from __future__ import annotations

from pathlib import Path


def load_goal_instructions(path: str = "GOAL.md") -> str:
    goal_path = Path(path)
    if not goal_path.exists():
        return ""
    try:
        return goal_path.read_text(encoding="utf-8").strip()
    except OSError:  # pragma: no cover - environment specific
        return ""