object obj, string name, object value)
         {
             var f = obj.GetType().GetField(name,