diff --git a/src/secrets/channel-contract-api.fast-path.test.ts b/src/secrets/channel-contract-api.fast-path.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..5954278bf85
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/secrets/channel-contract-api.fast-path.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+import { beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+
+const { loadPluginManifestRegistryMock } = vi.hoisted(() => ({
+  loadPluginManifestRegistryMock: vi.fn(() => {
+    throw new Error("manifest registry should stay off the explicit bundled channel fast path");
+  }),
+}));
+
+vi.mock("../plugins/manifest-registry.js", async (importOriginal) => {
+  const actual = await importOriginal<typeof import("../plugins/manifest-registry.js")>();
+  return {
+    ...actual,
+    loadPluginManifestRegistry: loadPluginManifestRegistryMock,
+  };
+});
+
+import {
+  loadBundledChannelSecretContractApi,
+  loadBundledChannelSecurityContractApi,
+} from "./channel-contract-api.js";
+
+describe("channel contract api explicit fast path", () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    loadPluginManifestRegistryMock.mockClear();
+  });
+
+  it("resolves bundled channel secret contracts by explicit channel id without manifest scans", () => {
+    const api = loadBundledChannelSecretContractApi("bluebubbles");
+
+    expect(api?.collectRuntimeConfigAssignments).toBeTypeOf("function");
+    expect(api?.secretTargetRegistryEntries).toEqual(
+      expect.arrayContaining([
+        expect.objectContaining({
+          id: "channels.bluebubbles.accounts.*.password",
+        }),
+      ]),
+    );
+    expect(loadPluginManifestRegistryMock).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+
+  it("resolves bundled channel security contracts by explicit channel id without manifest scans", () => {
+    const api = loadBundledChannelSecurityContractApi("whatsapp");
+
+    expect(api?.unsupportedSecretRefSurfacePatterns).toEqual(
+      expect.arrayContaining(["channels.whatsapp.creds.json"]),
+    );
+    expect(api?.collectUnsupportedSecretRefConfigCandidates).toBeTypeOf("function");
+    expect(loadPluginManifestRegistryMock).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/secrets/channel-contract-api.ts b/src/secrets/channel-contract-api.ts
index e873288211c..5d5fe949e5c 100644
--- a/src/secrets/channel-contract-api.ts
+++ b/src/secrets/channel-contract-api.ts
@@ -50,31 +50,45 @@ function loadBundledChannelPublicArtifact(
   channelId: string,
   artifactBasenames: readonly string[],
 ): BundledChannelContractApi | undefined {
-  const dirName = getBundledChannelDirName(channelId);
-  if (!dirName) {
-    return undefined;
-  }
+  const triedDirNames = new Set<string>();
+  const tryDirName = (dirName: string | undefined): BundledChannelContractApi | undefined => {
+    if (typeof dirName !== "string" || dirName.trim().length === 0 || triedDirNames.has(dirName)) {
+      return undefined;
+    }
+    triedDirNames.add(dirName);
 
-  for (const artifactBasename of artifactBasenames) {
-    try {
-      return loadBundledPluginPublicArtifactModuleSync<BundledChannelContractApi>({
-        dirName,
-        artifactBasename,
-      });
-    } catch (error) {
-      if (
-        error instanceof Error &&
-        error.message.startsWith("Unable to resolve bundled plugin public surface ")
-      ) {
-        continue;
-      }
-      if (process.env.OPENCLAW_DEBUG_CHANNEL_CONTRACT_API === "1") {
-        const detail = formatErrorMessage(error);
-        process.stderr.write(
-          `[channel-contract-api] failed to load ${channelId} via ${dirName}/${artifactBasename}: ${detail}\n`,
-        );
+    for (const artifactBasename of artifactBasenames) {
+      try {
+        return loadBundledPluginPublicArtifactModuleSync<BundledChannelContractApi>({
+          dirName,
+          artifactBasename,
+        });
+      } catch (error) {
+        if (
+          error instanceof Error &&
+          error.message.startsWith("Unable to resolve bundled plugin public surface ")
+        ) {
+          continue;
+        }
+        if (process.env.OPENCLAW_DEBUG_CHANNEL_CONTRACT_API === "1") {
+          const detail = formatErrorMessage(error);
+          process.stderr.write(
+            `[channel-contract-api] failed to load ${channelId} via ${dirName}/${artifactBasename}: ${detail}\n`,
+          );
+        }
       }
     }
+    return undefined;
+  };
+
+  const direct = tryDirName(channelId);
+  if (direct) {
+    return direct;
+  }
+
+  const fallback = tryDirName(getBundledChannelDirName(channelId));
+  if (fallback) {
+    return fallback;
   }
 
   return undefined;