diff --git a/packages/session-projection/session-projection-cache/src/index.ts b/packages/session-projection/session-projection-cache/src/index.ts
index abb39ad1de..92515015f8 100644
--- a/packages/session-projection/session-projection-cache/src/index.ts
+++ b/packages/session-projection/session-projection-cache/src/index.ts
@@ -141,8 +141,14 @@ export class SessionProjectionCache extends Service {
   async coldSnapshot(id: SessionId, signal?: AbortSignal): Promise<ProjectionSnapshot> {
     const cached = this.checkpointOf(id)
     const floor = this.ctx.sessionProjections.restoreFloor(cached)
-    if (floor === undefined) return { asOfSeq: -1, values: {} }
     const persistence = this.ctx.sessionPersistence
+    if (floor === undefined) {
+      // No unit registered: nothing to fold, but the not-found contract must
+      // hold in this topology too — the probe read rejects for an absent log
+      // and dates the empty cut for a present one.
+      const probe = await persistence.readFrom(id, 0, signal)
+      return { asOfSeq: probe.events.at(-1)?.seq ?? -1, values: {} }
+    }
     let restored: { snapshot: ProjectionSnapshot; checkpoint: ProjectionCheckpoint }
     const tail = await persistence.readFrom(id, floor, signal)
     try {
diff --git a/packages/session-projection/session-projection-cache/tests/cache.spec.ts b/packages/session-projection/session-projection-cache/tests/cache.spec.ts
index defeddfd32..33d82cea24 100644
--- a/packages/session-projection/session-projection-cache/tests/cache.spec.ts
+++ b/packages/session-projection/session-projection-cache/tests/cache.spec.ts
@@ -252,4 +252,26 @@ describe('SessionProjectionCache cold read', () => {
     const { cache } = await harness()
     await expect(cache.coldSnapshot(SessionId('absent'))).rejects.toThrow('not found')
   })
+
+  it('holds the not-found contract with zero registered units, and dates the empty cut for a present log', async () => {
+    // Same composition minus any registered unit: restoreFloor is undefined,
+    // yet coldSnapshot must still reject for an absent log (probe read) and
+    // serve an empty cut at the stored end for a present one.
+    const pool = new MemoryMediaPool()
+    const logs = new Map([['bare', storedLog([['a']])]]) // seqs 0..2
+    const ctx = new Context()
+    contexts.push(ctx)
+    await ctx.plugin(Storage)
+    ctx.storage.backend.register('memory', new MemoryStorageBackend(pool))
+    const facility = new DomainFacility(ctx, { backend: 'memory', routes: {} })
+    ctx.storage.mount('domain', facility)
+    ctx.provide('storageDomain', facility)
+    await ctx.plugin(SessionStore)
+    await ctx.plugin(SessionProjectionRegistry)
+    ctx.provide('sessionPersistence', fakePersistence(logs) as never)
+    await ctx.plugin(SessionProjectionCache, { writeEveryEvents: 100, writeIntervalMs: 60_000 })
+    await expect(ctx.sessionProjectionCache.coldSnapshot(SessionId('absent'))).rejects.toThrow('not found')
+    await expect(ctx.sessionProjectionCache.coldSnapshot(SessionId('bare')))
+      .resolves.toEqual({ asOfSeq: 2, values: {} })
+  })
 })