diff --git a/hooks/mempal_precompact_hook.sh b/hooks/mempal_precompact_hook.sh
index 3a74ca5..25d918c 100755
--- a/hooks/mempal_precompact_hook.sh
+++ b/hooks/mempal_precompact_hook.sh
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@ echo "[$(date '+%H:%M:%S')] PRE-COMPACT triggered for session $SESSION_ID" >> "$
 if [ -n "$MEMPAL_DIR" ] && [ -d "$MEMPAL_DIR" ]; then
     SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd)"
     REPO_DIR="$(dirname "$SCRIPT_DIR")"
-    python3 -m mempalace mine "$MEMPAL_DIR" >> "$STATE_DIR/hook.log" 2>&1
+    mempalace mine "$MEMPAL_DIR" >> "$STATE_DIR/hook.log" 2>&1
 fi
 
 # Silent: return empty JSON to not block. "decision": "allow" is invalid —
diff --git a/hooks/mempal_save_hook.sh b/hooks/mempal_save_hook.sh
index d8e7cc2..c2ea745 100755
--- a/hooks/mempal_save_hook.sh
+++ b/hooks/mempal_save_hook.sh
@@ -144,7 +144,6 @@ if [ "$SINCE_LAST" -ge "$SAVE_INTERVAL" ] && [ "$EXCHANGE_COUNT" -gt 0 ]; then
     # 1. TRANSCRIPT_PATH (from Claude Code) — mine the directory it lives in
     # 2. MEMPAL_DIR (user-configured) — mine that directory
     # At least one should work. If neither is set, nothing mines.
-    PYTHON="$(command -v python3)"
     MINE_DIR=""
     if [ -n "$TRANSCRIPT_PATH" ] && [ -f "$TRANSCRIPT_PATH" ]; then
         MINE_DIR="$(dirname "$TRANSCRIPT_PATH")"
@@ -153,7 +152,7 @@ if [ "$SINCE_LAST" -ge "$SAVE_INTERVAL" ] && [ "$EXCHANGE_COUNT" -gt 0 ]; then
         MINE_DIR="$MEMPAL_DIR"
     fi
     if [ -n "$MINE_DIR" ]; then
-        "$PYTHON" -m mempalace mine "$MINE_DIR" >> "$STATE_DIR/hook.log" 2>&1 &
+        mempalace mine "$MINE_DIR" >> "$STATE_DIR/hook.log" 2>&1 &
     fi
 
     # MEMPAL_VERBOSE toggle: