diff --git a/board.sx b/board.sx
index 912a0f8..7bc76ca 100644
--- a/board.sx
+++ b/board.sx
@@ -202,7 +202,7 @@ pick_gem :: (board: *Board, rng: *Rng, col: i64, row: i64) -> Gem {
 // single gem character per cell. Suitable for snapshotting.
 board_dump :: (self: *Board) -> string {
     line_w := BOARD_COLS + 1;            // 8 gem chars + newline
-    buf := cstring(BOARD_ROWS * line_w);
+    buf := alloc_string(BOARD_ROWS * line_w);
     for 0..BOARD_ROWS (row) {
         base := row * line_w;
         for 0..BOARD_COLS (col) {
@@ -298,7 +298,7 @@ find_matches :: (b: *Board) -> MatchMask {
 // unambiguously as the empty set. Suitable for snapshotting.
 dump_matches :: (b: *Board, m: *MatchMask) -> string {
     line_w := BOARD_COLS + 1;            // 8 cells + newline
-    buf := cstring(BOARD_ROWS * line_w);
+    buf := alloc_string(BOARD_ROWS * line_w);
     for 0..BOARD_ROWS (row) {
         base := row * line_w;
         for 0..BOARD_COLS (col) {
diff --git a/main.sx b/main.sx
index 520b61b..f1aba31 100644
--- a/main.sx
+++ b/main.sx
@@ -24,8 +24,6 @@
 
 // libc is the implicit foreign-library handle the std allocators bind against;
 // reused here to read the deterministic-capture environment variables at startup.
-getenv :: (name: [:0]u8) -> *u8 #foreign libc "getenv";
-strlen :: (s: *u8) -> usize #foreign libc "strlen";
 
 // Fixed seed for the rendered board — the same seed tests/board_init.sx locks
 // as a snapshot, so the on-screen layout matches that golden gem-for-gem.
@@ -116,14 +114,7 @@ build_ui :: () -> View {
 // M3TE_SELECT=<cellIndex 0..63> forces a selection so the select-pop reaction can
 // be captured without injecting a tap. Absent → normal live behaviour.
 read_env :: (name: [:0]u8) -> ?string {
-    p := getenv(name);
-    addr : i64 = xx p;
-    if addr == 0 { return null; }
-    n := cast(i64) strlen(p);
-    if n == 0 { return ""; }
-    buf := cstring(n);
-    memcpy(buf.ptr, xx p, n);
-    buf
+    process.env(name)
 }
 
 // Digit arithmetic runs entirely in i64; the result converts to f32 only once at