endStaleAsks skipped every merged delivery, so a pull request merged without the Approve kept its merge ask in the gate's asks until it lapsed: on 2026-10-31 two such asks held two of the router's three places for the teller and a placement ask was refused for want of room. Every look now takes away a standing ask none of whose deliveries is still open, read from what the gate keeps, so a failed take away is retried. A settle asked again for another set takes the earlier settle ask away for the same reason.