I wrote a similar x86-16 assembler in < 512 B of x86-16 assembly, and this seems much more difficult <https://github.com/kvakil/0asm/>. I did find a lot of similar tricks were helpful: using gadgets and hashes. Once trick I don't see in sectorc which shaved quite a bit off of 0asm was self-modifying code, which 0asm uses to "change" to the second-pass of the assembler. (I wrote some other techniques here: <https://kvakil.me/posts/asmkoan.html>.)