> I can argue any language is interpreted because nothing compiles down to microcode

Not every processor architecture uses microcode, so this doesn't hold up.

> The point is you don't need janet-specific external dependencies in the environment

Sure.

> I don't differentiate between this and an inefficient compiler

A compiler is the general term here, but the target is not. Targeting the native architecture for a CPU vs targeting a bytecode VM are quite different and have pretty important implications for performance, portability, memory usage, etc.