The path led to a pitch-black forest, and Dumbledore approached the forest, drawing his wand and giving it a gentle wave.
The tangled undergrowth before him was parted by an invisible force, revealing a bizarrely shaped house hidden within.
The house had also been uninhabited for a long time, with the door covered in lush vines that made it look like a giant cocoon.
Dumbledore waved his wand again, and the vines automatically parted to the sides. With a creak, the long-unused door opened.
Snape noticed a snake on the door, brightly colored, as if it had just been nailed there yesterday, contrasting sharply with the ancient and worn surroundings.
"What is this place..." he couldn't help but ask.
"The Gont family home." Dumbledore bent over and entered the house.
"Gont..." Snape's expression flickered.
"Yes," Dumbledore said. "This is the last place Tom's mother lived...Be careful. I don't know if Tom has placed any additional magic here, so it's best not to touch anything."
"I know, no need to remind me," Snape replied. "How did you find this place?"
"Bob Ogden," Dumbledore said. "As a former Law Enforcement Department member, he came here for a case, and I happened to obtain the information."
Each step they took in the room caused the floor to emit a piercing creak, and though it was clearly daytime, it was exceedingly dark here, as if all the sunlight had been blocked outside by the trees.
"What are you looking for?" Snape asked.
He glanced around; the place was even more dilapidated than he'd imagined, with most items gone, leaving only some shabby furniture or chipped cups.
Dumbledore did not speak and wandered around the house, finally stopping in front of a small table with slender legs.
Snape guessed that the table might once have held exquisite and valuable ornaments, but now it only had a thick layer of dust.
"Not a clever method...It seems this is not how Tom protected it," Dumbledore remarked as he took out his wand and lightly tapped the tabletop.
Following that, the tabletop flipped over as if a glove being removed, revealing an ugly ring before the two of them.
The ring was gold with a black gemstone the size of a coin set in it.
Snape scrutinized the ring, finding it peculiarly familiar.
Dumbledore also saw the ring, his gaze instinctively landing on the black gem.
In an instant, his breath became ragged, and he subconsciously reached out his hand.
"Stop!" Snape shouted urgently. "That ring is not right; someone placed a terrible curse on it."
Dumbledore seemed not to hear his warning and showed no sign of stopping.
As his hand neared the ring, Snape realized in terror that he was too late to do anything.
However, at that moment, golden threads suddenly appeared on Dumbledore's forearm.
These threads, resembling ropes, gripped Dumbledore's arm, forcing his hand to stop just inches from the ring.
Instinctively, Dumbledore attempted to forcibly break free from the constraints on his arm, but this resulted in intense pain.
The threads embedded into Dumbledore's flesh, and within moments, multiple bloodstains appeared on his arm.
This pain gradually cleared Dumbledore's increasingly muddled mind.
He gazed at the ring so close at hand, panting heavily.
"I..."
Dumbledore started to say something when Snape, already rushing over, seemingly hadn't seen the golden threads, only noticing the bloodstains mysteriously appearing on Dumbledore's arm.
And with Dumbledore's fingers so near the ring, Snape acted quickly, disregarding all else, as he raised his leg.
"Dammit, don't touch that thing!"
With a muffled thud, Dumbledore felt a sharp pain throughout his body, and then his vision abruptly began to rapidly retreat.
When Dumbledore finally realized what had happened, he saw the dusty floor and, in a flash, the sole of Snape's shoe.