You guessed well, S brands the spanish version of the HB-9.
You can skip the software by pressing the GRAPH key during start up.
There is a great article in the wiki of mrc.org about your machine.
If the rom is soldered, you may easily remove the chip, that´s the way you can get rid off the build in program in Philips VG8220, and previous Sonys. You may dump the P ROM on a chip and replace the spanish one.
The international P version had the possibility to change language between english, dutch, french and italian.
I recommend you to remove the ROM that content the firmware. The MSX will be easier to use and will have better compatibility with software and hardware.
@gdx I have had no issues with compatibility, it is just annoying to see it on startup. Should i ever sell the computer, it's value will be depreciated too, it was a free gift though, i have already spent over £250 on it though, with a MFR SD and will be hopefully getting a Carnivore2 in due course.
djh1697 you can easily change the language from Spanish to English/French/Italian.
Once in the the firmware program, just go to INICIALIZACIÓN → Idiomas, choose the one you want, exit and you're done
